Chicago Mayor Will Not Seek Re-Election
Source: Chicago Tribune, FOX News
Two-term mayor of Chicago, Rahm Emanuel, announced on Tuesday that he will not seek re-election. He abruptly dropped his bid for a third term as mayor, stating instead that he wanted to begin a new chapter in his life.
Rahm Emanuel has spent 23 years in politics, making many personal sacrifices along the way. After months of discussions with his family and a long holiday weekend spent dropping off his third child at college, Emanuel held a surprise press conference at City Hall. At the meeting, he said, “This has been the job of a lifetime, but it is not a job for a lifetime.”
Emanuel began his political career in the Clinton administration, working as director of the finance committee in the 1992 presidential campaign and serving as assistant to the president for political affairs. Emanuel briefly left the public sector to work at an investment bank, returning only to run for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives (a seat vacated by Rod Blagojevich). During his tenure in the House, Emanuel held two Democratic leadership positions. After the 2008 presidential election, President Barack Obama appointed Emanuel to serve as White House chief of staff. He resigned to run as a candidate in Chicago’s 2011 mayoral election.
Emanuel will step aside next May after two tumultuous terms in office that have included the largest round of school closings in the city’s history, a teacher strike, the corruption conviction of his onetime schools chief, rampant gun violence, a sex abuse scandal at Chicago Public Schools, record tax increases, and the Laquan McDonald police shooting that led to a federal investigation of Chicago Police Department corruption.
Since taking office in May of 2011, Chicago has paid $346 million in police misconduct settlements and judgments. Emanuel paid a large portion of these costs by taking out bonds, which must be paid back with interest. These interest fees add up to hundreds of millions of dollars, which the city will need to pay before ensuring there is funding for critical public services. When faced with a budget crunch, Emanuel closed mental health clinics and schools.
Emanuel also used the city’s Tax Increment Financing (TIF) program as a slush fund to drain money from the city’s neighborhoods and schools in communities of color to funnel aid into tax subsidies for developers and corporations in richer, whiter parts of the city. Emanuel’s policies have left deep scars on the city’s neighborhoods and bank accounts, and the next mayor will be faced with a devastating budget crisis.
Now lets work on many Aldermen/women who need to be removed from office…
Yes!
Let’s start with Ed burke.
Madigan should be next…
This tells me something devastating to his reputation is about to come out. No way does he give up running for re-election just because.
Not true at all. I honestly believe he wants to spend more time with his family. If anything, he wants to get out of the spotlight and reenter the private sector.
Agreed. Either that or he’s probably eyeing a bigger political office.
Yup
Also probably doesn’t want to be in office when the city employee pension crisis kicks up in 2020. City contributions are scheduled to increase dramatically, and Rahm wasn’t able to renegotiate/refinance/increase revenue to deal with the problem. It’s about to hit the fan and Rahm will be nowhere to be found.
Is this true? I haven’t read anything about it but I wouldn’t be surprised. It’s terrifying. I work for the city…
I was thinking the same thing…
Thomas is right. The Laquan McDonald case just started, effectively demolishing Rahm’s legacy and probably crippling any chance he had at reelection. He knew his time was up.
I think Rahm always hoped he could use being the Mayor of Chicago to launch into bigger and better things on the political stage. I’m certain he still can in the private sector, but being mayor didn’t help his political reputation statewide nor on the national stage. Better to go out having won his last election rather than wait to be defeated.
He’s made plenty of friends in the private sector during his time as mayor. I’m sure he’ll wind up somewhere nice and kushy…
I’m terrified who might be our next mayor…
Rahm was put in place. The next mayor might be an actual Chicagoan who understands how ridiculously complex this city is.
It’ll probably be madigan or Joyce, his hand-picked successors
Good. He never should have been the mayor of Chicago to begin with.
Sad to hear. You have to admit he did not have an easy job. Much was demanded from him, working in a tough city with difficult circumstances. Thank you for your hard work and dedication! Wishing you the best.
No matter who runs the problems will be the same. Massive debt, continued gang violence, and high taxes will be the same. It took decades to get to this point and it will take decades to get out. You can’t blame Rahm for problems he didn’t create.
No, but we can blame him for covering up the murder of an innocent black kid by CPD…. https://www.ebony.com/news-views/protests-erupt-in-chicago-over-death-of-15-year-old-black-boy-who-police-say-shot-himself
One down, many more to go!
The first time Rahm has ever done anything to make me happy. 🙂