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Of Mayors & Presidents
The election is over and most of the political signs have been picked up or, in some cases, torn down. Now Mayor-elect Kasprzak can jump into the budget pool and, along with the councilors and current mayor Jack Stewart, find ways to get that tax increase down to something more managable. Don Kasprzak has never been one to just stick his big toe in and see how the water is. Knowing him, I'd say he already has a list of possibilities to bounce off those he will be working with. I have no doubt that he will jump in and get involved as quickly and as much as possible. And he's probably anxious for the January 1st swearing-in to make everything official.
Congratulations to WIRY's Ducky Drake who kept everyone entertained on election night while we waited for local results to trickle in. For over an hour he and Mayor Jack Stewart talked about local politics. There's no active politician in the North Country who has been through more campaigns than Jack Stewart. And one among many interesting points brought up in the discussion of Plattsburgh's mayors is the fact that only one former mayor in recent memory has been elected without previous service on the Common Council.
That may have been one of the factors in this year's mayoral race. Kasprzak had previously served as a city alderman, while Kevin Duniho, his opponent, had never held public office. According to Jack Stewart, only Rev. Roland St. Pierre has been elected without having been a city councilor prior to the election. Interesting! Now if we go back to the days of Jack Tyrell, I don't know if "Tarmac Jack" was ever an alderman before becoming mayor.
On the national scene we are now into the two-year campaign for United States President. There are several who already have secret and not-so-secret ambitions to replace the Bush Administration. The results of Tuesday night put an added challenge on the Republicans to find a candidate who can help the party rebound.
Certainly John McCain is an early front-runner. Experienced and opinionated he will be a familiar name to Americans. But watch for some new faces in the national spotlight. Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney already has followers who have set up "Elect Romney in 2008" websites. The son of former Michigan Governor and Presidential candidate George Romney, Mitt Romney has the looks and style to emerge as a favorite.
But watch out for a couple of New Yorkers to jump into the national spotlight: Rudy Giuliani and George Pataki. Ex-New York City Mayor Giuliani was thrown into the national and world spotlight on September 11, 2001 and the way he helped his city deal with the catastrophe still earns him accolades.
And George Pataki will need something to keep him busy after he moves out of the governor's mansion. He's been New York's leader since 1994 and is currently the longest-running governor in the nation. He must have done something right!
Personally, I would like to see political commentor and talk-show host Sean Hannity run for President. Before the election he had all the answers, but, as the voters spoke on November 7th, they proved Hannity to be incorrect in most of his assessments. So now he is cautioning America to not "misinterpret the election results." What exactly does that mean? On his radio talk-show on Wednesday he used the word "misinterpret" at least a hundred times. I think it means that anyone who sees the election results different from him is "misinterpreting the results." Why don't the Republicans pick Hannity, who seems to know everything, as their candidate?
And will the Democrats have some candidates? Oh, look out! The train has already started rolling. Remember John Edwards? He was John Kerry's running mate in the last election. His "One America" vision will be heard often in the next two years. And there's former governor and now senator from Indiana, Evan Bayh. And scary John Kerry will throw his hat into the ring. I've always liked former South Dakota senator, Tom Daschle. He was defeated in 2004, but I hope he is ready for a return in 2008. Oh, did I forget to mention Illinois Senator Barack Obama and New York Senator Hillary Clinton?
For those of us who follow mayors and Presidents, it sure looks like the next year or two will be interesting.
Frankly, I think the late Ronald B. Stafford would have made the ideal Presidential candidate. No politician ever had better skills and experience at working with both parties. He knew his way around the government inner workings and was respected by both parties. He was soft-spoken, yet knew how to use his power in government to get benefits for his constituents. It's too bad that America never got to know Ron Stafford, but he was happy to just be a North Country boy.
Comments
Congratulations to Mr. Z!!! The Skip hit the nail on the head when he outlined the Democratic Party and their candidates. The party works to convince these young, aggressive and interested candidates and then throw them off the end of the dock without a life perserver to help them. In the Town of Plattsburgh you have Bob Garrow and Art LeFevre and others out campaigning for their party candidates. Here in Plattsburgh the Republicans had Don Garrant, Mark Dame, and others working for Donny Kasprzak. Kaz also had a lot of behind the scene support.
I am sure Bobby Hall can tell many stories about how he was left out in the open without support, especially on his last run. No, like Skip, I do not think you will see Mr. Hall running for Mayor anytime soon. Skip, how about Foxy for Mayor? That has a ring to it don't you think?
(Foxy's note: Oh, Mike Mannix! Thanks for the comments but you can bet Foxy Gagnon will not be running for any office, let alone mayor. I am having far too much fun right now. I'm staying out of the political arena.)
Posted by: Mike Mannix | November 10, 2006 1:16 PM
Foxy, Isn't strange that the Democratic party has the propensity to select political neophytes to run for political office? (Andrew Brockway and Kevin Duniho).
Even with the collective political acumen of the Democratic Party leadership, they fail to select a viable and knowledgable candidate with answers to the city's and county's problems.
It is equally confusing to me why these freshman politicians are not accompanied by the elders of the party as they campaigned throughout the city and region. It seems that they know that their candidates don't have a chance and don't want to be aligned with the Joan's of Arcs they chose to sacrifice at the political pyres .
Kevin Duniho campaigned with the vigor of youth and aspirations, but, alas, the Democratic leadership gave him no armament to defeat an experienced politician, other than riding on the coattails of Eliot Spitzer.
And to Rick K, I can guarantee that Bobby Hall will not run again for mayor under the tattered banner of the city's Democratic party.
(Foxy's note: Interesting comments, Skip!)
Posted by: skip Zatonski | November 10, 2006 9:32 AM
Foxy:
Heard part of the WIRY interview while in my car. Is it just me or does Jack Stewart not only look like Pro Wrestler"The Nature Boy" Ric Flair but he also sounds like him!!!!!
(Foxy's note: Oh, clever tie-in, Vin, to Ducky's "Is It Just Me?" commentary! I think Ric Flair is not quite as handsome as Fox Hill's Jack Stewart! But I do see the similarity.)
Posted by: Vin Scully | November 9, 2006 3:17 PM
Foxy, you have forgotten about my favorite democratic presidential candidate Mike Dukakis. When I saw him in Boston this summer, he had sold his last tank and was looking to get back into the political arena.
I dont think Sean Hannity could beat Mr Limbaugh for the G.O.P. nomination.
On a serious note, I think you are on the money regarding a Rudy-George ticket. It would be a winning combination.
Lastly, anybody willing to wager a ice-tea on next years mayoral election. I'd bet it's Mayor K vs the best pepper steak chef in Plattsburgh (Bobby Hall) Old time politics are back in Plattsburgh !!
(Foxy's note: Wow, great prediction, Rick! That would be a barnburner and a bucket of wings on the way home!)
Posted by: Rick K | November 9, 2006 9:18 AM