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Politician Press Releases
Don't let this year become just another footnote in the history of Buffalo's long decline. Although I will not be on the ballot for Mayor this year, a vote for change is still possible. But it's only possible this Tuesday in the Democratic Party primary. I'd like to take a few minutes of your time to explain why I believe that Councilman Mickey Kearns is our best hope at this juncture of our City's history, and why I'll be supporting him during the remainder of this election cycle:
1) Mayor Brown has had four years to show us what he can do, and—frankly—he did nothing of consequence. We cannot afford four more years of the same. We're in crisis mode—our City is dying in front of us—and we don't have any more time to waste with incompetent, complacent, mediocre leaders who don't know where we're going or how to get us there. Mediocrity is unacceptable to me, and it should be unacceptable to you too.
2) Mayor Brown has made our economic development operation look like a joke—and I don't say this lightly. Mayor Brown has funneled hundreds of thousands of dollars of economic development loans and grants to his friends and contributors, who then defaulted on those loans. Mayor Brown administered these loans to businesses that lacked even basic business plans. This demonstrates a shockingly incompetent management of our resources. http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/681191.html
3) Mayor Brown said no to Eastside affordable housing and job creation unless his cronies received kickbacks. A Cleveland-based developer, The NRP Group, wanted to make a $12 million investment in Eastside affordable housing which would have created construction jobs and investment for a severely distressed neighborhood. Despite being the second poorest City in the country, Mayor Brown said no, unless the firm hired a supporter who had made contributions to his campaign. The developer refused to engage in “pay-to-play politics," dropped the proposal, and left Buffalo. Mayor Brown is—quite literally—squandering our future so that he can enrich is friends. http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/745671.html
4) Mayor Brown doesn't understand urban planning. Mayor Brown has brought our City boldly into the 1960's with an absolutely idiotic understanding of urban planning and an unsophisticated approach to economic development. Mayor Brown supported the construction of an elevated highway on our outer harbor which will do nothing but suppress property values, inhibit development opportunities, and further sever our City from its waterfront. This is a $50 million mistake that will cost us tens of millions more to fix.
5) Mayor Brown hires unqualified people for key leadership positions. Time and again, the sheer incompetence of our government has lead to uninformed and misguided decisions made by people who are not qualified or credentialed for their positions. We need a Mayor who isn't going to propagate an institutionalized system of patronage, where City jobs are given as political favors. http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/690980.html
6) Mayor Brown has misused anti-poverty grant monies to enrich political allies. The Brown-Davis administration is a “reverse-Robin Hood," in that they redirected anti-poverty grant funds from the Ellicott District, one of the City's most distressed areas, to the Delaware District, one of the City's most affluent, in order to enrich a friend's personally owned business. These actions were a betrayal of the public trust. We need a Mayor who is committed to ethical governance and who refuses to be corrupt. http://www.buffalonews.com/149/story/688864.html
7) Councilman Kearns loves Buffalo more. Time and again, Mayor Brown has shown us that he's willing to sell out our potential for his own political interests. He certainly doesn't put Buffalo first. Unlike Mayor Brown, Councilman Kearns was born and raised in Buffalo. A son of South Buffalo, his love and passion for this City prove to me that he loves Buffalo more than Mayor Brown. His intentions are better and his commitment is stronger.
8) Councilman Kearns has a fierce resolve tempered with humility. And that is exactly the leadership we need. We need a Mayor who is passionately—fiercely—committed to rebuilding this City and to addressing the extraordinary challenges that we face. Councilman Kearns has this ferocity without the utter arrogance that we've seen over the last four years. We need a Mayor who is willing to seek out advice and to engage with the community.
9) Councilman Kearns isn't afraid to answer tough questions. Perhaps the most disappointing development during this election cycle has been Mayor Brown's stubborn refusal to engage in a robust debate about how we can rebuild Buffalo. He has refused hundreds of requests to debate his opponents. To Mayor Brown, let me say this very clearly: You don't get to move to my City, run for Mayor, and expect not to answer tough questions—you don't get to rob us of our aspirations, ideas, and involvement in the process.
When our ship is sinking, the last thing we need is a steady hand—we need a new captain. I'm convinced that Councilman Kearns can be that captain and can serve us far better than we've been served over the last four years. Although we don't agree on every issue, and our opinions sometime conflict, over the last several months Councilman Kearns has treated me and my campaign with great respect at a time when most everyone else refused to even acknowledge our efforts to bring change to Buffalo. Councilman Kearns is a class act, a good guy who loves Buffalo, and he deserves your vote.
Most of my supporters are young adults: Our generation has the most at stake in this election, and we'll have to live with its consequences the longest. We've been prejudicially stereotyped as being uninvolved, uninterested, and uninformed. I know that's not true, and I'm as offended by it as all of you. We've been jaded by a system that has squandered our future, ignores our interests and concerns, and refuses to speak to our issues. But decisions are made by people who show up and who make themselves heard.
I beg you—show up, stand up, and make yourself heard this Tuesday. Bring your friends, classmates, siblings, parents, cousins, co-workers, bar buddies, and anyone else who is fed up enough to stand up and to be counted. Don't squander our future. Don't mitigate our promise or potential. Don't vote for more of the same. Vote for change
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