vibinc

Frequent readers of this blog know that I am a political junkie. I want to know everything that’s going on, even if I don’t ultimately write about it. That’s just how I am. It’s a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, despite my short time living in Memphis, I have a decent amount of institutional knowledge about who and what and where. On the flip side, I don’t often write about all of that for reasons that run the gambit from the insignificant to not really having ALL or enough of the story to run with it. That’s the reality of where I’m coming from on the whole political scene. I like to know, but if there’s not a story there, or I don’t have a good enough grasp on the situation, I won’t write about it until the pieces fall into place.

Being a political junkie, that’s often in places scattered hither and fro across this country, I have found that there are tools, like twitter and Facebook, as well as the traditional means that are helpful in keeping up with the politicians.

There are few things that REALLY PISS ME OFF in this world, that aren’t somehow policy related, but one of them, more than anything else, is denying me information, particularly if you are currently campaigning for office. From my perspective, part of your gig as a politician is to inform EVERYONE, regardless of whether I’m a supporter or not. The truth of the matter is, whether I vote for you or not, you will likely serve in an office that represents me. You may not like what I say, or how I say it, but denying me my right to both know what your plans are, and an opportunity to respond to your positions, whether you choose to respond or not, is the height or bullshit.

So it was with a great deal of both disappointment and irritation that I discovered I had been blocked on twitter by Mayoral candidate Kenneth Whalum Jr.

Apparently, Kenneth Whalum Jr. either doesn’t give a damn about working to win my vote, or he’s just naive enough to believe that he can win on the strength of whatever support he currently has. Not only is this a bad strategy, it’s just plain dumb. I may not be a supporter of WHALUM!, but that doesn’t mean that I won’t write something that turns another voter.

It raises the question: “If this is how Kenneth Whalum chooses to run a campaign, how will he govern as Mayor?” Will he squash dissent? Will he have me removed from government meetings the way he had a gay couple removed from his church, but won’t talk about?

This wouldn’t be a story except that the right reverend has done this to other people that have disagreed with him. It seems that candidate Whalum just can’t deal with differing views.

Well, so be it.

If you are currently following Kenneth Whalum, login to Twitter and do a friend search. If you are currently blocked, take a screen capture and let me know about it on my contact page. Include your twitter name and I’ll contact you about where to email the image. If I get enough people doing this, I’ll publish another post that lists all of us.

I apologize for not getting these up yesterday, but my recovery from the post event activities has not been swift, to say the least. Here are the rest of the speeches, in event order.

You can see Bill Clinton’s entire speech here.

Yesterday, flying high on a series of events that have turned the possibility of a change in leadership at the City Mayor’s office for the first time since I left college into a possible reality, there was more political coverage, opinion, and conjecture floating around since I moved here over 5 years ago. Honestly, it was a welcome change.

In the wake of all this, I made a list of things I wanted to write about today. Instead, I spent the majority of the day suffering from the effects of a sugar binge that seemed like a good idea at 2am. Haagen-Daaz and Carmel Corn at 2am is a bad idea, no matter how much sugar you think you can consume.

Anyway, in light of the events of the past couple of days, I thought I would go through some of the coverage of City Government, starting with the City Council meeting on Tuesday that fanned the media firestorm.

First I’ll start with my coverage of the Council meeting Tuesday. Several TV stations have played the more explosive parts of the meeting, but in order to really get a sense of the climate, you have to listen to the whole thing. It all started with Councilman Strickland’s motion to suspend the rules. Now I understand that not everyone is familiar with parliamentary procedure. Thankfully, Wikipedia has a good definition:

A motion to suspend the rules, in parliamentary procedure, is used to allow a deliberative assembly to do something that it could not normally do without violating special rules of order, rules contained in the parliamentary authority, the standing rules of the assembly,[1] or rules of order contained in the bylaws.[2] (Source)

Basically, this was a successful attempt to add Strickland’s resolution accepting the resignation to the agenda.

What happened from there was 45 minutes of impassioned debate (large audio file) not about suspending the rules, but the merits of the issue that would be brought if the rules were suspended.

From that point, only 30 minutes were required to pass the resolution and vote on same night minutes.

Again, for those not familiar with parliamentary procedure, had the Council approved the minutes that same night, the resolution would have a binding effect in its current form. Because they did not, there is an opportunity to amend the resolution should there be any need. Ultimately, this is a good thing, as I noted yesterday.

After I published my post about the proceedings, a flurry of interviews with the Mayor started coming online. It started with Memphis Daily News reporter Andy Meek’s report that the Mayor was packing boxes in his office.

Then there was this interview by Fox 13 (direct link).

Since this interview hit the internet, there’s been more and more and more, heating up the speculation and causing one commentator to say I told ya so. I think it’s all, as Councilwoman Swearengen-Ware said multiple times yesterday, “premature”.

