* [From Rich: I think the bar was set so super-low for Johnson that he cleared it. Also, local Chicago reporters who relentlessly hyped the mayor’s appearance may have failed to consider that Congress is chock full of people who almost solely exist to go viral on social media or appear on their particular factions’ cable news programs. The congresscritters proved to be far less formidable than the pre-hearing hype suggested. Johnson’s rehearsed answers clearly frustrated committee members hoping to knock him off script. And it helped that some of the other mayors, particularly Boston’s, did quite well.]

* Sun-Times political columnist Lynn Sweet…

What a good day for beleaguered Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. He was attacked by several Republicans for polling 6% in one survey, which is pretty lousy. Another Republican committee member tried to make Johnson look bad in the wake of the city’s inspector general report a few weeks ago that he did not properly report luxury gifts — not good, but later rectified.

Johnson had a good day because he avoided disaster while he defended Chicago’s “Welcoming City” Ordinance, in place since 1985. The law does not block federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from doing their jobs. When proper and legal, Chicago does cooperate with federal authorities.

Johnson was calm, measured, soft-spoken and disciplined, with days of prep since landing in Washington Sunday. The city hired the D.C. law firm Debevoise & Plimpton, whose partners have expertise in prepping witnesses for high-stakes hearings.

For Johnson, absorbing a few insults about being unpopular and taking a punch about not disclosing gifts in this context was nothing.

* Fran Spielman and Mitchell Armentrout at the Sun-Times…

Under questioning from Pennsylvania Republican Scott Perry, Johnson was asked to define Chicago’s 40-year-old sanctuary city policy.

“You have welcomed 51,648 aliens to your sanctuary city. So I ask you: Sanctuary from what?” Perry said.

Johnson replied, “If you’re referring to the number of individuals that were bused by [Texas Gov. Greg] Abbott without any coordination — the 52,000 individuals that were seeking asylum — those individuals were bused to us.”

Johnson said he “passed a bus ordinance to work to coordinate with” Abbott, but “he refused to do that.”

“So, you don’t care about federal law enforcement policies. Only local policies,” Perry later said. Johnson stood his ground.

“We comply with all laws. What I do care about is this body — Washington — passing comprehensive immigration reform,” Chicago’s mayor replied.

* Tribune…

GOP Illinois Rep. Darin LaHood, not a member of the committee, joined at the end and launched into a detailed takedown of the mayor. “I’ve been amazed at how tone-deaf you have been and how oblivious you’ve been to the decline of Chicago,” LaHood said.

Johnson fired back by saying crime has gone down since he’s been mayor. Chicago ended 2024 with a 7% drop in shootings, per police data, though its gun violence epidemic still far outpaces that of the other cities represented Wednesday.

“I will not apologize for my investments in the people of Chicago,” Johnson told the congressman. “We have one of the most diverse economies, the top universities. As violence continues to go down and investments continue to go up, that is what’s most important.” […]

Multiple GOP members said the mayors deserve to be prosecuted for their sanctuary policies, picking up on the Trump Justice Department’s January memo ordering the investigation of state and local officials who “threaten to impede” the president’s immigration crackdown. Florida GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna declared: “Unfortunately, based on your responses, I’m all going to be criminally referring you to the Department of Justice for investigation.”

* WTTW…

Few of the questions from Republican members of the committee reflected an understanding of Chicago’s Welcoming City Ordinance, which does not require city officials to encourage immigrants to move to Chicago nor does it obligate officials to use taxpayer funds to care for immigrants in Chicago.

In addition, most of the migrants who made their way to Chicago after crossing the southern border, are not undocumented after requesting asylum and getting permission to remain in the United States while their cases are resolved.

Since Trump took office, many undocumented immigrants have returned to life in the city’s shadows, for fear of exposing themselves or their families to deportation, immigrant advocates said.

* Crain’s…

“These policies only create sanctuaries for criminals,” Rep. James Comer, a Kentucky Republican who is chairman of the committee, said in his opening statement. “Sanctuary policies violate federal immigration law by protecting criminal aliens at the expense of the American people.”

Comer said that in Chicago, “an illegal alien who was recently arrested for killing a 63-year-old man had previously been arrested in Chicago for trying to lure a child. (Immigration & Customs Enforcement) lodged a detainer against the criminal alien, but Chicago authorities released him back onto the street because of the city’s reckless sanctuary policy. And now an innocent man is dead because of Chicago’s refusal to follow the law.”

When Comer pressed Johnson on that case, the Chicago mayor said, “We do not harbor criminals.” The city routinely cooperates with federal authorities when they have a criminal warrant, he said.

“With a criminal warrant,” Johnson said, immigrant suspects “are subject to federal laws, and that includes deportation.”

* WBEZ…

But it was not a flawless performance. At one point, U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., asked Johnson how much the city has spent to support migrants.

In his prep, Johnson was advised to give a percentage, instead of a raw number, to paint how small the amount is in the broader context. […]

But it might have left people wondering whether he knew his facts.

“If you don’t have a hard number, you’re not running your city well,” Donalds quipped.

…Adding… [From Rich: The Illinois House Republicans appear to acknowledge that the DC hearing could’ve gone better.] HRO press release…

Following the Congressional hearing on sanctuary city policies and Mayor Brandon Johnson’s embarrassing testimony, Illinoisans are left with more questions than answers on how taxpayer dollars are being used to support illegal immigrants. The Illinois House Republican Organization is calling on House Democrats to demand that Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson testify before a legislative committee in Springfield after his evasive and inadequate responses before Congress.

* More…

* NYT | Brandon Johnson Counters Republican Attacks at ‘Sanctuary City’ Hearing: At times, especially when responding to friendly questions from Democrats, Mr. Johnson pushed back against Republicans’ characterizations of Chicago, which generally ranged from unflattering to dystopian. Mr. Johnson talked about Chicago’s business growth and its airport, and used the stage to call Chicago the best “freakin’ city in the world,” one of his favorite phrases.

* Block Club | Mayor Johnson Forcefully Defends Chicago’s Sanctuary Status During Congressional Hearing: Texas Rep. Brandon Gill, a far-right Republican married to the daughter of conservative activist Dinesh D’Souza, later got into an extended exchange with Johnson over issues with little or no relation to the city’s Welcoming City ordinance. That included ripping Johnson over the city’s so-called gift room, which was the subject of an Inspector General report published in late January that took aim at an informal agreement over how the mayor and his staff accept gifts on behalf of the city.

* Fox Chicago | Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson testifies in front of House committee: Lori Lightfoot reacts: Former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot criticized the hearings as a “sideshow.” Lightfoot, who lost reelection to Johnson in the mayoral primary in 2023, reportedly helped her successor prepare for the hearing. The trained attorney told Fox 32 that she approached it like she was preparing a witness.

* ABC Chicago | Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson testifies in DC at sanctuary city hearing: “The advice I would have given him going in was certainly to stay focused, not to go off message, to stay on message, not to be baited,” political consultant Delmarie Cobb said.