Just ignore those 5 pieces of bad advice, Lori Lightfoot

Peter Cunningham should save his advice to Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot. In fact, after his miserable performance running Bill Daley’s failed campaign for mayor, one would think that he would show some contrition and either disappear for a while or maybe start asking the mayor-elect for some advice.

Yet here he comes with an op-ed “Five pieces of advice for Chicago’s next mayor, Lori Lightfoot” (April 25), offering his plan for how the new mayor should run the city. The advice begins with admonitions to think small and forget all those highfalutin’ ideas about social justice and equality, and stick to things like potholes and garbage collection.

Here’s the worst:

...the black, gay, female agenda did not get Lori Lightfoot elected and won’t address Chicago’s broader needs.

Yes, he really went there. Did you even know there was a “black, gay, female agenda”? Perhaps Cunningham can produce it for us.

Lightfoot, the city’s first gay woman mayor, won the election with 74 percent of the vote, winning every ward and every demographic in the city. She did it by distinguishing herself from the old machine politics that Cunningham represents. But Cunningham’s not impressed. He advises the new mayor:

…reducing corruption won’t do much to enhance the quality of life for people. It won’t bring jobs to struggling communities on the South and West Sides. It won’t improve the public schools. It won’t make our neighborhoods any safer.

Of course, it will. Here’s some advice: Whenever you hear a machine politician’s public relations flack telling you to minimize the fight against corruption, it’s a diversion tactic. They’re worried.

Cunningham may have a point about the importance of getting the potholes fixed. But even the delivery of city services is conditioned upon the mayor having a larger vision of good government, equity and justice.

Lightfoot’s landslide election victory, along with those of the new progressives in the City Council, signifies a larger mandate for change from the old politics that Cunningham and his clients represent.

Michael Klonsky, Logan Square

Pay more taxes, if you want to

Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Dr. Michael Pine (who wrote the April 26 op-ed “Speaking as a millionaire, it’s only fair that I pay taxes at a higher rate”) are free to pay the state of Illinois whatever additional amount, above the required state tax for someone in their income bracket, that they feel would be their fair share. Why do you suppose they haven’t?

Richard Lewis, Kenosha, WisconsinGet on with Trump’s impeachment

Phil Kadner stated it correctly in his April 24 column “Prepare the public for impeachment and get on with it” when he indicated that for the sake of the country, politics must be set aside and the House must call President Trump to answer for all he has perpetrated over the last almost three years.

It is interesting to note that Republicans have been echoing Trump’s tweets that Robert Mueller found no collusion and that he has been completely vindicated. Yet Republicans have avoided any mention of obstruction of justice. Even when former President Bill Clinton’s second term was nearing its end, the House went ahead with impeachment proceedings on charges of obstruction of justice. As Kadner pointed out, there seems to be sufficient evidence of obstruction by Trump to warrant the House pursuing that investigation.

As Kadner further points out, Trump has no interest in our election process. Before the 2016 presidential election even took place, Trump noted that he would refuse to accept the results if he lost. During his time in office, there have been numerous instances in which Trump has shown virtually a total disregard for the workings of our democratic process. If for no other reason, the time has come for the House to re-establish our faith in the system created by the framers of the Constitution. Lincoln probably said it best when he stated that “a government of the people, by the people and for the people shall not perish from this earth.” Let’s prove that statement to be a true one.

Daniel Pupo, Orland Park