Chicago Politics

Press Availability 11.6.25

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Mayor Brandon Johnson hosts press availability.

Transcript

6:57 And thank you for being patient. Before we get started, I just want to talk about what we saw yesterday in North Center. ICE agents entered a daycare. They went inside of a preschool. They tore a teacher out of a classroom in front of their children. That video shocked the conscience of every single Chicagoan across our beloved city. This is not who we are. We most certainly cannot have this in our city.

7:27 or our country. My heart certainly goes out to the 47th Ward who were deeply appalled and shocked by this kind of incident. Greg Bovino allegedly told the court that this is his effing or blank city. No, Greg, it's not. The city belongs to Chicagoans. Your agents have broken laws.

7:57 They have acted with impunity. But at the end of the day, we will hold you accountable for the crimes you have committed against our people. Ripping a teacher out of a daycare just further proves that this operation has nothing to do with the, quote, worse of the worst, end quote. So the cruelty and the inhumanity that has been on display, that is their point.

8:30 They're trying to intimidate us, and we certainly see how far they are willing to go. We will continue to push back and resist this tyranny. We will use every single tool at our disposal. proposal. We will certainly push to look for additional measures that we can use to enforce our Constitution. Thank you for indulging me this morning, and I'm happy to answer any of your questions. Mayor, thank you very much. You're welcome. Can we start with the Ernst & Young

9:03 report? Sure, of course. Why is there such a debate over it, and why haven't you, or perhaps you have, tell us, explain, implemented the recommendations from that report? Yeah, well, first of all, this is the first of its kind. I'm the first mayor in the history of Chicago to bring together experts from all disciplines, whether it's the business, civic, philanthropic, community-based organizations, elected leaders, bringing all of us together to solve the structural damage that we have had to deal with in this city for decades. We're going to fix it. We're going to get it right. In fact, though, the investments that

9:37 we made to bring this table together, we have already put forth in this budget several recommendations of which we're going to save, I believe, roughly $80 million just this year alone. And with the implementation of the recommendations that we are putting forth already, it's going to save us $600 million. within the next 10 years. And that's just based upon the recommendations that we've put forth in this budget. Now, as you know, there are a plethora

10:07 of recommendations that I have and what this report has indicated, and it's going to take time, right? All of those recommendations cannot be implemented overnight, but we are certainly moving with expediency. That full report is available to individuals, and we're looking forward to this vote and this budget passing so that the recommendations that we have received thus far. That's going to save us $80 million this year. $600 million over the course of the next 10 years can be fully implemented. Can you also weigh in on the new credit rating?

10:38 Two notches above junk status. It can't be a good review of your budget. Well, look, I mean, this budget is a very sound, balanced budget of which 65% of this budget is structural in nature. I know that there have been questions around pensions. And, you know, So when the executive order was put into place under the previous administration, it was set up to provide an additional advance payment based upon an assigned balance. Well, we no longer have that.

11:09 However, we still were able to, even in these very difficult, tumultuous times, still put forth an advance payment while not cutting services. I think it's a remarkable testament to the innovation and the ingenuity that has been put forth in this particular budget. Morning, Mayor. Yes, it is. We want to ask you about our reporting related to ClinA Hedspeth this week. The initial HR complaint was filed in February, and this week there are alders coming out saying that they couldn't even get the former commissioner to take a phone call from them.

11:40 I want to ask you, when did you first become aware that there were problems within D-Case, and why did it take so long from the time the initial complaint was filed to when your office asked her to resign? Well, once the, you know, report was issued to us, we moved with expediency. We took forth and we moved forward with every single recommendation that came from that report. And, you know, look, here's I believe what's important is that not only did we accept the recommendations,

12:13 we saw one of our most dynamic summers that we've ever experienced. in the history of Chicago, and that had a lot to do with how D-Case showed up for the people of this city. Putting on large-scale events and investing in art is important to me, and I will continue to do just that. I understand that, but I also want to ask you, under her leadership, the department lost nearly 30 employees. How is your office going to try to repair the damage done there, losing so many people at a really important, as you mentioned, department?

