How A Call For Dirt Turned Me Into A Gaughan Fan

[figmo]

I spoke with Kevin Gaughan the other day to see if he would confirm a rumor.

Word round the campfire is that the article in the News last week about Kevin’s campaign finances was seeded as a smear by Byron Brown’s campaign and I wanted to see if I could get Kevin to comment.

He wouldn’t go there. He spoke of the law that allowed him to take a meager stipend while running for Mayor fulltime as well as its merits, specifically that it provides people of modest means (folks with neither special interest backing nor the luxury of a politician/burocrat’s salary) to run for office. But after my repeated attempts, he refused to confirm the rumor by simply, directly and unequivocally saying, “I’m not going there. That’s not what my candidacy is about.”

I tried to lure him into confirming the rumor by telling him why I was asking—that I was working on a post about Brown for Mayor as the campaign that can’t shoot straight--that this recent alleged attempt to go negative (which backfired largely as a result of Donn Esmonde’s excellent column Monday) is part of a long line of decisions that makes you wonder about the efficacy of a potential Brown administration—his early, eager, almost gleeful acceptance of union support; his alignment with big party politics and the Masiello administration as evidenced most recently by his position in McGurngate and his acceptance of Ray McGurn’s support; and now this most recent alleged attempt to go negative and smear Kevin by bringing into question Kevin’s taking advantage of a law that attempts to give voters more choice.

Kevin still wouldn’t bite. As a matter of fact, he said, “Well if that’s the angle, I can’t go there because when it comes to mistakes, I’ve made my share.”

I kept giving the guy slow pitches but he wouldn’t swing. Rather than confirming or denying rumors, instead of taking the chance to throw an opponent under the bus, Kevin wanted to talk about ideas—about the specifics of George Grasser’s and John Cordes’ detailed plan to reform the Department of Inspections and Permits, about innovative applications for neighborhood block grant funds, and a host of policy initiatives he can’t wait to introduce, one of which he’s announcing today in an afternoon press conference.

He spoke about the value of and necessity for real and meaningful dialogue—a public discussion of ideas and visions for our future. Kevin didn’t want to engage in the matter-of-course slant I took. Because the problems of local government are deep and systemic and the solutions lie beyond politics as usual, instead of focusing on rumors and smears or looking at the race as a sporting event with polls to keep score, Kevin wanted to talk about how to articulate and incubate and scale a culture of innovation and change.

I remember telling Kevin just before he officially announced he was running that I didn’t think he had a chance. And I’m still not sure he can win. But I really like a lot of what he's said so far. This election is too important to be followed like a horse race. It needs to be treated as a civic discourse—a genuine examination and discussion of ideas. And Kevin’s one of the only candidates talking about change in any meaningful way. He's talking about ideas with the same facility that certain life-long politicians have with empty buzzwords and shallow sound bites.

BR is not going to endorse a candidate--partly because we're a team blog and I'm sure not all of us would or could agree…and partly because I think media endorsements are meaningless and only serve to make publications themselves feel important. But when someone is doing good work, work we feel serves New Buffalo, we're going to applaud the endeavor.

Big, important, transformative ideas and their application are Kevin's currency. And in this campaign, I hope he gets the chance to spend it all.

Story originally posted at:
http://tinyurl.com/86sg8

[Trolls_r_us]

very well put

[buffy]

He's a gentleman and he has respect for all people. He's open and humble; I get this all via woman's intuition and gut feelings.

I wish I lived in the City so I could vote for him. I may end up volunteering for him.

[steven]

Maybe he "didnt go there" because the alleged rumours werent true?

[Marc]

Originally posted by Buff Lifer


I wish I lived in the City so I could vote for him. I may end up volunteering for him.

So move into the city.

[steven]

Originally posted by Buff Lifer
I wish I lived in the City so I could vote for him. I may end up volunteering for him.

I really hope your joking?

You don't see the irony in an Amherst resident (the town that had to be taken to court before it would stop pirating business from the city) volunteering to help a carpetbagger run for mayor of the city?

On second thought maybe you should. I couldn't imagine anything pissing off a registered city voter more than a carpetbagger with suburban volunteers running around the city telling residents that their dissolution and losing there representation is what's best for them. Might make the few gaughen supporters in the city wake up and see the light.

[Chris in Parkside]

Originally posted by steven
volunteering to help a carpetbagger run for mayor of the city?

