Nuttermania in Philadelphia – Near Tears in New Hampshire – New Beginnings and The Beginning Of An End?
I couldn’t help but notice the contrast between Michael Nutter’s joyous first day, the Inaugural, the people’s party, and the sometimes depressing scene on the campaign trail in New Hampshire.
First, Philadelphia. Nutter has all the charm and common sense of the people he leads. Finally, a Mayor has declared total war on crime. Will it work? Good question, but the message from the top is – ” I have had enough”. The crime emergency declared by Mayor Nutter will let people know that City Hall will not tolerate thugs and evil-doers who prey on people. This is a good thing. Michael Nutter is setting a tone. And as I’ve said many times, the tone at the top is very important.
One other observation of day one. The Imperial Mayoralty is gone, where Mayors use their security and gatekeepers to keep real people away. Ed Rendell was perfect at reaching out. And Nutter has already signaled his style.
On to New Hampshire, where the realities of the human spirit surfaced in Hillary Clinton choking back years, as the weariness and prospects of losing set in. Showing the real side of dissapointment is nothing to be ashamed of unless you did something wrong. In Senator Clinton’s case, there is an adversary who is tough to fight, because he is a great communicator. Obama exudes clarity and confidence. He’s tough to beat, She’s not out of it yet, but if she loses big in New Hampshire, she’ll be whistling Dixie, waiting for the South Carolina showdown on the 26th. One note: Her husband has made some weird comments on the campaign trail. His most recent “that he can’t make Hillary any younger.” That was a reference, I assume, to battling Obama. But it didn’t sound right, did it?
As far as New Hampshire: This is Mitt Romney’s next to last stand. If he loses in his neighboring state, and loses next week in his home state of Michigan (where he grew up), he will hard pressed to continue.
Monday, January 7th, was quite a political day. Today will be even more exciting,
Comments(14)
Larry, you are right, Rendell was a good man for Philly. Man, our new mayor is great, huh? We are lucky to have him.
I am not surprised by the way the Clinton campaign is going. There are many elements about this campaign that go unspoken, but that impact the outcomes, nonetheless. It is the unspoken theme that matters a great deal to voters because not speaking about those issues signals the maturity of our society.
Maybe Clinton will do well in Nevada. That’s a big maybe. One thing is for certain – she will not take South Carolina. They are just waitin’ for her.
Her campaign just can’t see that they are trying to launch a ship at low tide. Even Bloomberg, who I respect a great deal, doesn’t want to destroy a great moment in the makings. It is America’s time.
Besides that, while I love the natural human spirit, I don’t want my president crying (in public) when the goings get tough.
Philadelphia is finally in great hands with Michael Nutter. We will see real change. Ed Rendell did a decent job but the reality is there was not a huge difference between Rendell and Street in what each got done. Street is the one who got the stadium deals done and did a lot with the Navy Yard. He just was terrible at PR. Michael Nutter will be a better mayor than both because he is real and dedicated. He is not for sale.
Hillary Clinton is desparate. That whole exchange was so fake and contrived it isn’t even funny. You could just tell that one of her pollsters told her to show a softer side. Look at how she paused and then launched into the Hollywood act. She is so fake she deserves to lose. Many feel Bill Clinton really doesn’t want her to win either. Look at his comments; he is not a stupid man. He is sabotaging her work while appearing to support her.
Obama will be for the nation what Nutter will be for the city – an honest, smart, hard-working new style leader that will bring about real change.
We are on the verge of a new era.
I found some gold tablets incribed with some alien language, but I also found some stones that interpreted the language for me. They told me that Mitt Romney will not win, except in Utah.
I have a dream. A dream that one day I will be free. Free from over reaching rhetoric espoused by newly elected mayors. I have a dream. A dream where
one day a political candidate will surface and not have to run on the need for change. I have a dream. A dream that allows me keep most of the money I’ve earned and spend it however I please. I have a dream. A dream where my tax dollars are not spent on propping up an
ungrateful city. We have created a money munching monster that does nothing but consume. I can’t name one thing that operates in Philadelphia without some kind of subsidy. With all the infrastructure and amenities you would think the tax base of Philadelphia would help support the surrounding counties and not the other way around. So Mayor Nutter excuse me if I am not as excited as the rest of your devotees about your new term in office. Based on your goals and aspirations I see nothing but more of my hard earned dollars being used to
keep your city afloat.
I feel your pain, Ed (not Rendell, I’m sure), but if we can get more jobs to more people, then good folks like you, with such a heavy burden, won’t have to prop up anybody as much as you do now. Taxes are a part of our society, unemployment is bad too, but trust me, I see your point. I will personally do my best to help bring more jobs to Philadelphia for the sake of the unemployed AND the employed. You are not forgotten nor unappreciated!!!
Unemployment is horrible for everyone. I often look at the types of foolishness that went on in the classrooms during my middle and high school years and get fumed that those foolish actors are now unemployed.