12:46 Well, it is an important department. And as I said, we saw a record-breaking advancement in our downtown corridor in particular. We're seeing the resurgence of the taste of Chicago, one that has been anemic for some time. Again, Lollapalooza, our investment in arts and artists as well. We have an expansion program where we are paying artists to provide mental and behavioral health care services for families.

13:20 So in no way did it interrupt or disrupt our ability to put forth the best presentation that the city of Chicago has ever seen. And as far as repairing relationships, we have an interim commissioner, and part of their responsibility is to get feedback from all of Chicago to ensure that we can continue to see the type of advancement that we experienced over the last couple of years. Hey, good morning. I'm Amy Dorch from WGN News.

13:52 The CPD superintendent pretty much defended overtime costs yesterday. Is it realistic to cap them? Won't the city council just give extra money next year? Well, let me just say, first of all, I mean, the work that, you know, my office has done with the police department to rein in over time, we're grateful that in terms of hours, we have seen the reduction. What we are experiencing is that I did the right thing and I gave police officers raises, right?

14:23 And so, you know, it's going to take some time to find that type of balance. What I've done in this budget is that we put forth a realistic budget. Right, for so long we were placing a number that we knew that the police department would not be able to stay within that number. And simply because there's been an over-reliance of our police department to provide support for private events, essentially. Right now, we're glad to do it because keeping people safe is our top priority. You know, and there are some cost-saving measures that we're implementing as well to ensure that these large-scale events that require the additional support from our police department, there has to be a stronger commitment to reimburse the city for those services.

15:07 And, again, the hours are down. And then, again, it's another opportunity to create more check and balance within our infrastructure. I've said this from the very beginning. If you go back two and a half years ago, the government that I inherited will not be the government that we pass on to the next generation. We have to be far more nimble, flexible, innovative in our approach to modernize city government, and this budget does just that. And I want to go back to the budget really quickly. Sure. Your corporate head tax proposal has widely been panned by your alders, of course.

15:41 And what will you accept from city council if they don't approve this head tax? Well, let me just tell you what we're not going to accept. We're not going to accept a reduction in our investments in community safety. We're not going to accept that. Now, look, we had the safest summer in 60 years, the fewest amount of homicides, right? Ever since I've taken office, we have seen a precipitous decline in shootings, shooting victims, homicides, vehicular carjackings. We have a long way to go. Don't misunderstand me. But we're going to double down on our efforts to ensure that we build the safest, most affordable big city in America.

16:14 And that's not something that we should negotiate, quite frankly. We shouldn't negotiate the safety of the people of Chicago. We're talking about 31,119 young people with summer jobs. How many less young people do we want to hire? That's what we're really talking about. We're talking about making sure that we're investing in programs that support individuals who've experienced domestic violence. Is that negotiable? We're talking about the mental health and well-being of police officers. That's what this investment is going towards.

16:47 And then, you know, there's been a great deal of hope around how our CVI workers, community violence intervention workers, are showing up on blocks where violence has been pervasive and has run amok. And we've seen 40, 45 percent reduction with these workers on the front line, de-escalating feuds, intervening in disputes. I mean, quite frankly, I don't think we should negotiate that. That's the well-being of our city. And again, I don't think it's an unreasonable service for 3% of our largest corporations that have 100 or more employees that are full-time to pay their fair share.

17:34 Look, I made a commitment to the people of Chicago that we're going to invest in them and that we're going to challenge those with means to put more skin in the game. But I also made a commitment that we're not going to continue to balance budgets off the backs of working people. There's a better pathway forward. This corporate head tax allows for us to continue to double down on our efforts to build the safest, most affordable big city in America. And I'm very proud of our efforts and our work, and we'll continue to do just that, invest in people. Mark Armstrong, Shy Guardian, Deep South Press Corps, which I'm making that identification to distinguish me from a provocateur journalist who seems to, with immunity, get to use the terrestrial term illegal alien while I get Jim Crowed by the use of it.

