Ballard Spikes Ike

Last month, I wrote about how then-City-City Councilor Isaac "Ike" Randolph was pushing himself to the front of Mayor Greg Ballard's transition team beginning with the night of Ballard's upset win after Star columnist Russ Pulliam prominently featured him in a piece on Ballard's plan to restore the Front Porch Alliance, and I offered some prescient warnings about Randolph to the new administration. An anonymous commenter posted the following comment shortly after my post appeared, which read:

No one should be surprised to learn that Ike Randolph will do whatever is necessary to further his own interests.

For example, Randolph went to IFD Chief Greeson and told Chief Greeson that Mayor Ballard wanted Randolph detailed to the transition team. Chief Greeson did as he thought the new mayor was requesting.

When Chief Greeson next ran into Mayor Ballard, Greeson told Ballard that IFD was pleased to be able to help the new Mayor by detailing Randolph to the transition team.

As it turns out, Mayor Ballard had no idea what Greeson was talking about.

Now that is pure Ike Randolph - willing to misrepresent himself and those supporting him to get what he thinks will best further his own interests.

Mayor Ballard - beware!

In today's "Behind Doors Column", Star reporters essentially confirm the account provided by this anonymous commenter as to how Randolph landed a full-time position on the Ballard transition team. The column explains how the transition team was forced to diffuse a Monroe Gray-like situation when it learned of what Randolph had done. It reads:

On the flip side, Republicans found themselves defusing a potentially embarrassing situation concerning former City-County Councilman Isaac Randolph, who is a firefighter.

Indianapolis Fire Department Chief James Greeson said Randolph asked to be assigned to Ballard's transition office soon after the election in November.

Greeson said he agreed, even though Randolph would be paid as a firefighter during that time. "I guess I assumed he was asked by the transition team to go over there," Greeson said. "I had said we would cooperate in any way we could, and I didn't want to be an obstacle."

Greeson admitted fault for not calling transition leaders, who had never asked for a full-time commitment from any of the roughly 150 transition volunteers.

Randolph said he believed he would play a significant role in the transition team.

He said he told Cochran, the transition director, about being detailed to the team and received no objection. Randolph said he considered his assignment no different from those of the police officers detailed to protect Ballard.

"I was not trying to hide anything," Randolph said. "Everyone knew where I was and what I was doing. I told my superiors on both teams."

Joe Loftus, a one-time deputy mayor who helped lead the transition effort, said he acted to undo what had been done as soon as he learned of it.

"It would be disingenuous to have someone in the office doing essentially the same thing we criticized," Loftus said.

He was referring to Republican criticism of City-County Council President Monroe Gray, who could provide no records for his work as a political liaison for the Fire Department.

Loftus said Randolph understood the concern about special favors for politicians and said he would take care of it.

Randolph said the situation was not similar to Gray's but that he saw how "it could be misconstrued." He said he probably should have gotten permission in writing.
"Maybe it was a bad assumption on my part," Randolph said.

"Bad assumption?" That's an understatement. Hey, you have to give the guy credit. He had a little more than a good month of playing the right-hand man to Ballard, appearing with him at public events and showing up on TV news coverage of the new mayor standing right next to him. I'm just surprised it took so long for someone to ask, "What is this guy doing here every day?"