As Kyle Veazey noted in his coverage of last night's Democratic County Mayoral debate, (sorry, behind a paywall) there was not much disagreement among the candidates, other than Rev. Kenneth Whalum calling, as he has throughout, that NO SCHOOLS should be closed in the city. It got to a point where my co-blogger Jon and I figured that if we had taken a shot of whiskey every time he suggested this, our livers would have fallen out of our bodies before the first hour had ended.
I believe he is sincere, and I agree that we have to focus on the inner city in order to turn the city around, I just don't know how you fund that, since it will take a hell of a lot more than the $57 million that the courts say the city owes Shelby County Schools. To be blunt, if a school is closing in a neighborhood, that is a real sign that the neighborhood is dead anyway, with anyone who could leave having done so.
Enough on that. Even with all of that, all three of the candidates, including outgoing Commissioner Steve Mulroy and my favorite candidate, former Commission Chair Deidre Malone, would be a dramatic improvement over the incumbent, Mark Luttrell, who runs the County like it was a jail, something that I wish all three candidates would point out.
Y'all, PLEASE give us some red meat, will you?? All three of you need to beat up Mark Luttrell and point out his failures, because you are asking the electorate to reverse a decision they made four years ago, and that's not easy. This means you A) have to point out why continuing his employment would be a costly mistake for Shelby Countians, and B) you then have to prove why YOU are the proper replacement.
AND YOU NEED TO STOP BEING SO DAMNED NICE ABOUT IT. HIT HIM, WILL YOU?
Not physically, of course, that would be assault! But ALL three of you need to attack him and attack him HARD and stop worrying about whether you are offending anyone. If you are doing your jobs properly, SOMEONE will be offended, you just have to make sure it's the people who deserve to be offended! I can't imagine that there are that many people who are voting in our primary that worry about Mark Luttrell's feelings.
Once this primary is over, you have to go HARD every day whacking the incumbent about the head and shoulders, and it's not like there's not a litany of reasons to do so: Title X, the anti-blight plan, Head Start, screwing over the city of Memphis, and on and on and on.
And when the Mayor shows up at Sidney Chism's picnic in June, whomever the winner is needs to be all up in Luttrell's grill about this stuff. If you can't go after the REPUBLICAN County Mayor in Southwest Memphis, where the hell ARE you going to do it? We need to be sure that any GOP candidate who shows up down there (and they ALL do) is confronted about their performance in office (or lack thereof).
Oh, and Early Voting starts downtown on April 16, and in the satellites on Friday, April 25. Be ready, and go vote.
In the interim, Mayoral candidates, GO KICK LUTTRELL'S BUTT. REPEATEDLY. LEAVE BOOTPRINTS!
You can thank me later.
One last note: Since my last post, this blog has not one, BUT TWO, writers that are now members of the Shelby County Democratic Party Executive Committee. I replaced the legendary Steve Ross in House 90, and Jon Carroll is now representing House 93, along with our friend John Marek. Thanks to all who voted for us to be there; we promise to raise hell, take names, and elect Democrats.
Showing posts with label Steve Mulroy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Steve Mulroy. Show all posts
Friday, April 11, 2014
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Deidre Malone for County Mayor
I know, a lot of you probably thought I would jump on the Steve Mulroy bandwagon. Why?
I supported Deidre 4 years ago, because I thought she was the best candidate running then, and I still do. She is as solid a Democrat as there is, I served with her on the SCDP Executive Committee, and I was impressed then with her abilities to manage and coordinate while standing up for those issues that we as Democrats support.
She has been involved with large businesses, having served as a Vice President while at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and small businesses, working with them for her public relations firm the Carter Malone Group. She has served two terms on the Shelby County Commission, chairing the Budget Committee and the Commission itself.
It is one thing to be a good advocate, as Commissioner Mulroy has been, for the most part, and as Reverend Kenneth T. Whalum Jr. was on the School Board. That is what good legislators do, and Deidre did that as well.
It is quite another to build consensus, to manage large projects, and coordinate diverse efforts, and that is why Deidre, in my opinion, stands head and shoulders about the other candidates in the Democratic field. Deidre is the only candidate in the Democratic field that can show her abilities in this skill set, the ADMINISTRATIVE skill set, and she will prove why she can defeat Warden, er, Mayor Mark Luttrell in the August County General Election.
Look, I like Steve Mulroy, he stands up for a lot of the things I believe in, and he 's a great advocate. I appreciate the Kellogg's campout, it's something that all Democrats need to be involved with, supporting our workers.
However, I have a question for him: Do you remember back in October 2011, when Luttrell pulled the Title X funding from Planned Parenthood Greater Memphis Region and got the Commission to approve a contract for Christ Community Health Center, which was about the least-friendly option for reproductive rights for indigent women? Remember how you wound up voting for that, which led to an angry call from me and we talked about it? You even posted your reasoning on Facebook, which appeased a lot of people because you said that you would be able to get oversight for the CCHC operations to ensure that indigent women would get the reproductive services that had been provided by PPGMR.
