Now that a federal judge has decreed that Chicago’s great temple to Barack Obama can be built without delay—you can almost hear Obama himself say the words, “Look upon my works, ye mighty, and despair!”—there remains a nagging question: Did Obama truly help Chicago, the city of his political birth, by taking care of the Daleys and installing Rahm Emanuel as mayor? Or did Obama turn his back on Chicago once he became president, worrying more about his March Madness brackets than the constant slaughter by the street gangs that continues to this day? It’s probably best that we leave...