Rahm's 'fear Detroit' campaign worked. But then there's this...

Remember Rahm Emanuel's fear campaign, the one that -- along with $20 million -- helped get him re-elected?

John Kass ridiculed it in the Tribune:

...what if Chuy wins?How long will it take Chicago to become Detroit, as threatened by the Rahmulans? Not the real Detroit, but more like a cinematic post-apocalyptic Detroit. Just imagine Chicagoans dressed as the extras from "The Book of Eli," in a parched wasteland Chicago of the future as promised by the Rahmulan politicos should Rahm not win.

FOX News was all too happy to pick on on David Axelrod's fear campaign associating Chuy with Destroit. Here's John Stossel on March 23rd:

Emanuel’s opponent in the run-off, Garcia, vocally supports the unions and joins them in opposing both pension reform and competition from charter schools at all costs. Garcia also wants a "moratorium on charter schools." But charters are a rare bright spot in the failing city. Chicago is the next Detroit.

Well, they all can relax now. Rahm won the election. There's no Latino mayor sitting on the 5th floor ready to blow up LaSalle St. And the plan to transform Chicago into the Silicon Valley of the Midwest, rather than Motown, is in full swing. You know about Silicon Valley right? Privatization Mecca with white-only gated communities and where even millionaires don't feel rich.

But then, yesterday there's this...Moody's drops Chicago's credit rating to 'junk' (Reuters)

Moody's Investors Service on Tuesday pushed Chicago's credit rating into the "junk" category, potentially triggering $2.2 billion in accelerated debt payment and increasing the fiscal challenges facing the nation's third-largest city...The only big U.S. city with a lower Moody's rating is Detroit, which exited bankruptcy in December.

I guess the city's creditors aren't buying the Rahm as great white hope scenario, especially after the Supreme Court ruled that pension theft was unconstitutional -- something anyone with half a brain knew they would.

Chuy's plan to reform the tax structure, to make it more progressive rather than balancing the budget on the backs of the poor and retired public workers, looks pretty damn good right now. A lot better than Gov. Rauner's plan to drive the city into bankruptcy, a la Detroit.

So Rahm's fear campaign worked -- for the time being. But really, what did he win? The feds are in town inching closer to City Hall. His schools chief has gone underground. He's facing another possible teachers strike after offering CTU members a 7% pay cut. He's going to have to raise property taxes. His pension-theft plan has been ruled unconstitutional. And his brilliant plan to finance his operations with red-light tickets and gambling casinos is blowing up in his face. VICTORY!