Our Democratic town committee lost my respect when they refused to endorse Ned Lamont in his run for Senate. Instead they stood firmly by that weasel Creepy Joe Lieberman out of loyalty or pragmatism or cronyism. And look where it got us.
Now they can't seem to find someone to run against Republican Mayor Seb Giuliano. No surprise. He dismantled a relationship with an indicted builder who was in the midst of constructing a new high school. He railroaded a developer who was going to turn downtown into big box heaven. He squeezed an ineffectual police chief into retirement. He breathed some fresh air into city hall.
So when Councilman Gerry Daley says: "I hope no one in this room or the public interprets the fact that we're not nominating a candidate for mayor as some form of endorsement for the current mayor," at the Democratic caucus, and claims that the current mayor doesn't have, "a single initiative that he has proposed that has benefited the city in his term" I think it shows a fear of losing power on some important boards and committees.
The mayor has spent some time undoing the misdeeds of the former mayor, and came to office too late to stop all of them (the Richland Group - Ferry Street complex comes to mind), and he's got to focus on a few more of those bad deals (he seems to be working on Kleen Energy, but not nearly as energetically as needs be), and that's signature enough on good works for me.
It's shameful to have an election with no opposing candidate. It's shameful that the Democrats can't see beyond their old-boy network, and find a real, progressive candidate. It's a shame that no one is confident enought to step up to the plate to run against the Republican reformer. And it's an indictment of politics as usual.
The ridiculous strategy of asking voters to cast a ballot for "none of the above" just shows how bankrupt the local Dems are.
Unless a Democratic miracle occurs, in the fall I'll be voting against my instincts for a Republican candidate again.
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