18:22 But anyways, your foundational black American Chicagoan constituents want to know why you keep dealing the race card for everything from a general strike to this reparations initiative when you don't do anything substantially tangible for them, and the working term is substantially tangible in their minds.

18:53 The number one issue that's facing black Chicago, and quite frankly, black America, is disinvestment, right? Schools have been closed. Housing has been shuttered. The lack of access to food, job opportunities. These are real issues, issues that I'm fully aware of, issues that I fought for well before I was mayor. You know, I remember a time, you know, when folks were ignoring black Chicago, particularly around school closings, and I was part of a hunger strike.

19:29 to keep schools open, particularly on the west and south sides of Chicago. In fact, deep south, I took an arrest in front of the elevators that are now held for me because administrations refused to respond to the needs of black Chicago. So what have I done since I've been here? The largest TIF surplus in the history of Chicago, where a half a billion dollars is going to go into our public schools. That's going to disproportionately impact black students. We are in the midst of a lawsuit right now because Donald Trump, who is withholding dollars for our black student success program,

20:02 I make sure in our budget that we provide those resources until we get those dollars back. Right? But we're also expanding our ability to, so not just education. We're also expanding youth employment. Right? 31,119 young people for summer jobs. The vast majority of them are black children. But we're also expanding our housing opportunities, particularly affordable housing. Our missing middle program where we literally started on the west and south side of Chicago,

20:32 Inglewood, North Lawndale, where black developers are building on property that the city of Chicago returned back to black Chicago while creating owner-occupied housing so that we can build generational wealth. Expanding mental and behavioral health care services. I'm the first mayor since Mayor Harry Washington to actually invest in public mental health because I stood with black families when we worked to keep the mental health clinics open. So Roseland, Garfield Park, the lower west side.

21:06 So between mental health, housing, jobs, education, and then finally transportation, we secured over $2 billion to extend the red line to go, as we say, out south. Donald Trump is withholding those dollars because he doesn't want those investments to go into our communities. And so, though there is still more work to be done, we're not going to rebuild Chicago overnight. But we are going to do it one block at a time, one neighborhood at a time. And as we expand opportunities for black Chicago, that actually improves all of Chicago.

21:40 Okay. So without any deflecting this time, our cauldron of sources want to know what became of the report that was supposed to go last month to HUD and to either DOJ or Congress concerning spending on illegal aliens at Chicago Housing Authority. So, again, I have to fundamentally reject the terminology illegal and certainly alien.

22:14 I think those two words together are not just offensive and derogatory. It's just not even applicable to the real world. And so no deflection and no interruption either. Just respect that process. So here's what folks are trying to do. And I understand. And so we are in full compliance with every single thing that we've been asked to do. But make no mistake about it. The individuals that are looking for a so-called accounting of what was spent to get people off the floor of police districts.

22:49 I would ask the question, how much was spent to make sure that we were protecting Ukrainians, which was the right thing to do. 30,000 Ukrainian refugees came to the city of Chicago, no one asked what we spent on them, how much Congress spent on them. Do you know why? There's a clear distinction between how we treat certain regions of the globe. Now, we have spent less than 1% over the course of four years to respond to a crisis that Congress neglected to intervene in on.

23:20 And even with that less than one percent, it did not stop us from building more affordable homes. It did not stop us from reopening mental health clinics. It did not stop us from investing in our education system. It did not stop us from investing in transportation. It did not stop us from investing in housing. And so I really just want to make sure that people are clear of the motivation behind why they are asking the accounting of less than one percent of the city's budget, while not asking Congress why they did not intervene.

23:53 It is reprehensible. Quite frankly, it is hypocritical for them to question anything that we have done when they didn't do their job. Good morning. Good morning. It still is. It's still morning, and it's still good. I think so, yeah. It's early. Why keep talking about the head tax if you don't have the votes to pass it? And given that, and also given the fact that there has been a credit downgrade, Why not implement some of the efficiencies and savings that the E&Y report recommend?

