Emanuel: Garcia Asking For Voters' "Blind Faith"
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A day after challenger Jesus "Chuy" Garcia went on the offensive in the second televised mayoral debate of the runoff election, Mayor Rahm Emanuel suggested Garcia wants voters to trust his plans for the city on "blind faith" alone.
"Attacks on me are an attempt to mask an agenda to move the city forward," Emanuel said during an announcement about an expansion of the CTA's "Second Chance" program for ex-offenders.
The mayor said he's not to blame for the city' financial woes, saying the problems go back decades.
"The problems that we have, and the challenges we have today weren't created in the last four years. They were created by … in the last 30 years, and if you're going to look back, and just attack, you've got to look back at all 30 years that created and mounted these problems," he said.
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As he has before, Emanuel insisted Garcia has not made his plans for the city clear.
"Not having an agenda, let alone also a commission that you're going to name after the election; and you're not going to be specific, and tell people what's going to be part, or not part of it; what tax increases are going to be on the table, or off the table; what service cuts are going to be on or off the table," he said. "That is asking people by blind faith."
Emanuel would not speculate whether strong early voting numbers could be favorable to his campaign, suggesting that would be a guess.
