Thursday, February 05, 2009

Ballard Still Not Talking About CIB Woes

Mayor Greg Ballard sat for an interview with WIBC's Terri and Big Joe this morning. He talked about his "great" trip to the Super Bowl in Tampa and how he's now confident that the City will do a "great" job hosting the Super Bowl in 2012. He also talked about the "great" game he watched last night as IU beat Iowa. More free primo tickets to a sporting event for our mayor? He also talked about the "great" job the City is doing handling snow removal. During the half hour segment, the Mayor said absolutely nothing about the colossal financial crisis facing the City's Capital Improvement Board. Instead, he continues to defer to the CIB to field all of these questions. The members of the CIB are in the tank with the billionaire professional sports team owners so we already know what they want to do. It's you, Mayor Ballard, who was elected by the people to stop the endless handouts to the state's wealthiest citizens, while working class residents of your city are continually asked to pay higher and higher taxes. You were elected by grassroots, anti-tax activists with a mandate to change business as usual. Go ahead and continue to ignore our concerns, but don't be surprised when you become a one-term mayor.

6 comments:

straight up said...

I would think of all people, holding a commission in the military that our Mayor would understand, if not live the concept of "delegating authority but NOT responsibility"

Of course, WIBC and the other channel he is on, always throw him softball questions, they never hit him with those that REALLY need to be addressed, such as the CIB .

Although I dont care for her consistently snarky, left leaning prose, I do believe that Jen Wagner is spot on with her criticism of this man. Her new blogspot is one you might want to put on here as a link, Mr. Welsh. The only way we as a party are going to grow here in Marion County is for honest, merited criticism of our elected officials.

Paul K. Ogden said...

Terrific post, Straight Up. i especially love:

"The only way we as a party are going to grow here in Marion County is for honest, merited criticism of our elected officials."

Bingo. You are exactly correct.

I'm thinking about putting a link to Jen's new website on my blog. I know she's a partisan hack and she's fallen for the Adul nonsense that Republican critics of the Mayor who point out obvious conflicts of interest believe in "conspiracies." Still she is very articulate, her blog well-written and topical and on the issues, and she is occasionally right. That makes her link-worthy.

M Theory said...

This is the same crap Peterson did.

You never really hear Wagner criticize Democrats. She's clearly partisan, and in my opinion, lacks class. People like her are a big part of the problem.

MissouriDemocrat said...

As a democrat that voted for Ballard and met him and talked with him for about an hour prior to the election I am most surprised that he is same old politics as usual. But, then again, power corrupts and while he may have been a great Marine, when confronted in a new environment he listed to the big time lobbyist lawyers tell him what he had to do and fell hook line and sinker for it all. Good riddence to him after the next election. He won't change his stripes between now and then. AI you are most correct one termer.

M Theory said...

Timmy...glad to hear you voted for Ballard. You were my first political educator, you know, back at the publishing company.

The People need to penetrate the slime around our Mayor and free him from it.

MissouriDemocrat said...

Melly I miss talking to you. You can call me anytime. I am in the phone book. I am recovering from Cancer and doing a lot better. I dropped to 123 pounds at the worst of it but am back up to 155 now. Things are looking great everywhere for me except my concerns for our city, state and nation. Leadership is in such short supply.