This is one of those situations where I have to tell folk, "I told you so..." about DC's mayor, Vincent Gray. Back in 2010, there were so much chatter amongst the black blogosphere about how "bad Adrian Fenty was as DC's mayor", "how he sold DC to white people", and "how Michelle Rhee and Adrian Fenty were ruining DC". So those across the black blogosphere cosigned the poor judgment of those voting in DC to elected Gray over Fenty.
It's so ironic those are more silent than a whore in church on the huge controversy that has bestowed upon DC for the umpteenth time. As much as I don't care for any pawn of the business establishment, it seems that Fenty wasn't as idiotic and corrupt as his successor, Gray. I am actually more annoyed at the fact that folk doesn't seems to want perfection from many that will talk that talk, but never walk the walk. Gray is a text book example of this mentality and its plethora of failings.
Meanwhile, a number of members in his 2010 mayoral campaign staff, 2 DC Councilmen, and a former mayoral primary opponent were all later implicated to be involved in the shell game of using funds and authority he offered upon getting elected to mayor's helm. (FYI, for others who want to say "but they do it too", no duh, I know whites do this but they have sense enough to know better to do this do obviously.)
However, after going from 2 mayors, Anthony Williams and Fenty, whom helped the city regain prominence and allowed significant public works projects and strategies to progress that helped Washington become the planning and community development hub of the East Coast. Also reformed the DC school district from the average US city school district with low rates of overall scholastic achievement to one where accountability for school progress was enforced from the instructors to school administrators and increase in achievement and test scores during Fenty's tenure. These are the things that are just as important as allowing adequate access of the citizenry whom are qualified for city jobs and pacifying those whom were in your corner. It seems that so many in the establishment camp miss this lesson, you have to improve the entire city from across the board.
I guess living in a city like Birmingham, where this is the reason why there is such a huge leadership void because nobody with pragmatic, progressive, and transparency tied into their political existence that it will continue to be more idiots than leaders at the city's helm. To sum it up, most Birminghamians lack the nuance of their choices for mayor rather they allow the "establishment" to manipulate their perspectives, and wins every time. In reality, the same thing happens in Alabama in general, but this applies with white citizens more often than black citizens...
*sigh* This is so depressing and shows that sometimes you have to give it up to the predominately white urban business establishment in a number of US cities. They can get a progressive that has some sense elected that is smart enough not be caught up in blatant corruption. I was shock when New Orleans chose Mitch Landrieu, because one he wasn't a puppeteer of the black establishment nor was he was one of the urban white business establishment. New Orleans wasn't alone considering Charlotte elected Anthony Foxx, whom like Landrieu, wasn't apart of neither camp, rather loosely affiliated with both sides in the way to get elected.
Folk has to get it together because there seems to be a leadership problem in Birmingham, Atlanta, Memphis, and now Washington...
