Today Mayor Perez announced that he would be stepping down (or not running for re-election or resigning or however you’d like to spin it) from chairing the Board of Education and the School Building Committee. This act has been the smartest political move he has made in awhile, as it eliminates some obvious conflicts of interest and helps residents to think about restoring their trust in him as a leader.
Perez cites Hartford’s budget mess as the reason for relinquishing these positions. I don’t doubt that’s part of the reason, but people never have a singular reason for doing anything. Still, making a fuss about precisely what his reasons were seems like a fruitless exercise in self-righteousness.
The Mayor’s move can allow the Charter Revision Commission to more fairly examine certain policies without their own feelings toward the mayor getting in the way. It frees the Board of Education and School Building Committee from possible ethical quandaries. And yes, it frees up the mayor to focus more on Hartford’s budget. As someone who pays obnoxiously high car tax already, my daily concerns have more to do with what I have to take out of my wallet, than what someone else pays (or doesn’t) for kitchen remodeling.
The job of the City Council is to vote.
Yesterday, Veronica Airey-Wilson failed to do her job.
The message that I got from her decision to abstain was this: Airey-Wilson wants to be everyone’s friend. Airey-Wilson wants to make no enemies. Airey-Wilson is unable to summon the courage to do her job, which, by the way, requires that tough decisions be made from time-to-time. In a time of economic meltdown, in a time when many people are losing their jobs, Airey-Wilson should show a little gratitude to at least have a job by performing one of the central tasks that she is being paid to do.
Much is being made of Cotto’s vote and remarks, some of which you can read on CT News Junkie. I have to wonder if anyone on the Council cared when he announced that he was “not down with the way this is happening.” Applause or lack of in the chambers is not what I’m referring to. Did anyone else voting (or in Airey-Wilson’s case, not voting) yesterday try on some empathy? Did anyone question the unethical and painful attempt to strip someone of power when he had not shown any wrongdoing other than having poor choice in friends?
Here is the full text of the statement given by the Working Families Party (Cotto and Deutsch) regarding the attempt to remove City Council President Torres from his position yesterday:
It is time for change in Hartford. Just as change has been needed at the national level and is now happening in Washington, it has also been needed for a while here in our city – and not just for the past week. We’ve been calling for change since the day we took office.
Throughout the past week, we’ve heard many people say they want to do what is best for the City. What’s best for the city is measured in terms of the quality of life of our residents. That’s the kind of change that we need and the kind of change that we in the Working Families Party are committed to.
What is our job in city government? It is to serve the people, honestly, directly, responsively.
Continue reading 'Calixto Torres Retains Position'»
What could Ritter possibly have to say for a whole three pages on this subject, you’re wondering? Here it is, uncut:
I would like to welcome everyone and thank everyone for being here tonight. I am encouraged by the amount of feedback I have received regarding this matter, because it demonstrates that residents care about the critical issues we will be facing over the coming weeks. These are certainly the types of situations that test our resolve and force us to dig deep for the courage to do what is right, not what is easy; to do what is necessary, not what is politically appealing.
Continue reading 'Councilman Ritter’s Statement Regarding City Council President'»
Heather Brandon has a thorough report about the arrest and Mayor Perez’s press conference this afternoon on her blog, Urban Compass. If you’re looking for information that’s not grossly hyperbolic or sensationalized, check out her article.
The Courant reports that the mayor will be turning himself in tomorrow morning for bribery. Perez is quoted as saying:
At the end of the day, a lapse in judgment is not a crime.
Perhaps it would have been more accurate for him to say that a lapse in judgment does not always result in committing a crime.
That’s all that I need to say about that. If you want to witness lots of kicking while he’s down, reroute yourself to the Topix boards over at the Courant website. They may lock the ones for this article, but surely comments on the story will pop up on unrelated news items.