There’s this one nagging thing that’s been banging around in my head that goes back to this whole parliamentary procedure thing that I’ve been talking about throughout this post. As the CA reported on the same day he announced his retirement, the Mayor’s pension was approved by the Pension Board. Something that wasn’t reported is the process. Just like the City Council, the Pension Board must approve the minutes of their last meeting for those actions to have any impact. Since the Pension board did not approve the minutes on the same night that the pension was set, any pension arrangement is still up in the air. When is the Pension Board set to approve the minutes? July 30, the same day that Mayor Herenton says he will vacate the office. Coincidence? Maybe, but I’d be willing to bet that the Mayor saw a potential point of weakness in vacating before the minutes were approved, and wanted to shore up that position.

So maybe he will retire on July 30. We won’t really know until July 30.

Between now and then we still have another City Council meeting. At that meeting, assuming the majority holds for another 12 days, they will approve the minutes of the meeting, making the Strickland resolution binding. If the Mayor doesn’t present the Council with another letter of retirement/resignation we’ll have a resolution that is, at best, on shaky legal grounds as noted by Atty. Wade at the Council meeting. Not that I think that will be an issue, but it could…especially if the Pension Board does something that puts Mayor Herenton’s pension in limbo.

There are some other things that, admittedly, are less critical, but still interesting about the whole series of events. I personally find it interesting that the Mayor changed his date of resignation/retirement on July 6th. Also I find it interesting that the language used since the 6th seems more closely tied to “retirement” rather that “resignation”. Could it be that the bizarre resignation of Gov. Sarah Palin on July 3rd, combined with the issue of the Pension Board, gave the Mayor pause, and led him to make this clarification in language as well as the change of date? After all the pundits in America called her resignation a “political disaster”, perhaps the Mayor chose to do something that seemed less like a non-quitting quitter, ala retirement as he begins his run for the 9th Congressional seat. Ok, I’ll take off my tinfoil hat now.

What’s most interesting, aside for all the “will he/won’t he” back and forth, is that underlying all this is a campaign for an office that is still yet to be announced as vacant, that is fully underway. Here is the “candidate’s forum” from earlier today as reported by the CA.

For those of you just following the Cliff’s Notes, the Election Commission declined a bid to start the process for a Special election today. Why? From the article:

…there will be no preparations for a special election until there is a clear mandate from the City Council, adding that he doesn’t want to spend any taxpayer money on the process until then.

The Election Commission, rightly, recognizes the shaky legal ground the Memphis City Council is on, and doesn’t want to play. I can’t say as I blame them.

But there’s more! A group has filed a lawsuit challenging the separation of powers that the Mayoral Succession charter amendment that passed last November with some 85% of the vote.

I wrote about this after Atty. Wade’s opinion was released. Unfortunately, this is just an opinion, in order for it to be anything more there has to be some case law to back it up, which there isn’t. The Charter Amendment we voted in last November hasn’t been around long enough to be litigated, so this will be it’s maiden voyage in the courts, should the lawsuit actually be brought.

If this seems chaotic to you, take a moment; walk around the block a couple of times, play fetch with the dog, maybe enjoy a good cigar and a fine single malt scotch. In any case, chill. This is all part of the process. Process is the thing that brings order to chaos.

The Courts are there to decide if the pending litigation has any merit. Since this is a new Charter Amendment, and the circumstances surrounding the situation are heatedly emotional and have little or no legal framework to stand upon, there’s nothing fundamentally wrong with getting a decision to settle it. In fact, it’s a better outcome because in the future, we won’t have these problems. That doesn’t mean I agree with the legal position put forward by, really anyone in the process, that just means that by litigating it we can find out what reality is, and move forward from there.

Yes it’s gonna cost us money, and money is tight. There isn’t anything about a succession battle that isn’t going to cost money. In the end, I think the courts will side with Atty. Wade’s opinion on the resignation and succession issues, and we’ll move on. Admittedly, I’m not a lawyer. I’m a guy with an opinion and we know what else everyone with one of those has. But from my time of being a goob reading all the stuff that no one wants to read and listening to all the stuff no one wants to listen to, I think this will turn out just fine. We’ll get it decision and we’ll go from there.

Remember, the law is your friend, and process is the thing that got us out of the caves. You can get emotional if you want to…God knows I have, but in the end what will you have? Let the system work through our unintended consequences and let’s move on from there. At least, in the end, we’ll know where we stand so we can come up with an action from a position of understanding, rather than a position of emotion.

Ed Note: Yes I know I’m way behind on this stuff, but hopefully I’ll get caught up just in time to get behind again

Governor Sanford:

You don’t know me. I’m not a resident of your state or a member of your political party. In fact, politically we are polar opposites. This letter isn’t about politics, it’s about something far more important.