My question is twofold, Commissioner. First, where's the oversight? I don't remember seeing ANYTHING in the CA, the Flyer, the Daily News, the MBJ or the TV stations about any oversight being done. Has there been any oversight? If so, what happened?
The second part of the question is this: If you were to be elected Mayor, and the contract came up for renewal, would you support giving the contract back to PPGMR? I think a lot of your potential supporters would love to know the answer to that question.
While we are waiting, let's talk about the Reverend Kenneth Whalum, Jr, whom I like and respect as well. He knows how to advocate against something, as his pointed attacks on the poor campaign done by the Memphis Pre-K Initiative sank it. His use of free media overcame the huge sums of money spent by the Pre-K folks, and he was smart about it.
One of the reasons that he is in this race, I believe, is that he is upset with Deidre for her support of the pre-K Initiative and for her support of the MCS-SCS merger, which I also supported and proudly so. Yes, the Reverend has screamed about the $57 million supposedly owed by the City of Memphis to MCS/SCS (Shea Flinn can prove that the schools actually owe the city, but I digress), and he was on the Board when that was going on, so what happened?
It is also important to remember WHY MCS surrendered its charter. The GOP-dominated legislature was going to allow the then-suburban based SCS to draw a hard boundary and create a Special School District, which would have forced MCS to rely on just the tax money from within the city, which would have starved it to death. (yes, I agree that MCS was overly layered with bureacracy, but that's an argument for another day). SCS would have gotten richer, MCS would have gotten poorer, and the downward spiral would have escalated quickly.
Now, since the merger took place, all the schools in MCS receive money from the ENTIRE county as the unified district, while all the folks living in the burbs with their own MSDs have to pay for TWO systems, like Memphis used to do. The problems in SCS now have far more to do with the GOP agenda to force excessive testing on the system in their never-ending attempt to destroy public education. You know that to be true, Reverend, why don't you mention that?
You say you want to retire and replace ineffective politicians; I can appreciate that. So why are you opposing someone who has actually been EFFECTIVE? You have to be more specific in your advocacy and you need to tell us how you're going to do this.
And all of you need to tell us why Luttrell needs to go, because the media, especially TV, seems be in the tank for him. It's one thing for me to tell people why he runs the county like a jail, but you ALL need to do it.
Since I believe Deidre Malone is not only the best candidate for doing just that, by governing this county and working with the Commission to achieve a higher standard, I am supporting her for Mayor, and I hope you will as well.
I supported Deidre 4 years ago, because I thought she was the best candidate running then, and I still do. She is as solid a Democrat as there is, I served with her on the SCDP Executive Committee, and I was impressed then with her abilities to manage and coordinate while standing up for those issues that we as Democrats support.
She has been involved with large businesses, having served as a Vice President while at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and small businesses, working with them for her public relations firm the Carter Malone Group. She has served two terms on the Shelby County Commission, chairing the Budget Committee and the Commission itself.
It is one thing to be a good advocate, as Commissioner Mulroy has been, for the most part, and as Reverend Kenneth T. Whalum Jr. was on the School Board. That is what good legislators do, and Deidre did that as well.
It is quite another to build consensus, to manage large projects, and coordinate diverse efforts, and that is why Deidre, in my opinion, stands head and shoulders about the other candidates in the Democratic field. Deidre is the only candidate in the Democratic field that can show her abilities in this skill set, the ADMINISTRATIVE skill set, and she will prove why she can defeat Warden, er, Mayor Mark Luttrell in the August County General Election.
Look, I like Steve Mulroy, he stands up for a lot of the things I believe in, and he 's a great advocate. I appreciate the Kellogg's campout, it's something that all Democrats need to be involved with, supporting our workers.
However, I have a question for him: Do you remember back in October 2011, when Luttrell pulled the Title X funding from Planned Parenthood Greater Memphis Region and got the Commission to approve a contract for Christ Community Health Center, which was about the least-friendly option for reproductive rights for indigent women? Remember how you wound up voting for that, which led to an angry call from me and we talked about it? You even posted your reasoning on Facebook, which appeased a lot of people because you said that you would be able to get oversight for the CCHC operations to ensure that indigent women would get the reproductive services that had been provided by PPGMR.
My question is twofold, Commissioner. First, where's the oversight? I don't remember seeing ANYTHING in the CA, the Flyer, the Daily News, the MBJ or the TV stations about any oversight being done. Has there been any oversight? If so, what happened?
The second part of the question is this: If you were to be elected Mayor, and the contract came up for renewal, would you support giving the contract back to PPGMR? I think a lot of your potential supporters would love to know the answer to that question.
While we are waiting, let's talk about the Reverend Kenneth Whalum, Jr, whom I like and respect as well. He knows how to advocate against something, as his pointed attacks on the poor campaign done by the Memphis Pre-K Initiative sank it. His use of free media overcame the huge sums of money spent by the Pre-K folks, and he was smart about it.