Maybe I don’t see the need to throw so much venom at Sarah Palin because Hartford has our very own Sarah Barr, Mayor Perez’s spokesperson. Today’s Hartford Courant reports yet another ethics violation associated with Perez, this one regarding his lack of transparency. Barr, using tremendously flawed reasoning, writes:
If this novel concept was adopted by the FOI Commission, no Governor, Mayor, or any public official could convene a group of volunteer advisors to receive advice and counsel on important issues in a private setting
Duh! That’s the point!
What is the problem of “receiv[ing] advice and counsel on important issues in a private setting” in this case? Continue reading 'but, like, then we would have to tell the truth, omg'»
Councilperson Veronica Airey-Wilson had her home searched this morning as part of the ongoing Perez kitchen remodeling scandal investigation. She’s very cordial with the press, saying basically that people are welcome to drop by at all hours to rummage through her personal stuff. That is another reason why I could never be a politician. There are very few people–actually, only one–who have been given the go ahead to just show up on my doorstep at any time, day or night. It’s not that I have anything to hide, except for dirty laundry, general bad housekeeping skills, and a tendency toward crankiness when I might be sleeping.
Hopefully, this is a sign that the investigation is moving ahead. There must be some middle ground between a thorough investigation and an expeditious one.
Marie Kirkley-Bey is quoted in the Courant as speaking the above words to describe her victory in yesterday’s primary. She defeated opponent Abe Giles, best known for being that guy involved in a trash-hauling scandal.
Don’t assume that the slightly-more rational choices for candidates all won in the primary. Despite the Hartford Police Department’s release of documents showing a complaint had been filed against Hector Robles–a cop being accused of misusing his authority–voters of the Democrat persuasion selected him over Carmen Sierra for a General Assembly seat by a difference of 102* votes. Here’s to hoping that he is successfully challenged by a Republican or Third-Party candidate in November who is actually on the up-and-up.
The full list of primary results is here, and eventually will be here.
*A final tally was released after I posted this, changing the numbers slightly. To see those results, go here.
Lately, all I’m hearing and reading about is how shitty the economy is right now. I’m not going to argue that.
But I have to disagree with the way we are looking at certain financial problems.
Just off the top of my head, I know that there are reports on how the Mark Twain House and Old State House have been struggling. Two branches of the Hartford Public Library have closed. A number of public school employees have been laid off. The state is having budgeting issues (which apparently means that some state employees get to currently work without having the security of signed contracts. Employees can get paid for what they have worked, but be told not to return for the rest of the term. source: personal experience). When hearing about each of these issues, the message I am receiving is that nothing can be done. Our hands are tied. The library does not want to take responsibility for their budgeting mishaps. Some politicians don’t seem to want to step up and do their jobs, which directly involve city budgeting issues. What’s more, the city has this image problem (exacerbated by the media on a nearly daily basis) which allows outsiders to justify letting everything here crumble.
Money problems are not the same as late stage cancer or earthquakes–there is, in fact, something to be done. Capitalism, the whole concept of money, and esoteric budgets involving huge sums are all manufactured, aka, they are all man-made things. This is America, and no matter how awful our economy is right now, we, as a country, are faring better than many places in the world. The American Dream myth of pulling oneself up by his bootstraps is flipped. If anyone has the ability to succeed in that way, it’s not the individual, but the larger entity–the organization or corporation. Continue reading 'Frankenstein’s Monster'»
As Hartford considers revising the City Charter, possibly in November 2009, to address concerns that the “strong mayor” system isn’t working, residents will have opportunities to let their voices be heard on the issue. On July 24th, the Hartford Public Library will be hosting a panel (which always allows for a Q&A session) on this subject. So far, the two definite panelists (inasmuch as these things are ever definite) are Allan Taylor and John Kennelly. Matt Ritter will be moderating. The program begins at 6pm– light refreshments will be available.
If you follow the hyperlinks, you can find the complete charter for the City of Hartford, as well as a transcript from a City Council discussion of this issue. This will provide you with an idea of exactly what is being debated and what the time frames are.
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