24:26 Well, first of all, ... And we have not had a vote on the budget yet. Right. And so there's an entire process of engagement that we're going through. I can tell you this. If you talk to the community as a whole, Chicagoans, do they believe that the ultra wealthy and big corporations should pay their fair share in taxes? Chicagoans overwhelmingly agree with me. Right. And so that that's just hands down. I think the second thing is we have implemented recommendations from this report, 80 million dollars of savings, of which that's going to translate into 600 million dollars of savings over the course of the next decade.

25:08 Now, there are other recommendations, of course, that we're going to continue to explore. But, you know, this notion that somehow we can just dump a whole bunch of recommendations on the table at the same time and then be able to figure that out in a matter of a budget cycle. That's just not realistic. And quite frankly, it's not responsible. It's going to take time for us to modernize our our government. Now, look, in the past two and a half years, every single budget that I've put forth has been overwhelmingly structural in nature. This budget is 65% structural in terms of the things that we are doing today will have long-term derivatives for us in terms of returns of our investments that's going to sustain our economy.

25:52 I think the last note that I believe it's important is that what are we really talking about here? We're really talking about, for these largest corporations, less than 1%, about 0.4% of their overall budget, $21 a month. We're talking about lunch. That's what we're talking about. And here's what that lunch money will do for Chicago. It's going to make sure that our police officers have the mental health support that they deserve and need.

26:28 It's going to make sure that we're supporting individuals who are survivors of domestic violence. It's going to ensure that our young people have good paying jobs. It's going to make sure that CVI workers have jobs as well to help drive down violence. That's really what we're debating. We're debating whether or not we should balance our budget off the backs of working people, or should we challenge the ultra-wealthy and the largest corporations who just received the largest tax break in the history of America to pay their fair share?

27:01 Now, as far as I'm concerned, though I'm always open to debate, we should not negotiate the safety and the well-being of our city. Also, can you just respond to some of the accusations from Alderman, specifically Alderman Bill Conway, about the lack of transparency for a new Greyhound bus station? He found it in a line item. Well, first of all, there's nothing surreptitious about my budget or my approach.

27:31 Um, we have been in regular communication around how do we ensure we have a bus terminal for Greyhound that is going to provide access for 500,000 riders. We're talking about poor and low income individuals. We're also talking about one of the greatest groups to advocate for us to and make this investment that citywide, by the way, to make this investment are, you know, groups that support reproductive rights for women.

28:09 because in many instances, these women who may not be able to have the health care services in their particular states, they can come to Chicago, and Greyhound is one of the ways in which that passage is made safe and equitable for them. So I fundamentally disagree with the characterization of this alder. And, you know, again, we're look, if alders believe that for a citywide initiative as important as this one to have like a veto de facto sort of prerogative operation, then then then we're going to fundamentally disagree.

28:52 I believe that for citywide investments like this one, I have the opportunity to lead with conviction to ensure that something that is as paramount as access to transportation is not left into the hands of someone or anyone who might have a more narrow view of the world. And then, of course, once this operation continues to grow and build, we'll continue to take feedback as we go along. How are you doing, Mayor Johnson?

29:23 You know, I'm actually doing relatively well. I mean, look, I'm not ordering and looking for, you know, NBA championship rings, but to have a 6-1 Chicago Bulls right now, let's go with 72-10, right? You don't have to say nothing. Let my optimism just win you over eventually. So I'm doing okay. Thank you for asking. I want to go back to your comments at the beginning dealing with the ICE operations in Chicago and your pledge to hold Greg Bovino and others accountable.

29:54 It is clear that in a number of instances, Chicago police officers have been put in kind of a tough spot here. And indeed, about a week and a half, almost two weeks ago, we heard from a homeowner on the north side who said that he tried to get CPD to take a report after ICE agents swarmed his property to detain a worker who was installing windows at his house and really had difficulty doing that. How do you expect to be able to hold federal authorities accountable?