They got their first break by being in a “free” school system only to squander the chance at success. Then, those who become felons are getting a boost for employment due to the 10K tax incentive offered to business to hire them.
In that sense, those of us who studied and graduated lose ground to them because nobody gets a 10k incentive to hire us. Trust me, I feel you, Ed.
At the same time, I understand that not “propping up” the weaker pillars and showing them how to make that responsible transition to self-help, which they should have figured out by now, only makes the city, and the surrounding areas much worse. As I have said, I will do my part to remedy this problem even though I am not a city official.
Ed, our new mayor is going to be good for you and me too.
Ed – not sure, but if you’re paying taxes to Philadelphia, isn’t it your city too? And what is it we should all be so damned grateful to you for?
I hear ya Ed…. Love paying more for registrations, inspections, tolls and so on just to fund SEPTA, which primarily serves Philly. You know Squintz the Highway funds that were paid by all taxpayers to prop up SEPTA, and then there is the joke of PGW, which I’m sure we’ll all end up bailing out when the gov’t forces PECO to merge with them, so we can all pay for Philly people who don’t pay their utility bills.
Face it, the city is a “Money-Pit”, I really hope there is change, but I also heard the same tired ole crap when Street was first elected, lets hold back the Kudos until he has actually done something LK.
Hey JR, what about that little emotional plea from the “unbeatable” Clinton??????
What do you mean Septa “primarily serves Philly”. It brings in well-heeled white suburbanite professionals who are happy to make their fortune in the city but couldn’t bear to live there, and resent paying tax dollars to have trash picked up off the streets, parking regulations enforced so they can park their BMWs on those days they dare to drive them into the city. Do you work in the city? I hope not, since you obviously have no need for it. Do you attend plays, movies, go to restaurants in the city? I guess not. Do you drive through it on your way to the shore? And if you don’t live in the city you don’t get your fuel from PGW. If you DO live in the city… well you get a lot more services than the typical suburbanite and ought to be ashamed of yourself. Can you run your household with no income? Neither can a city. The western PA-focussed state government already diverts money from this region- yes this is a metropolitan REGION that should be living symbiotically- to other counties when this city primarily but also Pittsburgh bring in tuition-paying students, developers, businesses and other money-generators for the state.
to Annie:
well said!!
Annie thanks for setting things straight.
SEPTA makes money in the city and loses money in the suburbs.
Also, I get tired of hearing well-off people complaining about the “drain” from poor or unemployed people. If you think it is so easy being poor then try it.
Divisiveness never gets us anywhere as a people. Nutter and Obama want to lead us together as a people.
With all due respect to KEM I must address the statement made by Annie. “Well-heeled suburbans” can make their income anywhere. It’s tax incentives that brought major corporations into the city. In reality we don’t need Philadelphia for anything. Philadelphia needs us. If Philadelphia was such a great place why is it losing residents over the years? Annie you’re right in the fact that Philly offers culture and the Arts. They also have great commutes throughout the city.
But unless you have been to Chicago you will never know how bad and uninviting Philly is. Their population seems to “get it” while the constituents of Philly are stuck in the ’60s. Their mind set is a complete reflection of the leadership that controls the city. Until this old school mentality is replaced I’m afraid it’s going to be business as usual.
Perhaps we must start forcing the specific entities we fund to reveal how they are servicing our city and the surrounding communities and whether those strategies are correct. Why wait for the government to pressure them, conduct studies, or whatever? We ARE the government.
When SEPTA, PGW or such outfits claim they need more money, where are the intelligent citizenry to support or counter their claims? For those who do show up, how can they become more effective fighters? Why isn’t accurate data properly distributed so as to impact the proper outcome?
We must go after the machine’s particular parts directly, forcefully, and intelligently. Going after specific parts, one-by-one, makes the broader battle more manageable. Then we must inform those who will back us in prompting a change. We must preserve and publicly post good data so as to avoid conflict and confusion.
Bottom line, I believe that this is a structural rather than a citizen-on-citizen problem. Why not join the mayor who is clearly in the mood to duke it out with ‘business as usual”? By joining the battle we best position ourselves to keeping the movement honest and sustained.
Hey KEM thanks for chiming in. This discussion should be about how to bring a new view to the people. Not “business as usual” but a new understanding of where we should align ourselves. It’s so obvious that the citizens of Philadelphia are entrapped in the Democratic process that the idea of an alternative political party is out of the question. If the people only knew how important their vote was than maybe we could resolve their problems. The reality is personal responsibility. If you are not prepared to take accountability for your actions than you are not prepared to be a citizen.
to Kem,Mike,Caesar,Ed,boy i am glad i did not take your expert advice about Hillary Clinton,all your attacks and nasty comments almost swayed me,but i am glad i stuck to my gut feeling.
who are you losers going to crow about know o’bama is a weak canidate and is the opponent that the republican rightwingers want to run at.so whoever you guys endorse please just stay away from Hillary!!!
thanks larry, good luck and god bless