By Roldo Bartimole
Is it time for Mayor Frank Jackson to go?
If it isn’t — it sure is time he had some competition.
Cleveland is suffering from depression. Not just the economic kind. But the spiritual kind.
It needs an awakening. A prodding. Something to spur its spirit that there are better times ahead.
And I don’t mean another useless lakefront development poke. Or a Public Square spruce-up talk.
I don’t believe it can get a push without a mayoral contest that awakens the public.
Where are the Carl Stokeses and the Dennis Kucinichs of today?
They must be out there.
But they’re hesitant. Waiting for what? The Old Guard to anoint them? Ain’t going to happen. Power has to be seized. Our Old Guard is stultified. It’s too lazy and old to even think NEW.
But that’s exactly what this town needs. A shake. Badly. Desperately.
C’mon Jeff Johnson. C’mon Joe Cimperman. Zach Reed. Nina Turner. You too Brian Cummins. Chris Roynane. You all know you want it. C’mon Matt Zone. You too Tony Brancantelli. Ray Pianka. Don’t any of you sell yourselves short.
And, by the way folks, Dennis now is available. Whoa!
Jackson has done well with city finances, bolstered by revenue gains from construction pay at the casino and convention center. Not ongoing pluses. Otherwise, the city appears to be treading – not heading.
And mistakes or political errors have been made. Plenty enough for a smart politician to take a plunge. There’s dirt to dish.
Jackson’s increase of a fee to collect garbage. Pay the city to collect my garbage? That’s garbage. And an issue.
At the same he wants to spend $844,000 a year to clean up garbage around the Horse Shoe Casino. He’ll pick up garbage for wealthy casino owners. Sends the bills the public!
Where’s the fairness?
Why don’t they do their own clean up; they’ll be doing a big $$$ clean-up inside.
Yes, there are issues.
Another: Deals that reek. The Chinese deal for LEDs lighting. Smelt like a deal to me. Off to China with a 10-year, multi-million dollar deal, ignoring GE just down the corner. Oops.
The city’s “advisor” Peter Tien then turns out to be a 50 percent owner. A no bid contract too. City advisor to owner. You can’t make so many mistakes without doing it on purpose, I’d say.
Then off to Japan for an incinerator/gasification plan. Smelly. Deadly smelly maybe. And Mr. Tien shows up again. For a brilliant expose of this read Maude Campbell’s piece in the Scene.
How did Jackson develop such heart throb for this guy?
Either Jackson was totally naive or a blunderer.
The $180 million gasification plant is being fought by citizens. The kind that enjoy breathing. And it looks as if Jackson will have to back off it too.
I’d say he’s having a bad year or two.
Next Jackson gave a nose thumb to all Cleveland teachers. He teamed up, as he’s apt to do, with the Greater Cleveland Partnership and Cleveland Foundation in the school reform push. It lets the state, which has cut $50 million in two years from Cleveland’s schools, off the hook.
Helps Gov. Kasich look good. Gives power to a private overseer board, undercutting the city’s school board and adding confusion. It’s disgusting. He’s the corporate community’s mayor. Jackson, the people’s man, he has strayed far. Jackson is now an enemy of public education.
Jackson allowed the Browns to take half their paychecks and the income tax to Berea. After all Cleveland did for the Lerners. Now he gives the billionaire Randy Lerner almost $8 million for a stadium fix-up long before the lease said he had to do so. What did he ask in return? Diddly squat.
He’ll be on board to aid the billionaires with a sin tax extension. You can bet on it. Another sweet deal.
Meanwhile, killings pile up in the city.
Jackson is a Democrat. Technically that is. But he’s been playing footsie with Gov. John Kasich. He symbolically joins Kasich and the Republican’s desire to knife Labor with his school plans, hatched at the Cleveland Foundation and Greater Cleveland Partnership offices. They’re not Democrats, Frank.
There are plenty of openings to go at Jackson. It just takes a little political ingenuity and resourcefulness.
I’m old enough to have watched Carl Stokes beat a sitting mayor (Ralph Locher). Old enough to have watched Kucinich defeat a sitting mayor (Ralph Perk). It can be done. But not by sitting safely back on your ass.
The town needs a shaking. It’s dying of boredom. It’s weary of sameness. Wake up! Somebody, please.
I get the feeling, however, that there are a lot of timid politicians out there. None willing to stick their necks out. Waiting for Jackson to say, “I’d like to retire.”
When that happens the Old guard, seeing the weakness, will be ready to anoint its candidate. Too late.