Does this angle really have any teeth? Are the problems of this city not DIRECTLY tied to the lifetime political hacks that we keep electing OVER and OVER?

Why does it matter that Kevin is not part of the machinery? That is what we should be looking for, a person with a different perspective and the promise of innovation.

Any person who WILLINGLY moves to Buffalo and then sees all of the possibilities and attempts to make them become reality deserves our respect.

[buffy]

Oh please, the guy's from Hamburg! Calling him a carpetbagger is ridiculous! And just for the record, I've lived in the City for forty years before moving to Snyder; ya'know, this area is not that big. I could walk from Snyder to Buffalo; the rats did!

[atotaltotalfan2001]

Originally posted by Chris in Parkside
Does this angle really have any teeth? Are the problems of this city not DIRECTLY tied to the lifetime political hacks that we keep electing OVER and OVER?

Why does it matter that Kevin is not part of the machinery? That is what we should be looking for, a person with a different perspective and the promise of innovation.

Any person who WILLINGLY moves to Buffalo and then sees all of the possibilities and attempts to make them become reality deserves our respect.

Amen!

I think one of Gaughan's greatest strengths is that he is not part of the Buffalo political machinery. Sadly, that's probably why he won't win. Buffalo is very attached to its machinery and -- despite all its protests otherwise -- to the status quo. Not to pick on Buffalo. The entire region is like that.

[Linda_D]

Originally posted by Chris in Parkside
Any person who WILLINGLY moves to Buffalo and then sees all of the possibilities and attempts to make them become reality deserves our respect.

He didn't move his family from Hamburg to the city; he only rents an apartment. He didn't move his law practice from Hamburg to the city, either.

Moreover, he didn't move to Buffalo and then decided to run for mayor. He tried to run for Mayor of Buffalo in 2001 as a resident of Hamburg, but I think he was ruled off the ballot because he wasn't a city resident. Hence the apartment.

The guy seems to like looking for loopholes.

[WNYresident]

No one seems to gripe that hillary was a carpet bagger.

[buffy]

Originally posted by Linda_D
He didn't move his family from Hamburg to the city; he only rents an apartment. He didn't move his law practice from Hamburg to the city, either.

Moreover, he didn't move to Buffalo and then decided to run for mayor. He tried to run for Mayor of Buffalo in 2001 as a resident of Hamburg, but I think he was ruled off the ballot because he wasn't a city resident. Hence the apartment.

The guy seems to like looking for loopholes.

So, what's your point Linda? At the time of the 2001 campaign, the election law allowed him to run; it was Masiello who petitioned to change the rules.

And i agree WNYRes, Hillary was from another state Gaughan is just down the shoreline.

[atotaltotalfan2001]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Linda_D
[B]He didn't move his family from Hamburg to the city; he only rents an apartment. He didn't move his law practice from Hamburg to the city, either.


Linda, I don't think he has a family to move. Last I heard he was single. I don't think he even owns a home.

I think you criticize Gaughan for a lot of things, but I do think his intentions are the best.

Next (assuming he loses), I'd like him to move to Amherst and then run for supervisor!!!

[Linda_D]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by atotaltotalfan2001
[B]

Originally posted by Linda_D
He didn't move his family from Hamburg to the city; he only rents an apartment. He didn't move his law practice from Hamburg to the city, either.


Linda, I don't think he has a family to move. Last I heard he was single. I don't think he even owns a home.

I think you criticize Gaughan for a lot of things, but I do think his intentions are the best.

Next (assuming he loses), I'd like him to move to Amherst and then run for supervisor!!!

On the platform of merging Amherst and Erie County, of course.

[steven]

Originally posted by Linda_D
He didn't move his family from Hamburg to the city; he only rents an apartment. He didn't move his law practice from Hamburg to the city, either.

Moreover, he didn't move to Buffalo and then decided to run for mayor. He tried to run for Mayor of Buffalo in 2001 as a resident of Hamburg, but I think he was ruled off the ballot because he wasn't a city resident. Hence the apartment.

The guy seems to like looking for loopholes.

Thanks I was going to say the same and you beat me to it.

If gaughen is for consolidation of Erie County municipalities he should be running for County wide office. The mayor of Buffalo's job is to take care of city residents.

Anyone willing to hand over the city to the same clowns that brought us the current county budget crises is nuts.

Since the control board rolled into town things have been getting better in buffalo (god it pains me to say that) Consolidation with the county would only move the city backwards. Its simple math Broke + Broke doesn't = fixed