Chicago City Wire

The Chicago Republican Party sent out a message of hope as Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson was inaugurated. 

“The Chicago Republican Party congratulates Mayor Brandon Johnson on his inauguration,” the Chicago Republican Party said in a press release. “It would be false to assert that we welcomed his election, but the people have spoken at the ballot box, and it is our duty as citizens to be as constructive with the new administration as we can, despite our reservations and differences in policy.” 

The party stated it welcomed Johnson's “proposed reopening of more mental health clinics in Chicago, as they can not only assist in improving lives, but they can potentially head off crime by those in need of treatment.”  

And they have more to tell to the 57th Chicago mayor.

“We urge the Mayor to exercise wisdom in the face of the many calls for socialist policies coming from his supporters," it said. "Many a path to utopia has instead led to misery.  We do not view the recent comment by the CME Chief Executive Officer – that a relocation out of Chicago is possible – as an idle threat given the recent movement of financial firms out of the city.  We do not doubt that the sentiment is shared by many business owners, who will leave with not only their companies, but with their wealth, their future tax payments, their philanthropy, and their support for a vibrant civic culture.”    

The Chicago GOP also reiterated “that the pursuit of both prosperity and better education in Chicago will be key to reversing the palpable decline of this city in recent years."  It said it hopes, "that the Mayor will see that without greater prosperity, his dreams of social change will fail.  

"Without better education free of indoctrination, we not only condemn our children to lesser lives, but also our city to a lesser future” the party said. “In the end, we all want the best for Chicago as a whole, but simply have different views on the path to achieve it. Sorting that out is the essence of good government.”

Johnson’s campaign clashed with the Chicago Republican Party after it was accused of creating fake campaign signs bearing a “MAGA 2024” logo for opponent and fellow Democrat Paul Vallas. 

“Brandon Johnson’s campaign needs to keep the GOP out of their sleazy election tactics,” Chicago Republican Chairman Stephen Boulton said in a press release at the time. “That goes double when it involves a racial dog whistle.”

Despite the emergency declaration over immigrants streaming into Chicago issued in successor Lori Lightfoot’s final days in office, Johnson has maintained a pro-immigrant stance. 

"Chicago has always been a place that immigrants, migrants and refugees have called home,” Johnson’s campaign website reads, Chicago City Wire previously reported. “It is a place where migrants and refugees from all over the world – from the Jim Crow South to the furthest reaches of the globe – have come to build lives and contribute to everything that makes our city great."

Crain’s Editorial Board said handling the immigration issue will be Johnson’s first major test. Crain’s Editorial Board is pointing out that with inheriting a city in a state of crisis, Johnson will have his hands full on day one.

“So why wasn’t the Lightfoot administration better prepared to handle this latest wave of refugees?” Crain’s Editorial Board said in an editorial. “Why have available funds not been tapped? As Hinz points out in his summation of Lightfoot’s tenure, at least part of the problem is Lightfoot’s combative leadership style.” 

The editorial also noted that "This will be the first major test of Brandon Johnson’s mayoralty."  

“But with a new person about to take occupancy of the fifth floor mayor’s suite, Chicagoans who are concerned about the migrant situation have to hope the new administration will be better positioned to seek allies and to sweat the small stuff — like state funding vouchers — in order to address what’s shaping up to be a humanitarian crisis within our own city limits," according to Crain's Editorial Board. "There’s much he can learn from how his predecessor has handled this mess so far.”