Chicago City Wire

Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge 7 President John Catanzara Jr. sent a letter to President Donald Trump asking for help in establishing law and order in Chicago after Black Lives Matter protestors clashed with police in front of the Grant Park statue of Christopher Columbus, according to a July 18 ABC Chicago report.

“These politicians are failing the good men and women of this city and the police department,” Catanzara wrote in his July 25 letter to the president, adding that he would be willing to sit down any time to discuss bringing civility back to the streets of Chicago. 

Chicago's Democratic Mayor Lori Lightfoot called the letter a political stunt, according to media reports. Trump plans to send 150 federal agents to the city, raising concerns from more than 60 elected officials who signed a letter to Lightfoot and Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart expressing their fears that federal agents would only antagonize protestors, NBC Chicago reported on July 27.

Chicago's 13th Ward Republican Committeeman David Krupa

“President Trump has repeatedly demonstrated both his callous disregard for Black, indigenous and immigrant lives and his increasing inclination toward fascism and authoritarianism,” the letter stated.

Chicago's 13th Ward Republican Committeeman David Krupa is showing support for the FOP president, something he says the mayor should have also done.

“John Catanzara did what he felt needed to be done and it's something the mayor wouldn't do,” Krupa said in a statement. “Obviously, he's more concerned about the people of Chicago and Cook County at large. Honestly, I think that Mayor Lightfoot calling it a political stunt is in itself a political stunt. The union chief didn't make it political in the slightest. He simply asked the president for help and was very gracious when he received it.”

According to media reports, Lightfoot and Trump had a phone conversation last week about the president's intention to send federal agents to Chicago. Lightfoot released a statement in which she said federal agents that were deployed to Portland, Oregon, do not belong in Chicago. 

As widely reported, some Portland protestors claim they have been abducted by federal agents in unmarked cars. Krupa believes Lightfoot should have accepted help sooner, especially in light of the fact that one group of protesters gathered outside the mayor's residence.

“It looks terrible for her that she waited until they showed up outside her house to request federal help, and I also think that deep down she always wanted the help but she didn't ask for it due to political reasons,” Krupa told the Chicago City Wire. “Nobody just makes a whole 180 on an issue like that. It was almost like a game of chicken where President Trump didn't want to offer help because he wanted the political boost of her asking for it, and she didn't want to ask for it because it would be almost an admission of defeat that she can't govern the city well.”

The Chicago Sun-Times reported that Lightfoot had two Christopher Columbus statues quietly removed overnight last week due to public safety concerns. Krupa thinks the move sent a dangerous message.

“Regardless of what we were to do with the statues in the future, taking them down just a day after violent riots where 18 police officers were injured sends a terrible signal,” he said. “What are we saying, that violence is a reasonable solution to whatever problems people may have? That's just going to encourage more violence and more riots. I think it was a terrible decision on her part and it was very imprudent.”