Why would a city mayor defend a dictator while his own streets continue to burn?
As I continue my walk across America from Atlanta into Alabama, I’ve met countless everyday heroes — hardworking parents, devoted friends, and faithful community builders — who pour their lives into lifting up neighbors and restoring hope in forgotten neighborhoods. Their quiet sacrifices rarely make headlines, but they produce real, lasting change. That is why I’ve been deeply dismayed by leaders back home in Chicago and across the nation who seem far more eager to defend Nicolás Maduro, a brutal dictator whose regime has tortured, starved, and crushed its own people — rather than confront the rampant violence, poverty, and failing schools devastating far too many American communities.
After President Donald Trump’s decisive action to remove Maduro, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson chose not to stand for justice or human rights. Instead, he condemned the move as an "illegal regime change abroad" and claimed it was "solely about oil and power." He even linked it to the "dehumanization of migrants from Venezuela" by the "far right." He has since doubled down through multiple posts on X — as if defending a tyrant who has driven millions to flee their homeland is somehow compassionate.
Why would a city mayor, with no international authority, insert himself into global affairs like this? I understand that local governance may not feel revolutionary enough. But supporting Maduro’s government — with its documented record of torture and extrajudicial killings — isn't solidarity. It’s siding with evil.
WALKING ACROSS AMERICA SHOWED ME WHY FAITH AND FREE THOUGHT CAN STILL WIN
Johnson isn’t the only one. Leftist mayors like New York’s Zohran Mamdani and Los Angeles’ Karen Bass reflect a troubling pattern, aligning with anti-American narratives that prioritize ideological posturing over real suffering and crises within their own cities.
These mayors were elected to fix potholes, improve schools, and reduce crime — yet they spend invaluable time and energy condemning Trump while effectively giving dictators carte blanche. Do they not care about the people in their own backyards? Or are they advancing some international agenda that undermines the American Dream right here at home?
This distraction is painfully evident in Chicago, where our streets are plagued with violence and our children are trapped in underperforming schools. Yet, the Chicago Teachers Union jumped into the fray. On X, they promoted an "emergency protest" against what it called "U.S. aggression against Venezuela," calling to "STOP THE BOMBINGS" and framing the situation as imperialist war.
Their X post urged people to join them at Chicago’s Federal Plaza. The post was co-sponsored by groups like the Anti-War Committee and the Party for Socialism and Liberation. Why is a teachers' union, which should be focused on raising literacy rates and preparing kids for success, rallying for a regime that has crushed its own people's freedoms? And why are taxpayers footing the bill?
It gets worse. I recently saw a Freedom Foundation post stating that the CTU took a trip to Venezuela to "visit with government officials and teachers and tour communes." I don’t even know what "tour communes" are, but what is the CTU doing in Venezuela and, again, why on the taxpayer’s dime?
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This is not about peace. This is about ideology. When politics becomes a false religion, it breeds rage and division, and it pulls us away from the faith and merit that build strong communities.
My walk is about reclaiming that foundation. Everywhere I go, I talk to Americans who believe in earning success through hard work, not handouts or excuses. Restoring merit means teaching trades, fostering entrepreneurship, and instilling values that lift people out of poverty — like the work being done at Project H.O.O.D. back in Chicago's South Side. Restoring merit means believing in America.
At this point, we must be brutally honest. These mayors are not here to help us. Where’s their progress? It isn’t there. They don’t believe in America. They don’t believe in us, the Americans. The reality is that "We the People" have to lead. It’s on us. We have to be the change. We have to step outside our doors and talk to our neighbors and take steps to help, however small they may be.
As I press on with this walk, my faith reminds me that God calls us to justice and truth, not to prop up tyrants or play politics with people’s lives. The American Dream isn't about siding with dictators. It’s about creating opportunity for all, earned through merit and perseverance. It’s about believing in America.