Democrats who tout themselves as champions for homeless people oftentimes have a funny way of showing it, as we’ve seen, for instance, during Democratic National Conventions in years past.
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For example, in Denver in 2008 and Charlotte in 2012, Democrat leaders in those cities and states ushered in temporary plans to restrict the homeless from areas where they could potentially be seen by visitors to their respective cities during DNCs.
More recently, we saw California Gov. Gavin Newsom, in partnership with San Francisco Mayor London Breed, admit in November to hiding the city’s homeless and cleaning up its streets ahead of an APEC Summit, where President Joe Biden and China’s Xi Jinping met for a high stakes meeting.
“I know folks are saying, ‘Oh they’re just cleaning up this place because all those fancy leaders are coming to town.’ That’s true because it’s true, but it’s also true for months and months and months prior to APEC we’ve been having conversations,“ Newsom said at the time.
READ: An Unwitting Newsom Hands DeSantis a Pre-Debate Gift in Announcement on APEC Preparations
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, as it turns out, had plans to continue that tradition ahead of the DNC that is scheduled to take place there in August. Except in Johnson’s case, it wasn’t about hiding the homeless – it was about hiding the illegal immigrants:
“Earlier this week, Mayor Johnson’s administration notified Ald. [Nicole] Lee that they are considering plans to build a new temporary migrant shelter in the 11th Ward at 3951 S Canal St. to replace the Standard Club shelter downtown before the Democratic National Convention,” a statement from Lee’s office read in part. “As our city grapples with this unprecedented influx of migrants, it is crucial that we handle the migrant crisis safely, responsibly, and with full transparency. The well-being of our communities must be the top priority.”
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New: Ald. Nicole Lee tells constituents that Mayor Brandon Johnson is seeking to open a new migrant shelter in her 11th Ward and move asylum seekers away from downtown Standard Club shelter ahead of the DNC, a move she vehemently criticized over environmental and safety concerns pic.twitter.com/RaS5zwp3Xy
— Alice Yin (@byaliceyin) May 3, 2024
Residents immediately expressed outrage, saying the plan made no sense whatsoever, especially considering the pressing issues their community was already facing:
Residents are NOT happy with Chicago’s plan to move illegals out of downtown ahead of the DNC:
“Not our problem.”
“We do NOT need this.”
“All we want to do is house our veterans — and they’re getting kicked to the side for the people who didn’t do anything for this country.” pic.twitter.com/h0CVJUwe3d
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) May 6, 2024
Thanks in part to those residents and Ald. Lee speaking out, the plan has been scrapped:
In a statement released Monday, the Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS) said that the city is no longer considering the site at 3951 South Canal Street, in Bridgeport.
“This site was under preliminary consideration and a site visit by various City departments had not been conducted. As part of our standard site vetting process, there were several assessments and physical improvements that would need to happen before a decision was made to move forward,” a DFSS spokesperson said.
[…]
Currently, it is unclear if the city will continue efforts to move migrants from the downtown shelter ahead of the DNC.
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Johnson has been under fire for months now from Democrats and Republicans alike over his disastrous handling of the Windy City’s illegal immigrant crisis, with a citizen-led effort to put an initiative on the November ballot that would allow Chicago residents to recall their mayor currently in the works, a measure which now has the support of a powerful local police union.
In any event, hats off to community leaders and citizens alike for putting pressure on city officials to back down. Doesn’t happen often, but this turned out to be a big victory for the people, and yet another big embarrassment for Brandon Johnson.
Flashback–>> WATCH: Woke Screws Come Loose As Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson Melts Down During Border Crisis Presser
