by Mark Schwendau
Chicago news journalist William J. Kelly got his sweet revenge on outgoing Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot in the most unusual and comical way Wednesday. Lightfoot had pulled his press credentials, so he just happened to be one of five lucky winners of a lottery to offer 3 minutes of comments from 5 private citizens of Chicago.
The Chicago reporter filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in late August, alleging Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Chicago Police Department Superintendent David Brown violated his First Amendment and Fourteenth Amendment rights when they revoked his media credentials in July. Lightfoot’s exchanges with Kelly at press conferences became so combative they had regularly gone viral on the Internet over the past year. Kelly is also now writing a book on his experiences as a journalist trying to report on Mayor Lightfoot during her term in office.
In his subpoena, Kelly and his legal team are seeking “Any documents, records, emails, text messages or other electronic communications to or from Mayor Lori Lightfoot, her press staff (including Cesar Rodriguez), any other staff or employees of the City of Chicago referring to, concerning, or containing the words Fox News, Tucker Carlson, William Kelly a//k/a William J. Kelly a/k/a Bill Kelly, or conservative news media, conservative or Republican.”
Kelly took to the podium to give Lightfoot the verbal lashing she deserved, “You shut down our schools, you shut down the churches, you shut down the businesses. You did the one thing I thought could never happen: As somebody who was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago, I never thought in my life that I would ever see the city of Chicago brought down so low.”
Kelly concluded, “I hope that, after today’s city council meeting, you will pack your suitcase and get the hell out of my city!” His reference was not because of her race or sexuality. Lightfoot was born and raised in Massillon, Ohio, and then went to the University of Michigan to receive her B.A. degree. The people of Chicago are not fond of outsiders holding their highest city office. Odds are, it will never happen again.
Mayor Lightfoot has had a history of denying access to City of Chicago documents that are to be made public according to Federal and State laws. The law firm of Loevy & Loevy has filed 104 lawsuits against Lightfoot’s Administration over FOIA denials. The Chicago Tribune just recently won a case after the city “fought to keep secret” documents concerning alleged employee misconduct, even after the Illinois attorney general agreed that the documents should be released.
Unlike the denied FOIA requests, Mayor Lightfoot will be forced to cooperate with Kelly’s subpoenas.
In a recent interview on “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” Kelly called the suit ” a textbook First Amendment case.” “Unfortunately, the textbook is from Venezuela,” he added.
“I think the real scandal here is that Mayor Lightfoot has 80-plus security guards that are assigned to protect her from me asking real questions during a re-election campaign at the time when the Chicago police are down 1,500 officers, crime is out of control, there’s a record low arrests and a spike in police suicides,” Kelly said.
Kelly is an investigative reporter and Emmy award-winning broadcaster known for his hard-hitting reporting on Chicago crime. Back in 2010, Kelly questioned then-candidate Rahm Emanuel about his lack of Chicago residency in a sidewalk interview. That incident went viral on the Drudge Report after Chicago CBS reporter Jay Levine threatened to deck Kelly on camera. Emmanuel had come out of the Obama administration after serving president Barack Obama as White House chief of staff. A number of Illinoisans felt his campaign was illegal since he violated Illinois’ residency requirements for running for and holding office (he had been residing in Washington, D.C.).
Kelly is currently a contributor to the Daily Caller and the Daily Mail. He was previously a blogger for the Washington Times and the Midwest Correspondent for Newsmax. He has been the longtime radio show host of the Citizen Kelly Show on AM 1590 WCGO and 95.9 FM, where the show aired for five years. Most recently, he has aired on AM 1490 in Chicago.
Kelly grew up on Chicago’s South Side, graduating from Christ the King and Quigley Preparatory Seminary South. While at Quigley, Kelly became a regular contributor to the “Mass for Shut-Ins” TV program on WGN-TV. After high school, he attended Loyola University’s Rome Center and traveled throughout Europe before receiving a B.A. in political science and philosophy.
Kelly’s career in journalism began as a reporter for the City News Bureau. He later penned the “Man About Town Column” for TCW Magazine. This job got him recognized for a production deal with the Chicago FOX television affiliate. Kelly is an Emmy award-winning producer and also has received an Emmy nod as an on-camera talent.
The entire comments of journalist Kelly are recorded on video here:
“SHOCKING MOMENT: Citizen Brutally Confronts Lori Lightfoot, Tells Her, ‘You Are A Pandemic!’”
This was Mayor Lightfoot’s last meeting before stepping down. She refused to look at Kelly for most of his comments and was even so rude to talk to the city clerk seated next to her during his remarks.
Lightfoot, a lesbian, became the laughing stock of most of Illinois and the world when she got into a heated debate making obscene comments to George Smyrniotis, former Chicago Park District deputy general counsel and district’s top attorney, Timothy King.
“You make some kind of secret agreement with Italians. … You are out there stroking your d*ks over the Columbus statue, I am trying to keep Chicago police officers from being shot, and you are trying to get them shot,” Lightfoot allegedly said. “My d*ck is bigger than yours and the Italians; I have the biggest d*ck in Chicago.”
Lightfoot stopped a deal between the Chicago Park District and an Italian-American group that would have allowed a statue of Christopher Columbus to be exhibited during a heritage parade. A lawsuit was filed, and it also accused Lightfoot of making obscene remarks, including “My d*ck is bigger than yours and the Italians.” The suit was filed by George Smyrniotis against the city and Lightfoot.
CONCLUSION:
A number of news sources in bed with the Democrats have used the term “alleged” about Lightfoot’s profane comment directed at the two male Chicago City attorneys and Chicago Italian community, but I actually heard the audio recording. For them to use the term “alleged” to address this actual event is gaslighting. That audio recording has since been scrubbed from the Internet. In Illinois, it is illegal to electronically record somebody without their knowledge and permission.
Copyright © 2023 by Mark S. Schwendau
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Mark S. Schwendau is a retired technology professor who has always had a sideline in news-editorial writing where his byline has been, “Bringing little known news to people who simply want to know the truth.” He classifies himself as a Christian conservative who God cast to be a realist. His website is www.IDrawIWrite.Tech.
Thanks Mark.
Good riddance to a totalitarian monster.
Lightfoot’s failure is epic. Her own party rebelled against her. She finished 3rd, and got a minority of black votes. Chicago media downplayed her failures, is also discredited, since she lost without an opposition media.