John Whitmire is not like most big city Democratic mayors. The 76-year-old, first-term mayor of Houston avoids confrontations with President Trump, courts Republican state leaders and saves his biggest complaints for his own party.
“Sometimes the louder you get, the less people listen to you,” he said of his fellow Democrats. “I don’t respond to Trump — that could be counterproductive. Do I have personal views? Sure, and they’re strong, but why do you want to challenge him?”
With rhetoric escalating over immigration raids and National Guard troop deployments, Mayor Whitmire is betting that the best way to govern a large American city right now is to keep your head down.
“Most major cities are in turmoil,” Mr. Whitmire said. “We’re not.”
His approach, developed over 50 years in Texas politics, may be keeping down the political temperature in Houston, the nation’s fourth most populous city and a diverse, immigrant-heavy Democratic hub deep inside a red state.
But it has not endeared the mayor to his city’s progressives, who would say it’s not confrontation they crave. It’s backbone.
“This is a mayor who has no vision,” said Karthik Soora, a co-chairman of Houston Progressives.
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