I was pleased to hear yesterday that you won’t be making any more public statements about the affair that you engaged in, and was disclosed publicly last week. This is the best decision you’ve made since the affair started.

The public has no inherent right, or need, to know anything about the character of the emotional relationship between you, your wife, and your mistress. You opened that door through your bizarro press conference of last week, and since then have continued to not only tear off the scab, but pour truckloads of salt in the wound.

I’ve been fighting the urge to come out and slam you over this time for being a hypocrite, among other things, but have resisted. Now I think it’s important that you someone tell you to stop thinking about yourself, for once since this thing started, and start thinking about your family.

You may have thought that putting the details of this personal issue on the table would clear the air. Perhaps you thought you would receive some kind of absolution. Perhaps you believed that by airing all your dirty laundry publicly you could somehow find the strength to move past your transgressions. In the end, all you’ve done is further expose yourself as a self-centered, thoughtless prick.

Did the world need to know that you consider your mistress your “soul mate”? Seriously, what outcome did you expect from making such a screwed up statement? What was your aim? Were you trying to further humiliate your wife, a woman who has faithfully stood by you for some 20 years? Were you trying to bring more shame on your children, who are the most innocent victims of your transgressions? Whether that was your aim or not, that is what you have done.

Some have said that you need to stop embarrassing yourself. Frankly, I don’t give a damn about what you do to yourself, but what you’re doing to your family is a far greater sin than just the affair.

In order for there to be any resolution to this you have to do the one thing you haven’t done since the affair started…stop putting yourself before your family.

All these confessions, all these weird ill-advised statements aren’t about reconciliation with your wife, they’re about reconciling with yourself. You obviously feel that by making these public statements some level of guilt will be lifted from your soul, in the process, you’re further damaging your relationship with your wife, and making any reconciliation that much harder.

Stop it.

Sir, you brought this on yourself. The guilt is your cross to bear. You were more than willing to enjoy the spoils of the affair, now, for any real reconciliation to occur, you MUST be willing to carry the consequences of your actions on your own. Putting them out in public only makes matters worse, and is one of the most selfish things you could possibly do.

Stop it.

I truly, and with all my heart hope that you can man up enough to put yourself aside and do what’s right, both for your wife and your children. I truly hope that both of you can find a way to trust, love and honor each other and rebuild the relationship that you obviously once had. For this to happen, you have to take the first step, and that means reaching out to your wife and your children, focusing solely on them instead of focusing on yourself.

Reconciliation is a long and difficult road, but you must find the strength within yourself to make the first step. I pray you find that strength and do what’s right by your family, who have stood by you and sacrificed so much to make you successful in your public life. It’s time for you to return the favor and become the husband and father that you never should have stopped being.

Good luck and Godspeed.

Sincerely,

Stephen Ross

Yesterday, my family gathered to celebrate the life of my Grandmother, Martel Ross. She passed away on Saturday at age 88, after several years of declining health.

This was the first time I remember seeing my brother, father, mother, aunts, uncles, cousins and their spouses in one place since 1989 when my parents divorced.

My grandma was a very intelligent, opinionated, and vocal person, which explains a lot about me and the rest of my family. She was also one of the most loving and supportive people in my life, no matter how stupid or ill-advised the choices I made.

Looking around the Fellowship Hall of the First United Methodist Church of Paragould, AR, yesterday afternoon, I saw my family together, being a family together, with all of the good and bad things that being a family entails. I saw the influence of my grandmother on the lives of these people who helped raise me, and who I grew up with, and it reminded me of what makes our family so special. We may be an odd collection of strong, mouthy, people, but when it comes right down to it, we love and support each other. That’s what family is all about.

During the ceremony that followed, the pastor shared stories about my grandmother that had the entire family laughing. Grandma had an amazing command of the human condition, and all the things that go along with it. Most importantly, she wasn’t afraid to share her insights, and that is perhaps her greatest strength.

After the ceremony, the remaining Rosses gathered to do what we always do when we’re together, eat and talk and laugh and love each other, even if we drive each other crazy sometimes. It reminded me of something I’ve forgotten over the years, something that can get lost in a tangled weave of the now, and all the things that seem to get in the way as we navigate our lives, and that is the importance of family. You can’t pick them and you only REALLY get one. I’ve forgotten this over the years and now have come to the realization of its importance, and impact in my life.

Physical mortality may be a part of the human condition from which none of us can escape, but regardless of the foundations of faith upon which you are grounded, I think we can all agree that a part of immortality comes from the impact and influence you have in the lives of the people around you throughout your life that lives on long beyond your years. So while my grandmother may be gone physically, she lives on in the hearts and minds of both her family, and those who were lucky enough to have her in their lives.

I love you Grandma. Thank you for all you gave, of your heart, mind, body and soul.