Mayor Brandon Johnson landed in Washington on Sunday morning for three days of intense preparation for his testimony Wednesday before a hostile GOP House committee intent on holding the Democratic mayors of Chicago, New York, Boston and Denver — all sanctuary cities — “accountable” for not cooperating with President Donald Trump’s orders to carry out deportation raids.
The GOP-controlled House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing, to kick off at 9 a.m. Chicago time, will be political theater — not a public policy debate over controversial sanctuary city ordinances — with the Republicans to use the Democratic mayors as punching bags to create viral moments to sway public opinion to their side. This is a hearing created to advance Trump’s agenda.
In case you think I am being too dramatic, let’s look at what the committee has done to crank up sentiment in advance of the hearing against Johnson, Boston’s Michelle Wu, Denver’s Mike Johnston and New York’s Eric Adams.
Rep. James Comer, R- Ky., the committee chair, said in a statement, “The pro-illegal alien mayors of Boston, Chicago, Denver, and New York City have implemented reckless, illegal policies that shield criminal aliens from federal immigration enforcement and endanger public safety. Criminal alien predators should not be free to roam our communities. State and local governments that refuse to comply with federal immigration enforcement efforts should not receive a penny of federal funding. President Trump and his administration are rightfully taking action against sanctuary cities. On March 5, the House Oversight Committee will hold sanctuary mayors publicly accountable for refusing to abide by the law and placing Americans’ lives at risk.”
For the record: the city of Chicago sanctuary city status — first put in place in 1985 — does not block federal agents from lawfully carrying out their jobs. The ordinance calls for the city to not cooperate with immigration officials.
Comer is using the threat of cutting off federal funds to try to fiscally starve the cities into submission, damage these Democratic mayors in the process and drive a wedge between the most ultra-progressive Democrats and the rest of the party over the issue of undocumented immigrants.
On top of that, the committee produced a dramatic movie-trailer type video to hype the hearing, connecting recently arrived migrants with violent crime in each of the four cities. There is an ominous part of the video where the purpose of the hearing is spelled out: “The mayor of CHICAGO will be held accountable on March 5” with the headline “Game On” appearing a few seconds later.
🚨 BREAKING: Boston, Chicago, Denver, NYC Sanctuary Mayors to Be Held Publicly Accountable on March 5 pic.twitter.com/ANujXq9tBm
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) February 26, 2025
It is against this backdrop that Johnson is prepping for the most high-stakes appearance of his political career, one with no comparison to anything he has done.
Johnson and the other mayors will face some of the most combative GOP provocateurs in Congress, all staunch Trump loyalists who revel in confrontations: Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, Nancy Mace and Jim Jordan.
The only Illinois member on the panel is Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi, who, looking at a Senate run if Dick Durbin declines to seek another term, needs to defend the Democrats while not damaging his own future prospects.
The Chicago Sun-Times has learned that Johnson spent Sunday in a DC hotel prepping. City Hall has hired a Washington law firm with experience in helping witnesses get ready for congressional hearings and navigate unfamiliar terrain. Though City Hall declined to name the firm, the ID will come out because any payments will be public and the contract is subject to the Illinois Freedom of Information Act.
On Sunday, Johnson’s team in DC was putting the finishing touches on his written testimony to be submitted to the committee and a shorter version to serve as his opening statement. My reporting points to Johnson participating in some form of a mock hearing on Sunday with his team members playing the roles of various Republicans.
The City Hall team in DC includes senior adviser Jason Lee; communications chief Erin Connelly; Corporation Counsel Mary Richardson-Lowry; deputy Corporation Counsel Andrew Worseck; Deputy Mayor of Community Safety Garien Gatewood; Chief of External Affairs Kennedy Bartley, plus staffers from the DC law firm and the city’s federal affairs office in DC.
Johnson and his team wanted to arrive Sunday to avoid any last-minute problems with getting to DC and to prep without distractions. I understand that Johnson on Tuesday night will not be listening to Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress — called in every year but the first of a presidential term the State of the Union.
With Johnson’s approval ratings low, his first job at the hearing is to do no harm — being bland and non-controversial in this context may be a winning strategy.
Johnson’s testimony will be getting massive coverage in Chicago media, with reporters from WBEZ, FOX, NBC5, ABC7, the Tribune and the Tribe joining the Sun-Times in DC. The mayor’s team will be cranking up its digital operation and is planning to send out clips of Johnson’s testimony on various platforms. It’s all part of what will be the biggest show on daytime TV Wednesday. It certainly will be “game on.” Whose game? We’ll see.