DAVID MARCUS: Democrat logic: Chicago raises hotel tax ... to attract tourists

Just erstwhile you thought that the hare-brained schemes of the Democrats who tally our beleaguered large cities couldn’t get goofier, Chicago has passed a caller doozy. The Windy City is raising edifice taxes to, get this, summation tourism.

Ordinance 2026-0022544 volition rise the taxation connected edifice rooms wrong that territory to 19% from the complaint of 17.5%, with the proceeds going to an enactment called Choose Chicago, which volition usage the currency for tourism selling campaigns.

The apical people connected Choose Chicago’s privation database of events is the 2028 Democratic National Convention, and now, everyone who books a country successful Second City gets to spot successful a spot connected the effort.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson listens arsenic Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker speaks astatine a quality league to code President Donald Trump's program to nonstop National Guard troops into the metropolis connected August 25, 2025 successful Chicago, Illinois.  (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

It’s rather a thing: Only a leftist Democrat could perchance deliberation that making it much costly to sojourn Chicago volition summation tourism. Maybe they should propulsion successful a complimentary mugging to sweeten the deal.

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Now, mundane working-class tourists and concern travelers volition beryllium paying straight retired of pouch to wage for a run tally by Democrats to pull the Democratic Party to town. 

What we are truly seeing astatine play present is not truthful overmuch an effort to woo travelers to Chicago, but alternatively a benignant of Tammany Hall-style patronage programme successful which the Democrats who tally the metropolis manus retired costly jobs to their friends.

This is, connected a somewhat smaller scale, is precisely the benignant of ungraded that helped to descend Kristi Noem’s tenure arsenic caput of Homeland Security, aft she allegedly gave advertizing contracts worthy hundreds of millions to those adjacent to her and her reported paramour, Corey Lewandowski.

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Let’s beryllium honorable here, who are the Democrats who tally Chicago apt to prosecute to pull the DNC? Probably precisely the aforesaid radical who marque their governmental ads.

It is telling that this costly effort to merchantability Chicago arsenic a question destination is not focused connected the mean household taking a travel to 1 of our nation’s large cities, but rather, connected conventioneers racking up much edifice points.

The "Greetings from Chicago" mural brightens a thoroughfare successful Chicago’s Logan Square vicinity connected March 30, 2018. (Patrick Gorski/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

It is the far-left Democratic Party successful a nutshell: moving people families paying the bills for the wide elites.

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It is not conscionable higher edifice taxes that support the mean Joe from packing up the minivan and heading to Chicago with the woman and kids. It's that our municipality centers are accelerated becoming playgrounds for the affluent alternatively of family-friendly environments.

In large bluish cities similar Chicago, Portland, San Francisco and Philadelphia, 1 expects to locomotion implicit half-dead vagrants with needles successful their arms, not a show that immoderate genitor cherishes explaining to a young one.

But for the normal class, it's nary fuss astatine all, they conscionable measurement into their Uber X connected the mode to the steakhouse and alert close past the incorrect sort.

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Chicago is sending the aforesaid connection to moving people Americans that Democrats each implicit the state are, that question and tourism is not for you, that you should enactment astatine home, ticker Netflix and bid UberEats portion the affluent radical frolic.

Can Democrats conscionable 1 clip walk a metropolis instrumentality that makes things little costly for the mediate class?

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The Left’s conception of governance seems to beryllium to marque everything fundamentally escaped for the poor, and immigrants, amusement immoderate thigh to the wealthy, and instrumentality the ever-shrinking mediate people with the bill.

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But don’t worry, the advisor people volition bash precise good successful this deal, arsenic Choose Chicago offers them taxpayer-funded perks to bring their conventions which besides wage the taxation that goes close backmost to giving them perks.

Nice enactment if you tin get it.

The household roadworthy travel is simply a staple of mediate America, and Chicago, with its museums and fabulous architecture, should beryllium the jewel of specified trips. But the authorities of the metropolis doesn’t look funny successful that. After all, those families person nary governmental connections.

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If Chicago scores the DNC past I volition apt beryllium there, my institution paying the caller edifice taxes arsenic I schmooze with costly suits sipping pricey martinis. But if I privation to instrumentality my lad for a week, that conscionable got much expensive.

It is the aforesaid aged communicative with the Democrats, ever taking wealth from hard-working Americans to manus implicit to their friends, and now, everyone who visits Chicago gets to spot in.

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