Two down, one to go.
We’ve spent the last two columns taking down two of the Big Three candidates for Toledo Mayor. First we laid out the case why incumbent Mayor Paula Hicks Hudson does not deserve re-election. Then we methodically took apart challenger and LC Treasurer Wade Kapszukiewicz.
If neither of them deserves to be mayor, that means the mayor must be behind Door Number Three, right? One Tom Waniewski, is that who we’re left with?
Not so fast, kidz. Our job is to bury Caesar, not to praise him. Or her. Whatever.
Let PHH, Wade, and Tommy Boy blow smoke up yer pants leg that they’s the one, the only one, for the task. We’ll tell you they’re all wet, the whole lot of ‘em.
Purge Paula. Whack Wade. Here’s why Tommy Waniewski doesn’t deserve your vote, either.
Nine? Not fine.
Tom is a carpet bagger. Tommy Boy was born and raised in Toodleydoo. Good Nor’ Ender through and through. That would be a great couplet to start a campaign jingle, eh, Tommy?
Except the story takes a turn after that, when he had to raise a family. Then he bolted the friendly confines of T-Town and skeedaddled out to the suburbs. Sorry, Tom. We’re not sure how to incorporate that little wrinkle into a campaign jingle for a candidate for Toledo Mayor.
Don’t get us wrong, we appreciate the charms of the ‘burbs. The shops and joints in the quaint downtowns are truly wonderful. We frequent them often. Heck, some of us even live there.
But we’re not running for Mayor of Toledo.
How can Tommy pretend to know what it’s like to raise a family in Toledo when he refused to do so?
Sure, he lives in Toledo again now. But we need someone who feels what it’s like to be a Toledoan in all phases of life. And we can prove that’s not Tom, because…
Tommy is out of touch with the average Toledoan. His social views are outside the mainstream for Toledo, but that isn’t really all that important. Unless you’re LGBTQ, or a member of a minority group, or care about those who are, or believe in a robust social safety net, or women’s right to choose. Because Tommy Boy tends to rail against legislation protecting those who need it most. He usually votes against it, too.
Want to know how far out of touch he is? He was a major proponent behind the ill-fated “Nine is Fine” ballot initiative. You remember, he wanted to cut down Council in a way that would keep the parochialism of district representation but eliminate big picture thinking. And trim the number of people who directly represent you from a majority of Council to a mere two. He continues to defend the idea to this day.
“Nine is Fine” was decidedly not fine with Toledo voters, who rejected it handily at the polls. Out-of-touch Tom. Not a good ending to the ol’ campaign jingle. Not only does Tommy not know what Toledoans think, but…
Tom is in over his head. Tommy has been a district representative. He has done nothing else in government. And he has never run anything resembling the sprawling, intransigent behemoth that is the City of Toledo bureaucracy, in either the private or public sectors. He touts himself as an “outsider.” Being a small cog in a monster machine doesn’t prepare him to be the engineer we need. Neither does being outside the machine’s operation altogether.
His lack of preparation for the job would be okay if he could surround himself with talent. That won’t happen, because…
Tom has no bench of talent. This is the major problem with being a Republican in Toledo. There is not a wealth of talent waiting in the wings to join a Waniewski administration.
Tommy Boy will be forced to scramble for retreads and wannabes. Just like D Michael Collins before him, he has no obvious group of seasoned veterans ready to take over and right the corporate ship. He’ll end up with Or more carpet baggers from the ‘burbs like Tommy and his buddies, out of touch with Toledo and not really connected to those they serve.
Just like the Collins administration before him, the ship will be rudderless and flounder on the shoals of ineptitude and cronyism.
Vote like your future depends on it
There you have it. None of them have what it takes. And it looks like there are no other choices. Don’t get us started on Opal. She needs a quiet place to lie down, not the ship’s wheel.
They’re all flawed. It’s up to each of them to convince you that we’re off base, that they deserve the chance to be called Mayor. Show some decisiveness, Paula. Get outta the statistics and show some charisma, Wade. Show us who will lead your team, Tommy.
Or ignore us. But at least show why electing any one of you wouldn’t just be more of the same. Show us why Toledo’s, and the region’s, future should be in your hands. Because right now, we wouldn’t give it to any of you.
Game on.
