DALLAS, TX – Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson was elected in 2019 as a Democrat. Now, almost four years later, he is walking away from the ideologies and platforms that got him elected.
He recently penned an opinion-editorial in the Wall Street Journal simply entitled America’s Cities Need Republicans, and I’m Becoming One.
Pointing to the Democratic policies of defunding police, electing soft-on-crime district attorneys, and spending tax-payer dollars on wasteful social experiments that are ruining most metropolitan areas, Johnson opened his piece saying:
“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. That meant saying no to those who wanted to defund the police. It meant fighting for lower taxes and a friendlier business climate. And it meant investing in family friendly infrastructure such as better parks and trails.
"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.”
Johnson alluded to a recent Gallup poll ranking the safest big cities. That poll shows Dallas at the top of the 10 largest cities.
Along with the city becoming safer, Johnson is also touting his pro-business approach.
“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. This philosophy has helped attract growing small businesses and several Fortune 500 companies, including Goldman Sachs, the construction-engineering firm Aecom and the global commercial real-estate outfit CBRE.”
The mayor said that he has no intention of altering how he has governed the 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," he said.
"But today I am changing my party affiliation. Next spring, I will be voting in the Republican primary. When my career in elected office ends in 2027 on the inauguration of my successor as mayor, I will leave office as a Republican.”
Johnson also explained why he believes that many metropolitan areas are in such disarray.
“Mayors and other local elected officials have failed to make public safety a priority or to exercise fiscal restraint," he continued. "Most of these local leaders are proud Democrats who view cities as laboratories for liberalism rather than as havens for opportunity and free enterprise.
"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.”
A longtime supporter of law enforcement, Johnson recently pointed to an article that addressed the mass exodus of officers from the Austin Police Department as he encouraged them to consider moving the Dallas and going to work for the DPD.
“If you work for Austin PD, are still interested in protecting and serving, and are considering retiring from the profession, don’t. Come work for the residents of @CityOfDallas by joining @DallasPD. We want and need you,” the mayor posted on X (formerly Twitter).
He recently penned an opinion-editorial in the Wall Street Journal simply entitled America’s Cities Need Republicans, and I’m Becoming One.
Pointing to the Democratic policies of defunding police, electing soft-on-crime district attorneys, and spending tax-payer dollars on wasteful social experiments that are ruining most metropolitan areas, Johnson opened his piece saying:
“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. That meant saying no to those who wanted to defund the police. It meant fighting for lower taxes and a friendlier business climate. And it meant investing in family friendly infrastructure such as better parks and trails.
"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.”
Johnson alluded to a recent Gallup poll ranking the safest big cities. That poll shows Dallas at the top of the 10 largest cities.
Along with the city becoming safer, Johnson is also touting his pro-business approach.
“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. This philosophy has helped attract growing small businesses and several Fortune 500 companies, including Goldman Sachs, the construction-engineering firm Aecom and the global commercial real-estate outfit CBRE.”
The mayor said that he has no intention of altering how he has governed the 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," he said.
"But today I am changing my party affiliation. Next spring, I will be voting in the Republican primary. When my career in elected office ends in 2027 on the inauguration of my successor as mayor, I will leave office as a Republican.”
Johnson also explained why he believes that many metropolitan areas are in such disarray.
“Mayors and other local elected officials have failed to make public safety a priority or to exercise fiscal restraint," he continued. "Most of these local leaders are proud Democrats who view cities as laboratories for liberalism rather than as havens for opportunity and free enterprise.
"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.”
A longtime supporter of law enforcement, Johnson recently pointed to an article that addressed the mass exodus of officers from the Austin Police Department as he encouraged them to consider moving the Dallas and going to work for the DPD.
“If you work for Austin PD, are still interested in protecting and serving, and are considering retiring from the profession, don’t. Come work for the residents of @CityOfDallas by joining @DallasPD. We want and need you,” the mayor posted on X (formerly Twitter).
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