CHICAGO CITY HALL (WBBM Newsradio) -- Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson today pledged to hold federal authorities accountable following the detention by ICE agents of a worker at a North side daycare, and said the city is leading the way in finding ways to do just that.
The mayor told reporters at City Hall Thursday morning that the sight of agents dragging a woman identified as a teacher out of the "Rayita de Sol" facility, 2550 W. Addison, on Wednesday shocked the conscience of people across the city: "The cruelty and the inhumanity that has been on display - that is their point."
He also vowed to hold Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino and others accountable for what he described as illegal actions by agents and others.
"Your agents have broken laws ... they have acted with impunity," he said.
But when reporters asked how the city planned to do that, the mayor said current circumstances required fresh thinking.
"The unprecedented moment that we're in is going to require an evolution of how we approach government," the mayor said. "We will certainly push for additional measures we can use to enforce our Constitution."
He pointed to executive orders that - among other things - bar the feds from using city property for their operations.
"The city of Chicago is leading the way in terms of how we innovate our response to authoritarianism," he said, adding that the city would continue to do that.