Following violent demonstrations and civil unrest this summer in downtown Chicago, Eric Trump, the president's son, texted Mayor Lori Lightfoot twice, thanking her for protecting Trump Tower, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Lightfoot referenced the texts during an MSNBC interview in August after President Trump made an issue of her decision to raise downtown bridges following a second round of looting, the newspaper reported.
At a campaign event, the president said Lightfoot "literally raised up the drawbridges to prevent hordes of rioters from ransacking the city.”
The mayor said, in response, “One of the bridges we put up is near Trump Tower because our protesters and vigilantes would love nothing more than to attack Trump Tower.”
“So those little notes that I get from Eric Trump after every time that we’ve protected that property, if they want us to stop, say the word,” Lightfoot stated.
In an exclusive interview with NBC 5 on Aug. 18, the mayor detailed measures in place to protect downtown, including the area near Trump Tower.
"Trump Tower is clearly a target. But it's not just Trump Tower," the mayor said then. "It's making sure that we have the ability to shrink the footprint, less to protect from a policing standpoint, and we give our officers the ability to protect the peaceful protesters that are coming downtown."
Local
Eric Trump texted Lightfoot twice during the course of the summer – first on June 1 following a weekend of unrest, looting and chaos in the city stemming from the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
“Mrs. Mayor, I am thinking about you. I really appreciated your call on Saturday – it was incredibly kind," he wrote. “I have passed along your support to our team and residences. Please know, I and we truly appreciate you.”
The second text was received on July 24 after Lightfoot ordered the Christopher Columbus statue in Grant Park taken down, days after clashes between protesters and police at the site.
According to Lightfoot’s office, on Saturday, May 30, the mayor and her team affirmatively reached out to a number of businesses, residential condominiums, and non-profits to update them on various public safety measures being taken in the wake of violent protests.
“Eric Trump, the executive vice president of the Trump Organization, was one of the people the Mayor reached to provide an update on precautionary public safety efforts the City was taking in the Central Business District, and to advise that the City would not bear sustained costs associated with Trump Tower. Subsequently, Eric Trump sent the Mayor two text messages to which the Mayor did not respond,” the statement read.
The mayor, a vocal critic of the president's, has been frequently targeted by President Trump, particularly when it comes to Chicago violence.
