Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is being lambasted for putting a photo of himself and his wife in an airport’s free children’s coloring book as the city faces a nearly $1 billion budget deficit.
As millions of people passed through Windy City’s airports over the Thanksgiving holiday, travelers quickly noticed that the man dubbed America’s “most hated mayor” had inserted himself into a children’s activity book.
Chicago is on the brink of a shutdown as the state-mandated budget deadline is just a month away and the mayor and city council members fail to find common ground, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Johnson’s $17.3 billion budget for 2025 shows a $982 million hole that he proposed to fill by raising property taxes and cutting city jobs.
His initial $300 million property tax increase was rejected by all council members 50-0 in November.
The city must agree on a budget by December 31 or the credit and services could be cut off.
Travelers were outraged to see Johnson prioritizing getting himself and his wife into the Chicago airport’s free coloring book as a budget deadline looms.
The book is available at the visitor information booths at O’Hare and Midway airports. There are three different books – Chicago Airports, A is for Airport and Welcome to Chicago – as well as a Spanish version of Chicago Airports.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is being criticized for putting a photo of himself and his wife in the airport’s free children’s coloring book
Johnson and his wife introduce themselves on the first page of Welcome to Chicago and include their photo in a Spot the Difference game
Johnson and his wife introduce themselves on the first page of Welcome to Chicago and include their photo in a Spot the Difference game.
Furious flyers went out on social media at Johnson – who has a 14 percent approval rating – for including himself in the book.
“Brandon Johnson is now using taxpayer dollars and/or airport fees to publish his own personality cult books for children. The city clearly has TOO MUCH money to spend,” one person said.
‘My sister just flew halfway and got this “free” coloring book. I wonder if the difference between the photos is that one has a balanced budget and the other doesn’t,” said another.
A third person said: ‘That’s so painful to watch. The city is imploding and this is what they are wasting our money on?”
‘Ridiculous!!!!! Wasteful! Shouldn’t be!!! We want our money back,” said a fourth.
The Chicago Airports Activity & Coloring Book is free to pick up and paid for by Flychicago, the city’s Department of Aviation.
According to the Ministry of Aviation websiteThe City of Chicago’s taxes do not fund the airports.
Johnson’s $17.3 billion 2025 budget shows a $982 million gap that he has proposed to fill by raising property taxes and cutting city jobs.
The airports are financed from a variety of sources, including passenger facility charges, non-airline financing sources, and airline fees and charges.
Johnson initially proposed the $300 million property tax increase as a way to cover the costs of dealing with migrants who have flooded the city in the past year.
A heated city council meeting culminated in a unanimous rejection of the plan after locals expressed their anger in vicious outbursts against the mayor.
Furious residents accused Johnson, who has been labeled the country’s “most hated mayor,” of prioritizing undocumented immigrants over the city’s own citizens and resenting paying more property taxes.