Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson made clear on Tuesday that he doesn’t intend to play nice with President Donald Trump to avert a potential withholding of more than $3 billion.
“Trying to force your will to break the spirit of working people in order to have a conversation, that’s terrorism. We’re not going to negotiate with terrorists,” said Johnson during a press conference, reports the Chicago Tribune.
President Trump, determined to execute his agenda of mass deportations throughout the country, has repeatedly threatened to withhold federal funding from states and cities that refuse to cooperate with his administration. Trump has particularly had his eyesight on sanctuary cities that provide a safe haven for undocumented people living in the United States.
Chicago, the nation’s third-largest city, could lose all $3.5 billion of its federal funding if Trump follows through on his threat. That includes $1.5 billion, which the administration is also threatening to withhold if the city’s school districts do not comply with Trump’s order to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion policies.
When asked to clarify whether he was calling Trump a terrorist after making his Tuesday remarks, Mayor Johnson said, “No. What I’m saying is trying to hold people hostage and manipulating them to succumb to his will and then hold up our tax dollars, that is how terrorists behave.” He added, “These aren’t threats anymore, right? These are real, adversarial attacks against working people.”
Johnson also referenced the role of race, telling reporters, “There’s a long history of Black political leaders talking to people who may not see us as first class.” However, he made clear he will not be “kissing the ring” of President Trump.
“Outside of a 2016, you know, Cubs World Series ring, I’m not kissing a ring, OK. The president United States of America has an open invitation to the fifth floor of the greatest freaking city in the world, the city of Chicago.”