30:24 And are you asking Chicago police to arrest federal immigration agents? First of all, let me just say, again, what the president of the United States of America is doing is absolutely reprehensible. It is clearly unconstitutional. And these are unprecedented times. If you would have told me, you know, two years ago that, you know, I would not only be responsible to, you know, shift the balance of powers as we balance budgets, but that I would also be under attack by the federal government.

30:55 I don't know if I would have believed you. I mean, we're talking about a president who has declared war on an American city, the city of Chicago. I mean, you've been covering the news for for some time. When was the last time a president declared war on American cities? Ronald Reagan, if you just want to know. I mean, you know, look, when Mayor Washington was here, he did the same thing. This is straight out of the playbook of extremism in this country. And so we can't lose sight of that. And so, in other words, as these unprecedented moments take shape, we're going to have to continue to evolve.

31:26 Right? The executive orders that I put forward, it's not like there was a template for that. The executive order in particular that I believe that you're making some reference to, the fact that we had to put forth an executive order to protect public property, particularly city-owned property, so that ICE agents would not set up their terror on public property, particularly city-owned property, that wasn't something that just jumped out initially, right? It was a part of the evolution of this response to terror.

31:56 Now, here's the thing. Now we're seeing cities all over America using that same temple and that same model, and we're going to learn from other cities as well. The most important thing is that I'm going to use every single tool and all of the authority that has been vested to me. And as far as the police department is concerned, In return, we know that already that with city-owned property, our local police department has reacted, has responded, and so far there's been some level of compliance.

32:27 Now, with private property, my hope is that these private companies embrace our protecting Chicago model that will provide our police department with the authority to do what they have done in cases where property has been owned by the city of Chicago. Now, as far as expectations beyond that, we're going to continue to evolve to respond to this unprecedented element that we're all facing, whether it's through litigation, which every single lawsuit that we have put forth, we've won. And every single lawsuit that's been brought against my administration, we've defeated,

33:00 whether that's legislation or through executive order or the continuous of community organizing. All of it is going to be necessary to beat back authoritarianism in this country. And I want to go back, if you'll permit me, to follow up on Sarah's question dealing with the Greyhound Terminal. I think in my conversations and in other conversations I've heard of Alderman Conway, his issue is he's not really against a new Greyhound Terminal. It's that nobody told him it was in the budget, and when he asked your development commissioner, she said, well, it's too early to really talk about it.

33:36 Is it your view that a purchase like that or an investment like that in something like a transit terminal does not need aldermanic consult or approval? We have conversations with alders about a variety of things. When it comes to a citywide investment of this magnitude, that authority does rest on the fifth floor. It doesn't mean that we don't have conversations. We've had multiple conversations with Alderman Conway.

34:09 In fact, if you were to ask him that, ask him how many conversations that he's had with my administration around this very issue. This is something that he ostensibly supports. And quite frankly, I'm not even quite sure what the hang-up is. Look, we're talking about an investment for low-income families and poor people. And again, the only conclusion that I can come to is that somehow these de facto sort of vetoes

34:40 that people want to be able to hold is something that I don't believe is in the best interest of the city of Chicago. And again, we're talking about women who overwhelmingly are looking to, quite frankly, escape and flee from states that do not protect their fundamental rights. And I'm always open for the negotiation of details around anything, but we're not going to negotiate our values. This is a value investment here, and I believe that's what needs to be focused.

35:15 That has to be our primary focus. And I believe that if he and others were to just relax, take a deep breath, look at the larger projection that we are putting forth in this moment, and not necessarily be overly reactive and sensitive to their, I don't know, smaller particulars, that, you know, we can put forth investments that are transformational.

35:47 And when we're talking about 500,000 riders, mostly poor, low-income, and, quite frankly, people of color, that's a good thing for the city of Chicago. And I hope that other alders will join us in this effort to ensure that this investment is fully realized. Amir, this credit outlook downgrade, it seems to be a clear warning that the credit actual rating would be downgraded later if you don't find more structural solutions. Are you not taking that warning as a sign that the budget proposal on the table should be amended?

