Mayor Brandon Johnson vs. President Donald Trump: and the winner is?

In case any Chicagoans have been buried under the cold and snow and haven’t been on notice—or maybe just covering their eyes from the news and politics these days—we do have a colossal battle brewing in our city.

The contestants?

It is Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson going head on, mano a mano, against our new president, Donald Trump. 

The issue is immigration and migrants, and we won’t go into all the levels in play in this particular discussion, but suffice to say these two political Goliaths are about to go at it, head to head.

So, let’s see if we can figure out, when Trump and Johnson collide, who will come out the winner. We will play this out as if it were a heavyweight boxing match, with Brandon “The Mayor” Johnson vs. Donald “The President” Trump.

Speed: Advantage? “The Mayor.” Johnson looks to be in decent shape and may still have the quickness to avoid any hard punches from Trump.  “Bob and weave, dodge and duck” could become a winning technique for “The Mayor.”

Size: Advantage? “The President.” Trump is taller with a longer reach. Could be an advantage as they get closer and stuck in the trenches. Does Trump still have the power to deliver a knockout blow?  We shall see.

Experience: Advantage? “The President. ”Actually, a big advantage here. Trump has been through these battles ever since his New York business days, into his career in politics.  He has been there, seen that. Johnson, on the other hand, is still new to all this.  Could he use his fresh, brash youthfulness to his advantage?  Maybe, but again, we shall see.

Home crowd:  Advantage? “The Mayor.” Trump will be stepping into enemy territory. He will have to battle the blue state home crowd, who may not treat him well. Then again? Some in this blue state, and the city of Chicago in particular, aren’t exactly thrilled with the mayor—so that could temper the home crowd advantage.

Corner help:  Advantage? Even. In Trump's corner is his new Homeland Security henchman, Tom Homan, the man who led the “separate kids from their parents” immigration deterrent back in Trump’s first term.  Homan is mean, tough and incredibly unsympathetic, which should serve to light the embers under an already burning mad Trump and make him even more dangerous in the ring.

Brandon Johnson, on the other hand, has Gov. JB Pritzker in his corner, a good fight-back maneuver. JB is talking strongly as well about protecting our city, and the residents thereof, from immigration raids. JB has more power than does Homan, but can he match the vitriol and intensity of Homan? Call this an even match, with both boxers having strong support in their corner.

Distractions:  Advantage? “The Mayor,” but only slightly. A struggling city budget and a huge teachers union/school board dispute may keep Johnson from fully concentrating on his one-on-one vs. Trump.

On the other hand, Trump’s hundred and one “executive actions” are pulling him in all directions and likewise might serve as distraction from full attention in defeating the young and feisty Johnson.

Conclusion? Too close to call. The only thing we can almost guarantee is that it will be a hard-fought battle, and it will be contentious. These two do not like each other, and it should make for one heck of a confrontation.

The likely end result?  Let’s call it a draw.