One of the reasons that he is in this race, I believe, is that he is upset with Deidre for her support of the pre-K Initiative and for her support of the MCS-SCS merger, which I also supported and proudly so. Yes, the Reverend has screamed about the $57 million supposedly owed by the City of Memphis to MCS/SCS (Shea Flinn can prove that the schools actually owe the city, but I digress), and he was on the Board when that was going on, so what happened?
It is also important to remember WHY MCS surrendered its charter. The GOP-dominated legislature was going to allow the then-suburban based SCS to draw a hard boundary and create a Special School District, which would have forced MCS to rely on just the tax money from within the city, which would have starved it to death. (yes, I agree that MCS was overly layered with bureacracy, but that's an argument for another day). SCS would have gotten richer, MCS would have gotten poorer, and the downward spiral would have escalated quickly.
Now, since the merger took place, all the schools in MCS receive money from the ENTIRE county as the unified district, while all the folks living in the burbs with their own MSDs have to pay for TWO systems, like Memphis used to do. The problems in SCS now have far more to do with the GOP agenda to force excessive testing on the system in their never-ending attempt to destroy public education. You know that to be true, Reverend, why don't you mention that?
You say you want to retire and replace ineffective politicians; I can appreciate that. So why are you opposing someone who has actually been EFFECTIVE? You have to be more specific in your advocacy and you need to tell us how you're going to do this.
And all of you need to tell us why Luttrell needs to go, because the media, especially TV, seems be in the tank for him. It's one thing for me to tell people why he runs the county like a jail, but you ALL need to do it.
Since I believe Deidre Malone is not only the best candidate for doing just that, by governing this county and working with the Commission to achieve a higher standard, I am supporting her for Mayor, and I hope you will as well.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Mulroy HQ Opens March 20
Moved to the top as a reminder
I can't go, since I will be at a very special wedding, but that shouldn't stop you!
I can't go, since I will be at a very special wedding, but that shouldn't stop you!
Re-Elect Steve Mulroy
Campaign Kickoff
Please join us for the Grand Opening
Of Mulroy for County Commission Headquarters
Featuring karaoke performances by:
Former Memphis Mayor Myron Lowery
City Councilwoman Janis Fullilove
County Commissioner James Harvey
City Councilman Edmund Ford, Jr.
And of course Steve himself
Saturday, March 20th • 11am-1pm
4661 Knight Arnold @ Village Plaza Shopping Center
RSVP to stevemulroy2010@gmail.com or 901.433.8292
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
AFL-CIO Endorses Steve Mulroy for Re-Election
Re-Elect STEVE MULROY
for County Commission District 5
The AFL-CIO Labor Council has endorsed Steve Mulroy in his re-election bid for the County Commission District 5 seat. The vote was unanimous.
For more info about Steve, or to donate, please visit Mulroy4dist5.com. Contact Steve at Mulroys@gmail.com.
Here are more of Steve's endorsements-
- AC Wharton, Memphis Mayor
- Harold Ford, Sr., Former Congressman
- Joe Ford, Interim County Mayor
- Harold Collins, Chair, City Council
- City Council members Janis Fullilove, Joe Brown, Shea Flinn, Edmund Ford and Jim Strickland
- Former City Councilwoman Carol Chumney
- Former Shelby County Commissioner Dr. Cleo Kirk
- State Senators Beverly Marrero and Ophelia Ford
- State Reps. Ulysses Jones, Joe Towns, Mike Kernell, Jeanne Richardson, and G.A. Hardaway
- Tomeka Hart, Chair, Memphis School Board
- Memphis School Board member Dr. Jeff Warren
- AFL-CIO Labor Council
- Pipefitters Union Local
- Iron Workers Local Union #167
- Plumbers Local Union 17
- International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 474
- Howard Richardson
- David Upton, State Democratic Executive Committee
- Paul Shaffer
- Former Shelby County Democratic Party Chairs
- Current/Former Shelby County Democratic Party Committee members Desi Franklin, Cherry Davis, Diane Withers, Lynn Strickland and Dave and Diane Cambron
- Novella Smith-Arnold
- Fannie Clark
- Reginald Milton
- Billy Orgel
- Brad Watkins
- Jonathan Cole
- Jocelyn Wurzburg, Happy Jones, and Paula Casey
- Steve Sondheim
- Carter Rosenthal, Roseleigh Neighborhood Association
Friday, January 22, 2010
Yes, it's election season AGAIN
County election season that is, friends. Not to be left behind, my County Commissioner, Steve Mulroy, has his website up and running, so go check it out.
Oh, and hell yes I support him for re-election, are you kidding? I'm sure somebody will think they can beat him and foolishly run against him.
However, he has busted his behind from day 1 for District 5 and we need to KEEP HIM THERE, so go hit his website, and if you want to and are in a position to do so, throw him some coin!
Oh, and hell yes I support him for re-election, are you kidding? I'm sure somebody will think they can beat him and foolishly run against him.
However, he has busted his behind from day 1 for District 5 and we need to KEEP HIM THERE, so go hit his website, and if you want to and are in a position to do so, throw him some coin!
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