Chicago mayor claps back at Illinois governor after activists shut down expressway

USA Today

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel didn’t have time for critics on Saturday.

After thousands of demonstrators shut down Chicago’s Dan Ryan Expressway calling on elected officials to address gun violence in the city, Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner, objected to Emanuel’s support of the protests.

In a tweet, Rauner said he was “disappointed” in the mayor for allowing the protests to stop traffic. “I am calling on the Mayor to take swift and decisive action to put an end to this kind of chaos,” Rauner tweeted.

Illinois state police told The Associated Press protesters planned to block off two northbound lanes for the march. However, organizers said activists, including the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson, wanted police to close the entire roadway, citing that the city often closes major roads for parades and other demonstrations.

Police then announced they would shut down all northbound lanes on the expressway to facilitate the protests.

Emanuel responded to the tweet just an hour later, calling the protests peaceful and jokingly asking Rauner to “delete his account.”

“Delete your account” is a popular phrase on Twitter commonly used to insult the user. The phrase gained traction after Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton used it during the 2016 presidential election.

Emanuel’s spokesman Matt McGrath told the Chicago Sun-Times that the mayor’s tweet reflected support for expanded gun control measures in Chicago and throughout the state.

“The mayor’s hope is that today’s march may make someone realize they shouldn’t pick up a gun to settle a dispute, and if that happens the peaceful march the governor called ‘chaos’ will unquestionably be worth it,” McGrath said.

Emanuel received swells of approval on Twitter, with over 2,800 retweets by Saturday afternoon. Rauner received less than 1,000 in the same time period.

However, some Twitter users did criticize Emanuel’s comment and position on the march.

Rauner tweeted 25 minutes later thanking the law enforcement officials who managed crowds at the march.

https://amp.usatoday.com/amp/765666002

11 thoughts on “Chicago mayor claps back at Illinois governor after activists shut down expressway

  1. ‘ the mayor’s tweet reflected support for expanded gun control measures in Chicago …’

    expanded measures? hmmm… door to door? the only ones with guns in Chitcago are the gangbangers and the police……

    1. You are Right the mayor and JB Pritzker the man that’s running for Illinois governor on the Democrat ticket, want Door to Door Gun confiscation.

      this demonstration was nothing more than a cheap publicity stunt by the Mayor and JB Pritzker

      1. Between joo mayor, joo billionaire gov and new joo billionaire to replace the old face with the same new joo billionaire face. It’s good theatre/WWE for those that believe in “parties”. Keeps the idiots at bay while it gets deeper and deeper.

  2. “…..calling on elected officials to address gun violence in the city…..”

    Address gun violence? … Hello, gun violence. (Ed Norton golf ball joke from the Honry Mooners)

    What the hell do these idiots expect their “elected” officials to do about it? They already have every possible gun restriction in place. Violence is the problem, and it usually stems from crime/poverty. If it were possible to remove all the guns, and somehow prevent people from making their own, you’d have the same knife violence epidemic we’re seeing in London right now.

    Don’t these idiots devote even a minute of thought to their political positions, or has it just become a habit to scream for government help whenever their diaper is dirty? I can’t wait until this evil “government” is finally dissolved, just to see these idiots melt down in complete helplessness.

  3. Oh Rahm, from ballet dancer to dutifully serving under Obama, how wonderful of you to look after us. Your willingness to tie up traffic and even endanger your people, shows your unwavering commitment to disarming us and assuring we are obediently defenseless. What a hero you are!! We recall these stellar memories of you:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YgMyxvay5E

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVmk2VRitvU

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahwi2s45Mlo

    .

      1. “Disgusting.” That’s exactly the word that came to my mind, too, Katie. The other was “slime.” Yuck!!

        .

  4. One half of all billionaires in this country yet less than 2% of our population. Nice to be diabolical and connected only if you are truly greedy and a heart of unmitigated evil.

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