north texas — Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson opened up for the first time to local media about his decision to switch parties and become a Republican. The mayor and Police Chief Eddie Garcia spoke about Dallas' crime rate in a joint interview. And Texas' new law making illegal immigration a state crime is already facing legal challenges.
Jack Fink delves into these stories in the latest edition of Eye on Politics (originally aired Dec. 22).
CBS News Texas political reporter Jack Fink breaks down the biggest political stories making headlines in North Texas and beyond each week. Watch the latest episode of Eye on Politics in the video player above, and he streams new episodes live on CBS News Texas every Thursday and Friday at 6 p.m.
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson talks about his decision to become a Republican
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson First published in local media About his decision to change parties and become a Republican.
“I thought about it for a while,” Johnson said.
He said he began seriously considering becoming a Republican in the wake of the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer and the resulting movement to defund the police.
“I had to be honest with myself and I had to take an inventory. The first time I voted was when I was 18 years old and I realized I was a Democrat. I turn 48 this year. “Thirty years is a long time,' and 30 years from now I'm not the same guy,'' Johnson said. “I switched because it became clear to me that I was in the wrong party and that there weren’t really any conservatives on the Democratic left, and of course I didn’t care about that issue.”
The mayor, a former Dallas state congressman, announced in September that he was leaving the Democratic Party in an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal.
He received harsh criticism from Democrats, with some calling it a “betrayal of trust” with voters.
Asked for a response, the mayor said, “I don't even understand that. Voters in Dallas vote for mayor without party affiliation. When a prominent member of your party leaves the party, that's what you have to do.” “They said something, and I think that's what they came up with, that he betrayed the voters. In fact, on its face, it's ridiculous.”
Watch the full interview below.
Dallas Mayor and Police Chief Discuss Violent Crime
In an interview with Jack, Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia and Mayor Eric Johnson pointed to police department records showing robberies, rapes and aggravated assaults are down from previous years.
“If you look at where we are as a city, we are definitely moving in the right direction,” Mayor Garcia said.
“This is the third year in a row that we have had violent crimes across the city of Dallas. This is unbelievable,” Mayor Johnson said.
Statistics show that from January 1st to December 21st of this year, robberies decreased by 7% compared to 2022, rapes decreased by 8%, and aggravated assaults other than family violence decreased by 18%. , aggravated assault domestic violence decreased by 12 percent.
However, the number of murders has increased compared to the past two years.
There have been 239 murders so far this year, an increase of 14% from last year. Dallas had 214 murders last year, 221 the year before, and 256 in 2020.
A murder earlier this month infuriated both the mayor and the police chief.
Byron Carrillo is accused of fatally shooting his ex-girlfriend, her 1-year-old son, and two of her family members.
Two weeks earlier, Carrillo, who had previously been charged with assault, was released with an ankle monitoring device, according to court records.
“I didn't see any disturbances anywhere. We caused disturbances. We were texting each other crazy about it. Yes, there were disturbances, but individuals… “Why is there such an uproar that we don't talk about this matter under any circumstances?” Do they wear ankle monitors, investigate every situation, live next door to victims who wear ankle monitors, and then murder them? ”
“We don't want criminals with very heinous crimes who should go to prison and who are under any kind of supervision. So that's what we need. We want very dangerous criminals to go to prison,” Johnson said. They need to be arrested and released.” Instead of roaming the streets, he's in prison. That's what we need. ”
The chief said it's an ongoing problem where violent criminals are released within days or weeks.
He doesn't blame Dallas County District Attorney John Clouzot. “What I'm here to complain about, as I'm sure you've been following, is the irresponsible decisions that some people have made on the bench, in the name of social justice. Not everything can keep our community safe.”
Watch the full interview below.
border heading
- The new state border security law has already led to litigation. On Monday, Gov. Greg Abbott signed SB 4. This would make it a state crime for immigrants to enter Texas illegally. The next day, the ACLU of Texas filed a lawsuit against the state on behalf of civil rights groups and El Paso County to stop it.
- The legal challenge to SB 4 is the third recent federal lawsuit between Texas and the Biden administration.
- Gov. Greg Abbott announced the state would begin airlifting migrants to Chicago. The first flight took place Tuesday from El Paso with 120 people on board.
