Roldo: Do We Have A Real Leader At City Hall?

EXTRA! EXTRA! We actually have a leader in City Council. Who’d thought it?

Second-term Councilman Brian Cummins takes his job seriously. That’s refreshing. He works the job.

It was Cummins who came out strongly – and did research – on the rotten no-bid China Mayor Frank Jackson tried to slide through City Council. And almost did with a 10 to 9 vote.

By stepping out Cummins deserves thanks and recognition.

Cummins is serious, not just a sound-bite guy.

But in the Cleveland news media people as Cummins are easily and often overlooked. I was glad to see that Dick Feagler had him on the show this week. Cummins did well, though he came on with sheets of information which he shuffled around. He needs some media advice.

Brent Larkin gave Jackson a pass in his column this week. Undeservedly.

“When the mayor discovered it was amateur hour within in his administration, he reverted to the real Frank Jackson. He did the right thing,” wrote Larkin.

I think the Mayor is in charge of his administration. He can’t shift the blame on his underlings.

The right thing was the pull back but it doesn’t mean necessarily that the China deal with Sunpu-Opto is out, as it should be. Maybe Jackson does deserve some credit for not pursuing a one-vote deal. However, in these days of public mistrust of politicians it would have been a disaster. It would have alienated a good number of Council members.

He also had the Plain Dealer against him and a veteran reporter, Mark Gillispie, quickly getting pertinent facts out to the public. Never underestimate what good reporting can do with a public issue.

Cummins and veteran Jay Westbrook, who often has been a go-along guy but rightly objected strongly on this deal, saved the city tens of millions of dollars.

A loser was Matt Zone. He wants to be Council President. But you have to show some independence. He failed. Zone, as did nine other members, wilted under pressure or simply went along to get along. Not the sign of a leader.

But the lesson that I doubt will be learned is this: Jackson made a rotten deal and too many at City Hall marched in step to support it. He shouldn’t be let off the hook and allowed to escape with “the process was flawed.” It was more than flawed.

Second, and very important, is that the administration’s top people – from what I can gather – law director Robert Triozzi, who said this no-bid deal smelled fine to him, and top aides, both from the White administration – Chris Warren and Ken Silliman – apparently went right along supporting a bad deal.

This is the kind of “loyalty” I long observed at City Hall. It makes for bad government. Top aides came to the table over and over again to sell shoddy goods to a compliant City Council.

There are ways to show that you’re not simply a “good soldier” for the administration and work for the people. However, it’s not often that you see people take opportunities to even undercut their own bosses for the public good.

I’ve seen it. But it’s very, very rare.

Roldo Bartimole celebrates 50 years of news reporting this year. He published and wrote Point of View, a newsletter about Cleveland, for 32 years. He worked for the Plain Dealer and Wall Street Journal in the 1960s.