Well, he's gone and done it again.I'm talking about Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic, who, even when he tried to keep a lower profile, always seems to end up making front-page headlines.
The latest stems from his actions this weekend, related to a downtown Akron fight, and the police response.
Now, let me preface the following remarks by saying something.
I've always liked Plusquellic. He's one of the strongest mayors in the state. Yet, as I've stated before, he does have quite a bit of the "high school bully" in him.
I even spoke out (wrote out?) in defense of the Mayor during his recent recall battle.
But, this latest episode reeks of poor City Hall spin to me.
Look, I'm not naive enough to think everything that comes out of downtown Akron is legitimate and trustworthy. The Mayor is a politician, and there probably needs to be a certain amount of spin-doctoring in order to forward his ideas and agendas, not to mention fund his re-election campaigns.
But, in this case, it's gotten out of hand.
First off, the 911 tapes were officially released by City Hall, not the police department. As a longtime member of the Akron media, I know that this almost NEVER happens.
Usually, you call the PD, ask for the tapes, and they provide them to you, warts and all.
In this case, however, the city released three calls, all of which, I'm going to assume, have been heavily edited and sanitized to help the Mayor's side of the story.
Why do I believe this to be the case? Well, if you listen to "Call 1", as it's listed on the city website, Plusquellic clearly states that this is not the first call he's made to operators.
You can bet there's going to be an ugly fight, that will perhaps head into court, to get the full 911 tapes from that evening.
The second part of this that feels like "spin" is the following quote from the Mayor, courtesy ohio.com.
"What I did was vitally important to cracking this case"
I'm sure the Mayor actually believes this. But, this isn't a Scooby-Doo mystery and Mayor Plusquellic wasn't wearing an ascot (to my knowledge.)
Leave the police work to the police, Mr. Mayor. I get that you have a background in criminal law, I really do, but getting involved in a police investigation after having a few drinks isn't in your, or their, best interests.
In other words, if the police tell you to butt out, butt out!
Look, I'm not going to rush to judgment here. It wouldn't be out of the question that a gung-ho police officer decided to flex his muscles a little too much. And certainly, the head of the police union loves to make mountains out of molehills.
But, would it really be so bad for Plusquellic to simply say "I'm sorry"?
What's wrong in admitting you're human ... you had a few too many ... and that clouded your decision-making ability. Then, follow that apology with a sit-down with those your cussed out, and give them a heartfelt "sorry" as well.
Maybe it would be political suicide for a Mayor to admit he was a little drunk. My opinion, and this is just me, is that he's still a human being, and should be able to enjoy a night out as much as the next guy (as long as he's not driving).
But, I'll tell you one thing, an apology would win a lot more points with this blogger, than a transparent attempt to spin your actions into "Don Plusquellic, super-hero gumshoe of South Main Street."
But, as we've seen time and time again, sorry really does seem to be the hardest word for elected officials.
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3 comments:
Hmm, interesting relationship there. Obviously, I don't know the history between the Mayor and the Akron PD, but it's clear there's some bad blood already.
The Mayor calling again, admitting emergency personnel were already on scene, but feeling another call to 911 to complain about being put on hold was a poor choice ... (and ironic if someone else was on hold because he was on the line griping).
I'm thinking the non-emergency line would have been a better choice in that regard but especially for the call to b#&%h out the Sergeant!
It will be interesting to see how that situation unfolds, but I don't think the Mayor fairs too well in the end.
Just picturing the Mayor trying to form the words "I'm Sorry" in his mind is enough to make me double over in laughter for days. I have also always liked the Mayor (for many of the same reasons you've posted previously), but to even consider that his ego would allow even a moment of humility is hysterical. Thank you so much for the best spontaneous laugh I've had in a while.
P.S. The Scooby Doo reference with the picture - Fantastic!
Yeah, Diane ... it really isn't in his personality ... still, just once, I'd love to hear the phrase come from some elected official's mouth.
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