On July 3, as the country got ready to celebrate its birthday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel celebrated one of his favorite subjects: himself.
In the editorial, ostensibly written to give transit advice to New York City, the mayor failed to mention that CTA bus and subway workers have gone more than 18 months without a contract. And that their unions are locked in bitter negotiations with the CTA over things like health-care cuts and work rules.
The unfortunate headline of the piece recalled the old trope about Italian fascist Benito Mussolini: “Say what you want about Mussolini, but at least he got the trains running on time.”
Far be it from me to give advice to a great paper like the Times, but in Chicago there’s an old City News Bureau adage journalists are supposed to follow: “If your mother says she loves you, check it out.” When it comes to Rahm’s agenda, the reportorial technique is more like, “All right, buddy, whaddya want?”
When it comes to the Democratic base, Rahm drips with contempt for it, especially the unions. In interviews and speeches, he writes them off as a bunch of out-of-touch losers. It’s no wonder that in Emanuel’s reelection race and subsequent runoff against Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, he was most popular in the wealthier neighborhoods like the Gold Coast and Lincoln Park, where Rauner also ran well. Emanuel thinks these so-called moderate swing voters are the future of the Democratic Party—and the city, for that matter. For everyone else—like the transit workers Rahm deemed unworthy of mentioning—it’s shut up and get in line.
