The Honeymoon is Over - Why is Tony Mack Still the Mayor?

Well, since July 1 we have been biting our tongue, blinking our eyes, taking huge deep sighs, praying, meditating and generally trying to just look the other way, all in an effort to attempt to give our new Mayor an opportunity to advance his agenda and to govern. Well, WE JUST CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE AND NEITHER SHOULD YOU!!!!

Enough is enough! Admittedly we believed Tony (I bounce my checks) Mack was one of the poorer choices available to the electorate. We new he could not count. We knew he could not balance a checkbook. We knew his financial house was a house of cards waiting to completely collapse. We knew his past job performance was questionable at best... and on and on. Yet despite our best efforts to forewarn the voters of Trenton and the efforts of virtually every other Trenton area blogger, the landscape was such that a perfect storm existed for Trenton, the Capital City, to now be led by this comedic loser. What generated this perfect storm; 10 initial candidates to divide the vote; a recount and Court challenge between the 2nd and 3rd highest candidates that limited the election battle time for our Dominican Dandy, a runoff with racial undertones, an African American vs. a Hispanic that divided the city; the Dominican Dandy's unwillingness to even discuss Mack's problems and deficiencies; and a press that would not investigate or write the stories they had in its pocket and have since decided to take to the front pages.

Now that the honeymoon is over, it is past time to start shedding light on the Mayor' complete and utter inability to effectively lead Trenton. Despite our obvious lack of appreciation for our current Mayor, we feel it necessary to once again confirm that Hishonor King Doug left city residents and his successor with more than their fair share of unresolved problems and impending disasters. What stuns us his Mack's level of incompetence and his proclivity to create almost daily, his own new minefields. It is not so much the magnitude of any particular problem (with the exception of the ever increasing budget deficit), but the continuing and ongoing nature of the problems that any reasonably qualified leader would be able to avoid. Sadly, many including Trenton residents themselves, now view the news and activities emanating from City Hall as a "laughing stock", a circus just in need of a big top tent. This is a real life As the World Turns. If the mayor's incompetence was not affecting the daily lives of Trentonians, the quality of life for all of Trenton's citizens, this would likely become a best selling comedic reality show.

Unfortunately, Mack's circus extravaganza is making Trenton, the once proud Capital City, daily entertainment not only for the rest of Mercer County, but now sadly throughout the Delaware Valley and the entire State of New Jersey. We were thinking of creating a top ten list of Mack mockeries. Yet, 10 do not seem to be enough. However painful it may be, we thought it necessary to start to maintain a list of the Mayor's failures. If nothing else perhaps this will encourage others to continue to closely monitor the Mayor and his administration and to help us keep a running list of inappropriate action, failures and incompetence, so that more light can constantly be shed on these failures. The Mayor's enormous ego will likely keep him in office unless or until a successful recall effort can be launched and executed, or until the heat is so oppressive in his kitchen that he either decides to resign (unlikely as he certainly is need of a few paychecks to payoff many of his debts), or he his escorted out of City Hall by a state or Federal law enforcement agency. Until then keep the pressure on!!! Trenton deserves much better.

Here is a partial list of examples of Mayor Mack’s' pathetic leadership and resulting failures to date. Please help us update and monitor our list.

1. Orchestrating and accepting the proceeds from a mortgage on one of his rental properties (when it is already apparently mortgaged well beyond its market value) then inappropriately and perhaps illegally funneling those funds into his Mayoral campaign;

2. Failing to pay campaign workers;

3. Allegedly and inappropriately paying campaign workers with cash, contrary to the NJ ELEC laws;

4. Repeatedly failing to pay his various mortgages forcing public and embarrassing foreclosure proceedings;

5. Being sworn in by an attorney that may not have been licensed;

6. Nominating a convicted felon to a cabinet position;

7. Hiring a flock of friends and political allies when the City had a $43 million deficit and was ostensibly under a hiring freeze (malfeasance?);

8. Hiring the daughter of City Councilwoman, thus creating the appearance of impropriety and the likelihood of repeated conflicts of interest (malfeasance?);

9. Promising to keep the City’s 4 library branches open and failing to deliver promised funding. (Why make reading and educational opportunities a priority when you have a city with an abysmal educational performance?);

10. Orchestrating and botching the removal of City Clerk, Cordelia Stanton, then having law enforcement officials show up at City Hall to attempt to remove her. Misrepresenting the Stanton/Clerk matter and the facts regarding it to the City Council, (malfeasance?);

11. Permitting Bill Guhl (perhaps the most qualified mayoral appointment) to leave his position as a consultant to the city in the midst of the gravest financial crisis in city history;

12. Five different Business Administrators in five months and no current business administrator to lead the City;

13. The muddy waters of October. Were qualified employees removed from the water utility to make room for political appointees? Why weren’t residents and outlying municipalities timely notified of the emergency? Can you say unqualified, or lack of leadership, (nonfeasance?);

14. Lying to City Council about the status of a background check on Renee Lammare Sumners in an effort to force a premature vote on her appointment, (malfeasance);