36:23 And can you also address, you've said twice now that you closed the gap with 65% structural solutions. Anak Guzman told the city council during the first budget hearing, put that figure at 60%. Why are we being closed? Okay, 60%, 65%. I think that 5% is pretty big, right? Well, look, whether it's 60% or 65%, the point is that it is overwhelmingly a structurally sound budget. That's the most important thing. You said your previous budgets were over, but the last budget that you supported,

36:57 and the city council obviously approved, it was amended through the city council negotiations, it led to a credit downgrade, and it was because they said it was not sufficiently structural. So are you saying let's move full steam ahead with my budget proposal? Warnings from the credit agencies, you know, notwithstanding? Well, what I'm saying is, like, look, we have a very clear structural challenge within our city's finances. And let me give you a specific example.

37:28 In 2019, and I'll go back and check the numbers since you're being real particular, 61%, I think, is the actual number of property taxes went towards pensions. Now it's 80% of property taxes goes towards our pensions. Now this is at the same time in which, of course, the state of Illinois moved on legislation that now requires a greater investment for our pension system. That's something that has been structurally damaged for a very long time.

38:00 And there's course correction. Now, I personally believe that the reason why the structural tension is so pronounced is because, I'm just going to become very vulnerable here, is that for a very long time we have embraced this mediocre, I think, approach towards how we solve these challenges.

38:31 And it's unfortunate that we have not challenged those with means to put more skin in the game, right? And so what this budget does is that it provides not only a structural fix to the damage, but it shifts the balance of how we go at balancing our budgets. And, again, whether it's through making government more productive, finding ways in which we can modernize our budget,

39:03 securing revenue from areas where our economy is shifting, which the social media tax is one of those areas that I believe that will ensure that we generate more progressive revenue to deal with the structural damage. that I inherited. You know, so it's really a moment of truth for our city that this budget places us in a stronger position to be able to secure revenue from areas where our economy is

39:36 growing. And as we do that, I believe that over time, the type of investments that we want to see take root while also responding to the damage that we've inherited, that balance you know will be ultimately leveled if there's not support for the head tax and then you know there's also been calls to to restore the advance pension payment and to not borrow do you want to be part of the whatever the next plan b is or are you kind of calling on city council to bring you

40:08 a plan b and then negotiate from there well first of all the advance payment is still there right Right. So we did that. Right. Well, we did do it. All right. And so this is, you know, where, you know, the rubber meets the road. We have two options. Right. We could challenge those with means to put more skin in the game, which the people of Chicago overwhelmingly support this measure, because I don't want to lose sight on this. why is there such a proclivity to defend billionaires but not working people?

40:40 I'm not necessarily asking you all to shift your question, but here's the question that I ask. Should we continue to place the tax burden on working people? Why is it that no one asks what would happen to the people of Chicago, particularly working people, if we continue to place pressure on them? Are we not concerned that they will flee or be pushed out? Because I certainly am. Because I've seen budgets in the past force working people to make decisions

41:14 that are, quite frankly, inhumane. And here's the final point. If you've never been in a position to have to choose whether or not you're going to have lunch for your children or rent, then you may not ever fully understand the impetus behind this budget. But those are the families that I'm thinking about. We're talking about hundreds of thousands of families that will not have access to food. Families will die without access to medicine. Do you know how I know that? It's because when my father lost his job, we didn't have health insurance.

41:47 And my mother, with the rare heart disease that she suffered through, died because we could not afford medication. My father had to make the decision between medicine and mortgage. My college tuition and food. That's the predicament that we have placed families in for decades. And now you're asking me to go before city council and defend the very people that have made an enormous amount of revenue over the course of decades off the backs of working and poor people. What are we debating here? What are we debating here? We're either going to challenge those with means who have made hundreds of billions of dollars, unprecedented revenue at a time in which families are struggling to pay for college, to pay for groceries, to afford rent, mortgage.

