I just got back from the Patch/TaxFacts sponsored Geneva candidate forum and will fling a quick post up here because it’s way past my bedtime.
The real shocker came in the First Ward aldermanic contest. Though I’ve had some fun with Zac Ploppert in the past, he cleaned opponent Mike Bruno’s clock. The bottom line in that contest was, if you really ant to have to hand your whole wallet over to the city of Geneva, then vote for Mike Bruno.
Ploppert was more engaging, more straightforward, and made much more fiscal sense. In one simple debate I went from believing Bruno was a shoe-in to wanting to vote for Ploppert which doesn’t happen very often.
The Geneva school board debate was a tough one because there were too many candidates on the dais and it went on so long that people started leaving. Incumbents Mark Grosso and Bill Wilson clearly came out on top there. The loser had to be Leslie Juby who had a really bad night and didn’t help her cause at all.
The second biggest surprise of the night was mayoral challenger Bob McQuillan besting incumbent Kevin Burns who had to be the heavy debate favorite. Of course, all the bets were on who would lose their composure first and, in the end, it was Burns who repeatedly tried to talk over McQuillan and issued illegal rebuttals despite moderator Rick Nagel’s protests.
Even Mayor Burns knew he came in second place because, in the hallway after the debate, he launched into a four letter word tirade that included, but was not limited to, referring to his opponent as a effing moron and declaring that he was effing evil.
Yes! The man who lauded himself just a half hour earlier for “building bridges” and “bringing folks together couldn’t wait till the crowd was out of earshot to disparage his opponent in this fascinating manner.
All I can say is. character counts Geneva.
Suspicions Confirmed. Dead on Article.
I am not a bit surprised at Mayor Burns’ antics. It is his way or the highway on everything. It goes to show he didn’t learn anything from his last campaign and still stoops to lowest of low levels.
Bob McQuillan makes much more fiscal sense and seems a lot more focused on making positive improvements. Kevin Burns seems to want the status quo and is not one to push for positive change. And there is no need to call someone else names because they presented better than you – it sealed my decision for mayor …Bob McQuillan.
Really Jeff?!? You say “[I]f you really [w]ant to have to hand your whole wallet over to the city of Geneva, then vote for Mike Bruno”. How am I any more predisposed to vote in favor of tax or rate hikes than my opponent? Is it because I refuse to make the pandering stunt of a “no new taxes” pledge? Riddle me this: If a tornado comes through and decimates Public Works and Water Treatment, how will that pledge hold up? Maybe we should use my opponents magical powers to “restructure” rates to increase revenues while not costing anything.
How would you rate the quality of questions? How about the gem of [paraphrased] “Do you favor property rights or historic preservation?” Were I quicker on my feet, I would have reframed it “Do you favor property rights or municipal zoning?” and not answered. Such false dichotomies might be fun for a parlor game, but not to inform a curious public.
Mike,
First of all, it wasn’t the just the debate, you already know my feelings on your Patch blog post on the absurd 20 year downtown master plan. Not only did you defend the indefensible, but you took a swipe at Bob McQuillan in order to get in good with Mayor Burns.
And that was a huge mistake because Mayor Burns isn’t real popular right now. If you want to come out and endorse Burns – then do it! Don’t try to appear neutral when you clearly aren’t
As far as the debate, not only were you schooled by someone half your age, your answers were riddled with what I like to call the “municipal mindset.” Your rating of the city council were too high (and so were Bob’s), your rating of our municipal fiscal responsibility was way too high, and you clearly favor the status quo which desperately needs to change.
As far as your tornado – it’s called insurance Mike! As far as the debate questions, despite my and Rick Nagle’s current differences, they were the best queries I’ve ever heard. No fluff! And if you can’t handle those inquiries, how the heck are you going to handle being an alderman?
Jeff
It seems the central issue is the “pie-in-the-sky” thinking aspect. I, for one, would encourage my middle-school child to dream about being an astronaut (do we still have those?). I don’t have any real expectation of them actually becoming an astronaut, but that pie-in-the-sky idea will probably get them taking more math and science courses and probably land them in a better place in the end. THAT’S why pie-in-the-sky thinking important.
And if dad’s hours get cut back (the economic downturn metaphor), we don’t tell our kid to lower his sites to stocking shelves. If you don’t keep those grand aspirations, then you are not moving toward those grand aspirations.
So you may not see value in “pie-in-the-sky” plans. I do. Maybe that is an unbridgeable divide in our thinking.
I didn’t (and won’t) endorse Burns. I sat quietly until I saw a candidate [to my mind] dismiss critical long-term planning precepts and it made me profoundly uncomfortable that someone of that mindset might sit at the helm. Beyond that, they each have good and bad points. I spoke out, knowing it would cost me votes, because the citizens should consider that particular characteristic before voting.
Re: the hypothetical tornado: I didn’t think I would need to spell out every aspect of a hypothetical scenario where some unforeseen event might outstrip our ability to recover fully through the obvious safeguards.
So…again… How am I any more predisposed to vote in favor of tax or rate hikes than my opponent?
Jeff,
I hope you read the responses I made to the patch or chronicle questions and pick me as one of the four school board candidates. Happy to talk directly too. I would like to hear your top four of the eight running.
Dan Garrett
Dan,
You’re definitely in the running. I will endorse Mssrs. Grosso and Wilson for sure and Cabeen is definitely out. Thanks for reaching out!
Jeff