By Illinois Review
During a Tuesday appearance on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson sidestepped questions about the city’s police shortage, instead insisting that “affordable housing” is the answer to Chicago’s crime crisis.
“Cities across America would be safer if we had affordable housing,” Johnson told the stunned cable television hosts.
Throughout the interview, host Joe Scarborough repeatedly pressed Johnson on whether adding more police officers would reduce crime. But when the mayor dodged the question and shifted to talking about affordable housing, an exasperated Scarborough cut in: “That’s not the question I asked!”
Johnson replied, “I don’t believe that we should narrow it down to just police officers…What I’m saying, that is an antiquated approach.”
The exchange highlights a broader challenge for Democrats, who continue to struggle with crime messaging. Acknowledging the problem risks validating Republican attacks, while doubling down on alternatives to policing threatens to further alienate parts of their base.
Johnson’s awkward interview – and his apparent lack of grasp on an issue as serious as public safety – came just a day after a press conference in downtown Chicago. There, the mayor, who holds the lowest approval rating of any Chicago mayor on record at just 6 percent, declared: “We cannot incarcerate our way out of violence… It’s racist! It’s immoral! It’s unholy!”
Since 2022, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Johnson have welcomed over 52,000 migrants to Chicago, regardless of their backgrounds or criminal histories, and spent more than $800 million to provide food, clothing and housing – even as many city residents continue to struggle.
