Chicago mayor compares Trump's tenure to the Third Reich and calls DOGE cuts an "act of war"

The Mayor of Chicago, Democrat Brandon Johnson, sparked controversy Thursday by comparing President Donald Trump's economic policies and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to the tactics of the Third Reich during a press conference alongside his Cabinet.

Johnson called the DOGE cuts an "act of war" against workers and families, accusing the Trump Administration of "cutting medicine and food" and working to "erase the culture."

In his remarks, Johnson stressed that Chicago is the most "pro-worker" city in the United States but faces unprecedented "hostility" from Washington.

"The fact that the President of the United States of America is cutting off food supply and medicine to working people and families across this country -- that is an act of war," he said, calling for bold leadership to stand up for workers in the face of these policies.

He also made a reference to a speech by Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, delivered in February, in which he compared the rise of Adolf Hitler to the popularity of Trump, noting that both benefited from contexts of inflation and social unrest.

Johnson cited Pritzker, who claimed that "it took the Nazis one month, three weeks, two days, eight hours, and 40 minutes to dismantle a Constitutional Republic."

According to the Democrat, Trump is "doing it right here in this country, against working people,” accusing him of “erasing Black folks from museums and the history and the culture.”

Johnson also criticized the Republican administration, claiming that the president is “holding us hostage as he works to implement and annihilate democracy."