CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Mayor Lori Lightfoot and one of her political challengers in February's mayoral race butted heads during Wednesday’s City Council meeting.
A committee assignment started Lightfoot’s debate with Ald. Sophia King (4th).
After the mayor’s attempt to name retiring Ald. James Cappleman (46th) the new chair of the Education Committee failed, acting Education Committee Chair King stood up to complain about what she described as a lack of transparency by Lightfoot’s handpicked CEO of Chicago Public Schools (CPS).
The mayor said King’s statement was inappropriate and a political issue.
“If you would spend more time attacking problems, and not people, we would be much better off,” King said.
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Lightfoot didn’t let the comment go unanswered.
“Alderman King, you’re out of order, and I’m not going to let you make a political speech on the floor because of your aspirations,” Lightfoot said. “If you have an issue, we should talk about it, but this is not the time or the place.”
City Council provides CPS with “millions of dollars every year,” King said, and she added that alderpersons would like to have CPS leadership to provide public testimony in front of the council.
King told Lightfoot that she has repeatedly reached out to Martinez.
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“He has not returned my call,” King said. "I assume it’s under your orders. This is just not how government should —”
Lightfoot didn’t let King finish.
“Alderwoman King, don’t make that assumption, and that is not appropriate. I have no knowledge of your contacts with the CEO,” the mayor said as King continued to speak. “Don’t make that assumption, and please don’t bring me into what is clearly a political issue for you.”
King said she had reached out to Lightfoot’s staff and reached out to the mayor.
“We need to continue government, no matter what’s going on in the city,” she said.
Afterward the mayor defended Cappleman as a former teacher with lots of experience and said she’s confident she’ll get him approved.
Also in the vein of transparency, Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th) wore a ghost train costume as two aldermen pushed off his proposal to require the CTA hold quarterly hearings to answer questions about service and security.
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