Dr. Willie Wilson wants an elected school board for Chicago.  But his vision for management of the police department is so unconventional that it doesn’t adhere to any of the four current proposals before the City Council. If elected Mayor, Wilson would split the police department into four entities, each with its own superintendent, all of whom would report to him.

Wilson is highly critical of Mayor Emanuel, who he accuses of handing out contracts and opportunities to his friends and associates while ignoring minority communities. Wilson says he’d re-open the 50 schools Emanuel closed in 2013, converting them into training centers for the trades. He tells us that he sees no need for new taxes, including the graduated income tax, because the budgets can be balanced with existing revenue. He says he approves of ex-governor Pat Quinn’s petition drive to term-limit the Mayor’s office, and says he’d be happy to circulate petitions for Quinn. He pledged that he’d limit himself to two terms if elected.

He stops short of a full endorsement of Bruce Rauner, for whom he now works as a member of a panel reviewing minority contracting. But he says “I’m supporting who is doing things for the people in the community.” And, he adds, “We’ve got a good relationship with him. The other candidate, J. B., I reached out to talk to him last year. He never did call me and never did talk. We give the same options to him.”

Willie Wilson is our guest this week, as we attempt to hold conversations with all of the formally announced candidates in the February 26 mayoral election.

You can watch the show by clicking the image above.

You can listen to the audio-only version here: 

You can read a full transcript of the discussion here: CN transcript June 7 2018