Hijacking The Revolution

We thought we won Tuesday night with the upset victory of Greg Ballard over Mayor Bart Peterson. Mayor-Elect Ballard himself declared the victory a win for the grassroots folks who formed the bedrock of his campaign the last six months. But it took all of 48 hours for the elitist establishment to hijack our revolution and claim the new administration for themselves. The transition team is full of lobbyists and lawyers whose firms made millions during the Peterson administration courtesy of government contracts. And which of these people will be interested in trimming all the fat in that particular budget line, which Ballard promised during the campaign he would look first to reduce city spending by 10%?

Reporting on Mayor-Elect Ballard's naming of his transition team members, Mary Beth Schneider writes, "All of them also have one other thing in common: They supported Ballard, some financially and some by volunteering, during the campaign." Well, let's just say some of those folks had a strange way of showing their support for Ballard during the campaign. Schneider's reporting during the mayoral campaign easily topped that of other mainstream reporters, but she missed the story here. And that's the failure to bring to the table people who are dedicated to bringing about the change Ballard's election promised to the faithful grassroots people who overcame the money and power of the ruling elite to propel Ballard to victory.

Some will no doubt cite the presence of Greg Wilson and Darla Williams on his transition team as evidence Ballard hasn't forgotten who helped him get elected. I know nothing about Greg Wilson, but I know plenty about Darla Williams. She indeed worked in the trenches to help Ballard, but the impetus of her support focused on minority contracting and her ongoing feud with the Peterson administration. I don't criticize Williams' appointment to the transition committee but rather the specific role with which she's been tasked: liaison to the Peterson administration.

Mayor Peterson graciously promised us a smooth transition. Sending in Williams to meet with Peterson's staff on your behalf is fly in the ointment to say the very least. And if past performance in this specific role is any indication, Williams receives a failing mark. She served a similar role for then-Coroner-elect Kenneth Ackles back when she was still calling herself a Democrat and was a self-proclaimed Peterson supporter, having been appointed as a hearing officer in his administration. The transition between Ackles and outgoing Coroner Dr. John McGoff was an unmitigated disaster, but don't take my word for it. Ask any member of McGoff's staff who worked with Williams during the transition and you'll get an earful.

No doubt what I write here today will ruffle the feathers of a lot of folks. During his campaign for mayor, Ballard once stopped me and told me that he liked me because I kept him honest. Well, Mayor-Elect Ballard, I'm still keeping you honest. To those of us who fought and won the revolution, the transition team is comprised of too many folks who have slammed the doors to government in our faces in the past and used it as a mere instrumentality to serve their own self-interests. If you truly want to bring about change, you have to reach out to agents of change. The message you send with this transition team is business as usual. And that's not what you wanted to hear but it's what you have to hear if you want your administration to become what I believe you truly want it to be.