We live during very stupid times.
Remember the controversy over the Christopher Columbus statue in Chicago?
Mayor Lori Lightfoot blocked a deal the Chicago Park District made with an Italian American group to allow a Christopher Columbus statue to be displayed in a parade and made obscene remarks aimed at government lawyers during a contentious meeting, a high-ranking lawyer alleged in a lawsuit filed Tuesday.
The lawsuit, filed by former Chicago Park District deputy general counsel George Smyrniotis against the city and Lightfoot, is closely related to another case brought by the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans against the Park District after Lightfoot removed Columbus statues from the city.
In his lawsuit, Smyrniotis alleges he was told by Timothy King, then the district’s top lawyer, and then-superintendent Michael Kelly that they wanted the lawsuit over the statues settled “as soon as possible.”
Smyrniotis alleges he then worked with lawyers for the Italian Americans to make a deal. As part of negotiations, the group wanted to display the Columbus status in its annual Columbus parade last fall and proposed putting the statue last in the parade and covered until the end, according to Smyrniotis’ lawsuit.
King approved the request, according to the suit, because the Park District thought it would generate goodwill with the Italian Americans.
Park District lawyers and the Italian Americans group were also negotiating a deal to remove the statue from the city permanently.
When Lightfoot learned about the plan, Smyrniotis alleges in his lawsuit, she threatened to pull the permit for the parade and ordered Park District officials to attend a hastily called Zoom meeting.
At the meeting, Smyrniotis alleges, Lightfoot “proceeded to berate and defame” the lawyers and asked them, “Where did you go to law school? Did you even go to law school? Do you even have a law license?”
Lightfoot told them that they had to submit their pleadings to a city lawyer for approval and were told “not to do a f------ thing with that statute without my approval.”
“Get that f------ statue back before noon tomorrow or I am going to have you fired,” Lightfoot said, according to the complaint.
Lightfoot also made obscene comments to Smyrniotis and King, according to the lawsuit, which alleges she called them “d----” and asked, “What the f--- were you thinking?”
“You make some kind of secret agreement with Italians. ... You are out there stroking your d---- over the Columbus statue, I am trying to keep Chicago police officers from being shot and you are trying to get them shot,” Lightfoot said, according to the complaint. “My d--- is bigger than yours and the Italians, I have the biggest d--- in Chicago.”
Smyrniotis asserts the alleged comments defamed him by imputing that he lacked the ability to perform his job duties. He resigned from the Park District last month, according to the lawsuit. King has also since left the Park District.
You know things are bad when "Lori Lightfoot's d*ck" is trending on Twitter.