In 1940, Senator Harry S. Truman learned of allegations of needless waste and profiteering in the United States military. He started his inquiry by driving his personal car — on his own dime — back to his home state of Missouri where he found many of the allegations to be true. But Truman was not done. He extended his journey from Florida through the Midwest, traveling some 10,000 miles. In an era before interstate highways and air-conditioned luxury vehicles, this was no easy task,
When he returned to Washington and reported his findings to the Senate, his proposal to have a widespread investigation of military waste met with bipartisan support. The result was the formation of the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program, commonly known at the Truman Committee.
Over its seven-year existence, as a result of the committee’s investigative efforts, the U.S. government saved an estimated $10-15 billion in military spending and the lives of thousands of U.S. servicemen. Truman’s initiative and work on the committee did much to lead him to national prominence and the vice-presidency.
Maybe member of Cleveland City Council should look back in history and emulate Truman. Last week at a city council committee meeting, firefighter’s union officials voiced serious concerns about rescue-squad vehicles that are rated in fair or poor condition, dilapidated and cockroach-invested stations and significant staffing issues.
In response to these claims of what appear to be major systemic problems within the fire department, would-be mayoral candidate and Council President Kevin Kelley told the Plain Dealer that “I think we need, really need, to better understand the nuances in all of this.”
What nuances are there to be learned about EMS equipment that is rated fair to poor? What evaluations must be made when there are cockroaches running around a fire station? What subtle issues need to be considered when the fire department does not have the equipment and staffing to do its job?
The Plain Dealer further reported that committee chairman Matt Zone said he might invite the International Association of Fire Fighters, a labor union that offers its expertise to communities, to do an evaluation. That sounds like passing the buck.
As a resident of the City of Cleveland, I’m waiting for someone at City Hall to sound the fire alarm and say something like “Houston, we have a problem.”
In 2006 I served as foreman of the Cuyahoga Grand Jury. When an arson case was presented that was several years old, I inquired as to the delay in the investigation. It turned out that the city fire investigator was hampered by the lack of necessary equipment to determine the cause of the fire. The fire investigator’s friendship with an insurance company investigator lead to a loan of the necessary testing equipment and an indictment in the case. But for that friendship and loaned equipment an arson would have gone unsolved. I never forgot that case. Why didn’t Cleveland have the proper equipment?
Nero fiddled while Rome burned. It seems to me that members of Cleveland City Council are twiddling their thumbs while major issues in the fire department smolder.
What Cleveland City Council needs is someone like Senator Harry Truman who got in his car and looked for himself. With 40 fire stations in the city, it would not take that long for 17 city councilmen to look at each one. Heck, my councilman, Ken Johnson, drove over 600 miles within my ward inspecting properties in one month late last year. I wonder if he stopped at any fire stations.
When we, as residents of the city, look at future mayoral prospects, the responses to these kinds of issues are what we need to consider when determining who will be the next mayor. They are harbingers of future conduct. Considering nuances and seeking another investigation don’t get it when you are talking about city services as vital as the fire department.
C. Ellen Connally is a retired judge of the Cleveland Municipal Court. From 2010 to 2014 she served as the President of the Cuyahoga County Council. An avid reader and student of American history, she serves on the Board of the Ohio History Connection, is currently vice president of the Cuyahoga County Soldiers and Sailors Monument Commission and treasurer of the Cleveland Civil War Round Table. She holds degrees from BGSU, CSU and is all but dissertation for a PhD from the University of Akron.