Former Chicago alderman Bob Fioretti is running for mayor in a crowded field and, like most minor candidates, is trying to generate some buzz to jump-start his campaign.  Fioretti held a press conference and jokingly suggested that iconic Daley Plaza – named for  Mayor Richard J. Daley, who ruled the city with an iron fist in the 1960s and '70s – be renamed in honor of former president Obama.

Fioretti and six other candidates are chasing the frontrunner, Bill Daley, whose father and brother both served as mayor.

Last week, Bill Daley suggested renaming the Dan Ryan Expressway after Obama.  Dan Ryan was a legendary Cook County Board president which, back in the day, was an enormously powerful office.  His family was outraged at the suggestion, leaving an opening for Fioretti.

Chicago Sun Times:

"I think if we're going to start un-naming our public institutions that memorialize 20th century politicians and re-naming them for 21st century politicians, we should start un-naming with the ancestor of the mayoral candidate who thinks it's such a good idea," Fioretti said Friday at the press conference, which was described in official releases from his team as a "facetious" event.

Bill Daley is the brother of former Mayor Richard M. Daley, and the son of longtime Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley, for whom the plaza is named.

Daley's announcement late last week made headlines and stayed in the news after the Ryan family condemned the idea, expressing "shock and disappointment" at the suggestion that the former Cook County board president's legacy be erased from his namesake highway.

At his press conference Friday morning, Fioretti called Daley's proposal to rename the Dan Ryan after President Obama "ludicrous" and "a shameful attempt to pander" to African-American voters.

There are six black candidates running for mayor, so a serious split in the black vote is likely.  That helps Daley, of course, whose legendary name will get him some minority support anyway.

But this was actually a clever move by Fioretti.  It certainly gave him more attention than he's been getting previously and reminded voters that Bill Daley ain't his daddy (or even his brother).  That's a good thing, too. 

Polls show that Daley is neck and neck with Cook County Board president Toni Preckwinkle and Comptroller Susana Mendoza.  The general election in April is a mere formality.  The February 26 Democratic primary will determine who will succeed Rahm Emanuel and be stuck being in charge of the disaster that is Chicago.