Mayor Johnson takes aim at corporate media, some Democrats in livestream with Hasan Piker
Piker, who has become one of the biggest voices of the far left, debated the late Charlie Kirk several times.
CHICAGO (WLS) -- If you are running for public office, reaching younger voters through a popular online platform has become a must-do for candidates.
While he has yet to make a decision about reelection, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson appeared on a livestream with a controversial figure.
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Hasan Piker, also known by the online name HasanAbi, appeared with Johnson in Los Angeles. The streamer has become one of the biggest voices of the far left. Piker debated the late Charlie Kirk several times.
But Piker's livestream with Johnson was anything but a debate. It was more of a discussion about the mayor's progressive agenda and the people trying to derail it.
"There's been a massive amount of money to interrupt our overall agenda," Johnson said.
Johnson blamed the corporate media and certain Democrats for being influenced by corporate money, including the 30 Chicago City Council members who shot down the corporate head tax.
As he has done several times, Johnson took aim at Chicago Democratic donor Michael Sacks and former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. In addition, there was a slight dig at former President Barack Obama.
"The Emanuel administration embodied the 1% of society," Johnson said.
"The Obama administration as well," Piker said.
"Oh, absolutely. This might be a good time to just insert a 'Thank you, Obama' if we are going to criticize him," Johnson said.
Piker is a self-proclaimed anti-imperialist Marxist who has been accused of being antisemitic. Political analysts doubt the mayor's appearance will help his reelection efforts if the mayor chooses to run again.
"He's got problems with his own base. He's got the challenge of reaching out to people who don't necessarily agree with his politics, and this is just moving him further away from that," said ABC7 political analyst Laura Washington.
The conversation with Piker lasted more than 35 minutes. Political experts say it is plenty of material that could backfire during mayoral election season.
"Doing a long-form interview with a controversial host is a gamble. It leaves a trail of receipts. And when you have a half-hour or 60 minutes of content, you are giving your opponents a lot to work with," said Aviva Bowen with The Strategy Group.