Not one that I’ll likely approve. He or she will have made the deal and we’ll have another corporate stooge at city hall.
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SOME ADDED THOUGHTS:
I’ve known Dennis Kucinich since the mid-1960s. As a reporter, I went door-to-door with him in Tremont in 1967. It was his first run for Council. He lost. At times I’ve been supportive and at times very critical. When some people at the City Club gave me a luncheon to mark 25 years of Point of View, a newsletter I wrote, Dennis surprised me by attending. Indeed, he was the speaker. He spoke positively about me. Although mischievously he deadpanned that he thought the celebration was to mark my retirement. I’d finally be gone!
Now, it is many years later. He has suffered a damaging defeat. He likely lost merely by the way lines were drawn in the new misshapen 9th District. It took voters from him.
However, I think, Dennis – the consummate Cleveland politician and never a shrinking violet – misplayed the election. I don’t think he expected his opponent, Rep. Marcy Kaptur, to play hard ball. But she did. It was supposed to be a friendly battle. After seeing one of her TV commercials I actually sent $25 to Dennis’s campaign.
So it was a shock that a man who has played hard ball with the best of Cleveland politicians – from Carl Stokes to George Forbes from Ed Feighan to Ralph Perk – didn’t come out with a knife against Kaptur. By the time he must have grasped his mistake it was too late.
He revealed he was deeply hurt by remarks that could classify him a sore-loser. It had to be a tough loss for a man who has had many but still comes out fighting.
He’ll be fine. Because he has talent. He has courage. That’s all he needs for the next chapter.
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Talk about delusional. Kevin O’Brien last Thursday in a Plain Dealer column labeled President Barack Obama “a radical leftist.” Some delusion. Does the Plain Dealer really believe it should have such a hallucinatory character as a lead spokesman?
I believe in free speech and a free press. However, that doesn’t mean you have to have people representing you with silly and false ideas. Fantasies.
Please Editor Debra Adams Simmons open your eyes and view what your people peddle to readers. Have a little respect for reason. Have a little respect for rational thought.
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Okay, Jimmy’s jailed. Feel safer? I don’t.
Dimora was never a very intelligent guy. He certainly got caught up in a world he didn’t fully understand. Got a lot of backslaps. Way to go Jimmy, they said. Was led to believe he was Somebody. He had the misfortune to get mixed up with Frank Russo, a real snake. It made the rest predictable. Russo is still on the loose. Thanks feds. Why Judge?
I’ve watched wheeler-dealers in this town for a long time. Some politicians. Some big shot lawyers. Some big business guys. Usually all harmonizing. The deals they put together over the years make Dimora’s stupid, gross antics look silly and dumb. Anyone with sense knows Jimmy never had the brains to work out his crimes the legal way. I feel a bit sorry for him. I don’t care what others think.
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.He was a 2004 Cleveland Journalism Hall of Fame recipient and won the national Joe Callaway Award for Civic Courage in 1991. [Photo by Todd Bartimole.]
12 Responses to “ROLDO: Jackson – Time Running Out”
snorky
Best analysis of the DiMora fiasco is to be found in your final paragraphs.
Concerning the Kevin O ‘ Brien column of one week ago , I was shocked , though not surprised and I compared KOB to a humorist , not columnist and questioned his actual sanity or sincerity.
Be careful of calling up volunteers for a mayoral run.
It was not that many years ago that the ultimate evil Cleveland mayor for the 20th century Michael White defeated George Forbes.
” Better the enemy you know”.
Hank Wait
Snorky has a point about Mike White, but Snorky must not work for Frank because he has similarities, just not as extreme. Note also that Frank raised instituted the garbage taz AFTER the last election. Never mentioned it before. also lets not forget those who work for the city giving up 2 weeks pay in 2010. That’s right 2 weeks furlough certainly helped but do they get any applause for their sacrifice??? I was told by a health dept. worker that prior to the last election Jackson admittted that raising the income tax a 1/2 percent would solve the problems and spread the pain out over the county as the majority of the income tax is paid by non Cleveland residents but he wouldn’t do that. I also read Ken Silliman (from teh White administration) refer to that as the nuclear option. What is so nuclear about spreading the pain out so it hurts less. No Jackson did it on the backs of the city workers, most who live in cleveland becasue they bought houses prior to the residency requirement being abolished, and then instituted a garbage tax. I now pay the garbage tax (it IS a tax becasue I don’t have the option of finding a home for my garbage and not paying it. A fee you have that option) to put out 1-2 bags of garbage a month. We need new blood in City Hall.
