Fran Spielman and WBEZ’s Mariah Woelfel mark Brandon Johnson's three-year anniversary as Chicago mayor. Mayor Johnson discusses his family milestones and argues his administration has improved its messaging while citing a 60-year low in homicides, reopened public mental health clinics, increased downtown visitors, and stabilizing census trends. Pressed on CPS’s $732 million deficit and potential classroom cuts, he insists the State of Illinois must fully fund schools through progressive revenue such as a digital ad tax or billionaire/millionaire taxes, rejects school closures as repeating past failures.