15. Refusing to ask for Judge Sumners resignation after the controversy surrounding her appointment (refusal to submit to background checks, bounced checks, civil warrants, defaulted credit card bills ) and qualifications (repeated licensing issues),became a public embarrassment for the Judge, the City and its residents;

16. The appearance of impropriety and potential quid pro quos in an effort to have out of town politically connected law firms appointed to professional positions even after City Council had already rejected them in public votes;

17. Having temporary department heads continue to serve well beyond their statutorily permitted terms (nonfeasance?);

18. Failing to appoint qualified city residents to lead city departments consistent with the city ordinances;

19. Appointing a Trenton attorney to lead the legal/fire department when that attorney has no prior fire department or administrative experience as required by city ordinance (malfeasance?);

20. Appointing his non resident former campaign manger to be the city’s part-time gang guru (to manage a dangerous full-time problem), contrary to the provision of the Federal grant, perhaps risking the grant itself (malfeasance?);

21. Allegedly having members of his family surveil and threaten sitting City council members;


22. Having been forewarned about misappropriation of public funds and equipment at the water department by at least 2 members of Council…non action, (Can you say nonfeasance?);

23. Having a brother arrested for misuse of City equipment and funds and having the audacity to refuse to answer even a single question regarding the matter, from the working press;

24. Fooliishly Making an orchestrated attempt to circumvent the U.S. Constitution and its amendments by attempting to effectively ban city employees from communicating with members of the press, and banning a public periodical (Trentonian) from a public building.

We are sure that we have missed a few items that should be included in this list, just as we are sure that the Mayor’s tendency to bungle, fumble and tendency for a gaffe will soon necessitate the update of this list. Keep the pressure on! The City needs and requires better leadership. Accepting mediocrity (probably a compliment to this Mayor), is never acceptable.

“Better to fight for something than live for nothing.”


General George S. Patton

9th Inning - Final At Bat

Well fans, it is the home half of the 9th. The sun is shinning and your defending champs, the Puppet Masters, led by Manager, King Douglass, The General Manager Bill Watson and the new ownership, American Water, are all praying that they have lulled you to sleep and that they will be able to rally and pull another game out of the fire.

There is no excuse for you to permit this rally to occur. We realize that you are somewhat hampered by the lack of a shut down closer. No Marianno Rivera here (he's Panamanian). We analyzed the Dominican MLB pitchers and have concluded that there are no shut down closers available. Jose Lima did have "Lima Time" and did have some brief success, but unfortunately he recently died. Joaquín Andújar was briefly successful but was noted for having a hot blooded temper. Uhmmm. Antonio Alfonseca has had sporadic success but has two problems. First he has six fingers and second he tends to give up the long ball in key situations. When we searched for black closers that were short in stature, and financially and intellectually challenged, we struck out there as well. Sorry no Satchel Paige available.

So fans it is up to you. You can cast your vote for the one guy that says he has always been against the water sale, even though City Hall records reflect that he voted for it during the 1st reading of the ordinance (sound like John Kerry in the Swift Boat Ads?). Or, you can vote for the guy who still says he is against the Water sale, despite climbing in bed with Mayor Palmer and his Puppeteer, Bill Watson, who are the prime movers of the Water sale known as "Trenton Yes". WOW what a choice. If we were really at a ball game there would be other alternatives. Streaking across center field and delaying the game. Starting a massive food fight, throwing beach balls on the field, praying for a power outage or an electrical storm. Hoping the game remains tied so long that the old blue laws will kick in and not permit another inning to be started....

In short, if you are an intelligent, morally upright, issue oriented, tax paying, English speaking, well read, literate, law abiding citizen... you are BLEEPED today. The greater question for you is whether you immediately initiate a recall petition or if you bite the bullet, sell your home or business for a loss and move to the suburbs or across the river.

Despite finding yourself in this tenuous position (I refuse to write at Tony Mack's level any longer, he'll have to steal a dictionary), I encourage all of you to contact every friend, neighbor, co-worker etc., to go to the polls and VOTE NO to the water sale. While you are at it, take down a sign or 10 that have been illegally attached to telephone polls, trees and so on, by the American Water, Doug Palmer, Bill Watson contingent.

After all of that activity if you are not nauseous, try to cast an intelligent vote for the Trenton City Council candidates. Remember, whether Trenton gets the well intentioned, Dominican Dandy, or the morally, financially, and criminally challenged mental midget, heretofore and hereafter referred to as "TATTOO", it is the Council that controls the purse strings. Through a well informed and good intentioned council there may yet be a scintilla of hope. One last thought, I (and hopefully you) do not support Black Panthers, promoting a violent and separatist philosophy. Beyond that, I wish you well with your selections.

Recalls and referendums are a form of protest, and civil disobedience that have been preserved for an electorate that is dissatisfied with their representatives. Remain engaged and demand results from whoever is elected. A well informed voter can not be disenfranchised. Exercise your rights and let your voice be heard!