Roldo Bartimole
Thanks for the comments.
Snorky – there maybe one name mentionned that wouldn’t be a disappointment but I understand your feeling.
But change is needed.
And Hank the garbage fee is certainly a tax and one hard to escape. So-called city income taxes of course are not income taxes really. They are payroll taxes thus far more regressive than an income tax since we the federal and state income taxes there are deduction and graduation. With the city tax everybody, the lawyer earning hundreds of thousands, the corporate people earning millions and the city worker and others earning in the thousands pay the SAME RATE.
So no way should the so-called city income taxes be raised.
John Polk
Outside of his key enablers (Sam Miller, Fed Nance, Dennis Lafferty…the usual suspects), Mike White owned and terrorized the local business community, not just with his zeal for public larceny and gift for political homicide, but for his unapologetic focus on getting his friends paid. He didn’t know how to deal with anybody who wasn’t at the public trough. That’s how his “circle of trust” became smaller and smaller over time. If Mike didn’t like you, he’d just kill you. And he didn’t like too many people.
When The Mayor “retired” to raise alpacas in the shadow of a federal corruption investigation, The Men Behind The Curtain were determined that THEY’D own the Mayor’s Office from then on. Hence the clown show which was the Jane Campbell Administration. When she was unable to give Forest City the convention center they wanted (remember that fiasco?), The Men Behind The Curtain dropped her like a hot rock, and bought Frank Jackson instead. He’s their model leader: quiet, largely submissive, and with enough personal and political peccadilloes to stay bought. He’s their guy, not the people’s.
In like manner, when Tim McCormick had the temerity to suggest that human services should trump publicly-subsidized private development on the County agenda, The Men Behind The Curtain brought Tim Hagan out of retirement to help them out. When the convention center/med mart deal went to someone else, the business community suddenly saw the need for “reform,” which is how we got to where we are today. Instead of having to own three commissioners, they only have to own one guy (and the last time I checked, Mr. Miller’s Medical Mutual Of Ohio had bought the biggest piece of Mr. FitzGerald).
The irony of the Dimora trial is that the Fed spent nearly five years and millions of dollars to out a few petty crooks and a Commissioner dumb enough to be purchased for $162,000 in free stuff. As you suggested, Roldo, the scope of Dimora’s corruption pales in comparison to the hundreds of billions of dollars worth of public larceny committed against county taxpayers for a long list of business community “wants”…The difference being that THAT theft was all perfectly legal…or at least, not technically illegal. But until the BIG corruptors are gone, government “reform” will be, like much done by GCP, just a few words used as a smokescreen to obscure business as usual…
Politically ambitious would-be reformers have learned that lesson the hard way: The Men Behind The Curtain are serious sociopaths who care only about their own power. Cross them, and they’ll end your career…
Roldo Bartimole
John, love your short descriptive but accurate portrayal of HOW POWER HAS AND DOES WORK IN CLEVELAND.
You know it from personal experience.
My hat off to you.
John Polk
…Shoulda said “hundreds of MILLIONS of dollars’ worth of public larceny”…No need to mess up a good rant with needless hyperbole, when the facts are horrific enough…
bob w.
Education thing…vouchers or no vouchers..HOW many can or would go for THAT…seriously…WHA IS OUT there for kiddies (or rest of us to do)…
bob w.
I THINK folks using MEDICAL,legalbegal as saviors…
bob w.
SHALE OIL SHALE OIL…NO not tied to ANY of THOSE biz,etc.SEEING ‘reports’ of 800 bil bbl of whutever OUT there…can debate,quantify the $s,#s,facts behind THAT…n THAT is OVER WHOLE US of A…NOT just OHIO…I can pic it ALLL GOIN ON or dooown…I THINK folks waiting for THAT to show up..COULD be wrong…
bob w.
MAYBE I am being naive or ol school or SOMETHING…WE have sports thing..stadiums,etc. OTHER then maintennace thing…Yeahh is *$*@ far as HorsePLOPPockiePlop BUT wha gonna do…X SMELLS dealtime n desparation…FINALLY WE RUN OUT OF $…and politico will…
bob w.
WHOLE thing dumped on COLUMBUS? or Feds…FAIR CHANCE…or BITS AND PIECES…NOT defending interests BUT…WHA do w/old bldgs,etc.etc.in X city w/X mindset w/WHA LEFT of WHAT industries….
Tracy Leonard
I accept the points you make. Isn’t it correct that things will be easier When the economy improves?