42:38 I'm going to defend and stand up for working people through it all because that's what I was elected and born to do. Good morning, Mayor. Welcome back from L.A. ASPE and two alders sounded the alarm this week on the Chicago Public Library's collections budget being cut in half and 89 vacant positions being slashed. Do you hear those concerns and are you open to restoring any of those cuts? Well, first of all, look, we know how important our libraries are and our public institutions are. That's why I've provocated the most dynamic TIF surplus in the history of Chicago.

43:14 It's not just going to be for our schools. It's our parks and our libraries as well. In this budget, there are no layoffs. There are no furloughs. There is no reduction of services or hours at a time in which the budget for our libraries is at a structural deficit as well, I believe $16 million. And, of course, we're going to continue to find ways in which we can address all of the needs. But I want to make this absolutely clear that I've put forth a budget that ensures that there's no reduction, no loss of jobs and furloughs, no reduction of hours, even Sundays, to ensure that people continue to have access to our libraries.

43:59 The superintendent yesterday mentioned how the city recently used snow trucks to block a business corridor ahead of SNAP expiring in case of looting. Were you aware of that plan, and do you agree that that was a necessary precaution? Well, I mean, I think the first thing that I just want to note here is that when it comes to ensuring that we keep people safe and that we're not in a position or a predicament where people can be in harm's way, that is always the top priority.

44:30 Again, as far as the specifics around this, I've been briefed on it, and, of course, we're going to look into all of our practices, but the top priority and the goal is to keep people safe. Thanks. Hey, Mayor. Hey. Last night at a town hall, and again, to Jeff's question, you mentioned police officers responding to the executive order, sort of implementing it with agents regarding public property and the use of the federal government using that property. Can you tell me more about those incidents? What did police officers do that you were talking about?

45:02 Well, they just simply went over and asked that these individuals who are clearly identified as federal agents that they are prohibited from using, the property and there was compliance. You know, you clearly believe that a lot of the actions of Border Patrol and ICE agents here are illegal and criminally illegal. I think you've been clear on that. What do you say to people who hear you say that and then don't see arrests? Why not have, if you believe what you believe, police officers arrest those agents?

45:38 Look, you can believe in what you believe and recognize that the unprecedented moment that we're in is going to require an evolution of how we approach government. You know, look, because you have a belief in something, and there are a lot of things that I fundamentally believe in, and people over time have demonstrated that as well. You know, whether it was, you know, fighting for civil rights, women's rights, you know, that it is, though it is difficult to have to deal with the unregulated, unprecedented aspects of what's happening from the federal government right now, it has not crippled our ability to continue to find new ways in which we can defend people.

46:26 That's the hope in this moment, is that, you know, once upon a time, I don't know if people thought that it was possible that a mayor's office could issue executive orders that would prevent, you know, federal agents from acting a certain way. And we have found and we've explored many different options. What I am calling on in this moment is, because it's not just what I believe personally, this is what cities are faced with all over America. I mean, it's happening all over the country.

46:57 And the good news is that the city of Chicago is leading the way in terms of how we innovate our response to authoritarianism. Right now, Congress does not even have a handle on how to check this particular president. Now, we are finding new ways of discovery. Now, look, whether it's our financial challenges that the people are experiencing across America, we are living in some of the most insuperable odds right now, living through.

47:30 And though it might seemingly be impossible, I believe that anything is possible if we all band together. It's not the response of one individual that's going to beat back authoritarianism. It's going to be the response of the collective, and that's what we're calling for in this moment. What's stopping you from taking that action now? Which action? The arrests in particular. Well, you know, again, I think it's going to be a matter of how local government finds innovative ways to hold this administration accountable.

