. . . having decided the Catholic home office is nothing to be worried about, apparently.

via Bitter Winter

She explained after a closed-door meeting at UIC with her posse of think-alikes.

At the invite-only summit, Lightfoot set the table for a frank and open conversation about poverty in the city, and invited Chicagoans to speak plainly about the racism and systemic oppression that perpetuates poverty.

“We’re going to talk about it. We’re not going to run away from it,” Lightfoot said. “We are going to raise the curtain… and fill that void with resources.”

She has her agenda in mind, aiming

to dramatically increasing economic opportunity for the city’s most vulnerable people, including fines and fees reforms that include ending the practice of taking people’s driver’s licenses for nonmoving violations.

There’s ” low-hanging fruit,”  things “that will make a huge difference.”

Race and gender would be “front and center,” an aide said.

“First,” reducing utility bills “for low-income residents that unevenly affects people of color, especially seniors, and investing more into transit-accessible affordable housing,”

Call her Santa.

Next, “expand quality jobs and increase income levels of residents in the city. ”

Call her Bernie.

Enforce “fair workweek rules, support for home care workers who are overwhelmingly women of color, and building a green economy with career development for people who were formerly incarcerated.”

Call her Elizabeth.

Third, end “end the racial health disparities in the city, like the 16-year “death gap” between downtown and the West Side, Lurie said.

Call her Miracle Worker.

Ditto “infant and child mortality,” violence prevention, mental health care ineqities, “health impacts of pollution on communities of color.”

All in terms of “address” this and that, get the ball rolling and the like. But it warms the heart even to hear that much.

Call it campaign oratory.

And finally, the money issue, where poverty begins.

Fourth, the city will promote wealth building among individuals, families, and entire communities. Achieving this goal will require securing more access to consumer credit for low-income residents so they can pay for cars, homes, and higher education.

The joy of borrowing. Of course. No better expert than the city. For “wealth building,” yes. It’s what City Hall does best, financially speaking. Now she’s talking.

And here she is, pleased as punch about all of it:

via How Will Lightfoot End Chicago Poverty In A Generation? Here’s The Mayor’s 4-Part Plan – Block Club Chicago

A suggestion: What she wants is a good economy, one that supplies work for the most people. We all do, and who’s solving that problem and making history doing it? Donald Trump, that’s who. Look to Trump, Ms. Mayor. You can’t go wrong.

(I can see her advisors palming their foreheads, asking “why didn’t we think of that?”)

via Chicago Tribune

Focus on poverty, not gun violence. . .

Linking two of the city’s chronic issues, Lightfoot said gun violence is “a symptom of poverty.”

. . .  not also a cause, helping to drive wealth producers away?

via Mayor Lori Lightfoot hosting Chicago poverty summit: ‘We’re no longer going to look the other way’ – Chicago Tribune

But as Instapundit warns, don’t be cocky.

via ‘National satisfaction’ reaches 15-year high, ‘greatly increases’ Trump reelection