The following article, written by Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson who last week switched from the Democratic to Republican party, provides an interesting assessment of the state of cities across the nation.
From The Wall Street Journal. I have been mayor of Dallas for more than four years. During that time, my priority has been to make the city safer, stronger and more vibrant. …
Have you taken your place on the wall?
That approach is working. Alone among America’s 10 most populous cities, Dallas has brought violent crime down in every major category, including murder, year-over-year for the past two years. … We have also reduced our property tax rate every year since I took office, signaling to investors that Dallas intends to remain the nation’s most pro-business city. …
After these wins for the people of Dallas — and after securing 98.7% of the vote in my re-election campaign this year — I have no intention of changing my approach to my job. But today I am changing my party affiliation. Next spring, I will be voting in the Republican primary. …
I have always tried to be honest and say what I think is right for my city. The future of America’s great urban centers depends on the willingness of the nation’s mayors to champion law and order and practice fiscal conservatism. Our cities desperately need the genuine commitment to these principles (as opposed to the inconsistent, poll-driven commitment of many Democrats) that has long been a defining characteristic of the GOP.
In other words, American cities need Republicans — and Republicans need American cities. When my political hero Theodore Roosevelt was born, only 20% of Americans lived in urban areas. … Today, it stands at 80%. As America’s cities go, so goes America. …
Too often, local tax dollars are spent on policies that exacerbate homelessness, coddle criminals and make it harder for ordinary people to make a living. And too many local Democrats insist on virtue signaling — proposing half-baked government programs that aim to solve every single societal ill — and on finding new ways to thumb their noses at Republicans at the state or federal level. Enough. This makes for good headlines, but not for safer, stronger, more vibrant cities. …
[With] my change in party affiliation, I recognize that the number of Republican mayors leading the nation’s 10 largest cities has increased from zero to one. … [The] overwhelming majority of Americans who call our cities home deserve to have real choices — not “progressive” echo chambers — at city hall.
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(Excerpt from The Wall Street Journal. Photo Credit: R K on Unsplash)