48:03 And we're doing that. And, you know, as long as the people of Chicago know that whether it's my budget that we have put forth to protect Chicago, whether it's executive orders that we put forth to protect Chicago, that the people of this city know that I'm fighting every single day against Donald Trump. And we're going to use every single tool that's available within the confines of my executive authority to protect Chicago and lead the way for the rest of the country. Thank you all. Can we do one bonus question? All right.

48:33 Sorry. All right. OK, if I could. All right. Oh, my gosh. Well, let me get a drink of water. The Tuesday election results. No one. We want to get your takeaway on that. Obviously wins for Democrats, but Republicans see that there's a divided party when they know the differences between Mme Domi and the two governor wins. What was your biggest takeaway from Tuesday? That we won and every wing of the Democratic Party was. reflective in that win. Here's a good thing about, you know, democratic values and the party that

49:05 I'm a part of, is that you have progressives, you have democratic socialists, you have individuals that might cast themselves as more moderate or pragmatic, and there's room for all of us if we do one thing. Center our politics around people, and particularly working people. My biggest takeaway was, whether it was the governor's races or the municipal races, that what we're doing here in Chicago to build the safest, most affordable big city in America and why I've been so adamant about building the type of infrastructure to do that, that's what people ran on and that's what they won on.

49:48 And so they literally won on the model that we're building here in Chicago. So I'm encouraged because, look, the average price of a home, you know, what the mayor-elect Mamdani will have to deal with, the average price of a home is $1.1 million. Same thing. I was with Mayor Bass. She's dealing with it in Los Angeles. The average price of a home in L.A. is about $900,000. We're talking about $4,500, $4,200 for rent. That's not sustainable. And so putting forth bold solutions to address those challenges, that's what the American people want us to fight for.

50:19 And so that's why, like, look, quite frankly, as much attention as we're getting around the corporate head tax, I have to be just brutally honest here. It is absolutely frustrating at a time in which people are crying out desperately for government to respond to the basic fundamentals. And we are in a moment where there are more billionaires. We're close to having a trillionaire, maybe a couple of them. And people are asking about a third of a percent to keep people safe. And we just saw the election results across this country that people want government and particularly Democrats to stand up for working people. Why won't we do that?

50:58 This is freaking Chicago. We are the global capital of the world where working class was defined here. And now you want to reshape our economy that capitulates to the ultra rich at a time in which people are hungry without homes, without access to transportation. It is deeply disturbing right now that we have leaders in this state that are prepared to defend millionaires and billionaires and not the people in Austin and not the people in Roseland.

51:29 what is wrong with us and so the election is a clear example that we can lead with boldness we can lead with an emphatic position around protecting working people the ultra rich do not need defending they already have their defender in chief the ultra rich are being defended by an authoritarian tyrant why are we standing alongside of Donald Trump to protect corporate interests where we saw the largest upward transfer of wealth into the hands of the ultra-rich

52:02 than any time in our nation's history. Justice Brandeis made it clear. You can either have a democracy or you can have wealth concentrated into the hands of the ultra-rich, but you cannot have both. I'm fighting for our democracy, and what people voted for this past Tuesday was to secure and protect our democracy. And so that is a good thing for the people of our land. can i also just follow go ahead please marianne

52:43 you know look i am concerned especially at a time marianne in which you know our airports and particularly airports set and broke records I mean, our airport is literally the global epicenter of travel, the number one international connection, and becoming the busiest airport. And this is how reprehensible and appalling this president's tactics and his behavior has been, and this is what he has led to.

53:15 We're talking about working people. We're talking about international travel at a time in which we saw the busiest summer in the history of Chicago. Nine hundred million dollars of new revenue from a three point five million hotel occupancy. Our ridership and our public transportation system is is is is growing. You know, this I think the last thing that I'll say isn't just to make it real local. So I want to appeal to the people of Chicago where you can support local businesses, particularly in our.

53:48 Black and brown communities, please do that. Many of these local grocery stores and these businesses have seen a 60% reduction in their sales and their revenue. Donald Trump has done more to harm our economy than any other president in modern history. He is an abysmal failure. Thank you all.

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