Mayor Lori Lightfoot says Chicago cops have ‘incredible amount’ of time off, disputes criticism they’re overworked (Chicago Tribune)
Mayor Lori Lightfoot did it again. She suffers from a terminal case of foot-in-mouth disease*. Her dishonesty knows no bounds. It is true that police officers have a lot of time off “available” to them. However, if days off are canceled, so are all other types of time off. If officers cannot use their time, they do not have an ‘incredible amount of time off.”
The mayor put her foot in her mouth again after facing criticism that police officers are overworked. Aldermen at a recent City Council meeting spoke about the hardships police officers and their families are facing due to time off being canceled.
Lightfoot is still shilling for her incompetent Superintendent of Police, David Brown, and the equally incompetent First Deputy Superintendent, Eric Carter. Brown should have been fired long ago and they should demote Carter.
I talk to police officers. They are tired, dispirited, and angry. They know the mayor and superintendent do not care about their health, mental health, and welfare, or the welfare of their families. Canceling days off and forcing officers to work overtime is a recipe for disaster. It is dangerous. It poses dangers to the public and to the officers.
It appears Alderperson Silvana Tabares has a solution, extreme as it may appear. Suspend Special Event Permits that require police manpower until the department comes up with a plan that does not require canceling days off or the applicants provide their own security.
It may be unpopular and it is extreme, but, someone has to force a change. What better way than to cancel events or forbid events going forward. This city is out of control because the leadership in City Hall and the Police Department are out of control. It appears no one knows what they are doing.
There ought to b a mighty public chorus to fire Brown and demote Carter and replace them with competent people. It is obvious Brown is way out of his league and Carter was promoted beyond his mere capabilities. It is past time for change. So extreme measures should be taken to force that change.
*Lightfoot should not be allowed into City Hall until she quarantines for ten days and can show proof of vaccination for foot-in-mouth disease.