Very insightful post!Once again, Robert Ficano had no connection to Ed McNamara. They don't have the same people. Those McNamara appointees that didn't leave right away were all forced out. See Lester Robinson for example. Robinson was forced out at the airport and lo and behold, Mullin arrives. Ficano ran for Sheriff without McNamara's support.
I am always so puzzled. What was the "stink" around McNamara? I think of him as a Daley: things worked. The airport got built. He had some people around him who picked some pockets. Maybe that's not avoidable. I do know that he had to take some people, like Bernard Kilpatrick, because the constituancy insisted.
Echoing Lowell. The protracted investigation of McNamara resulted in one conviction of a high ranking aide who had been persuaded to take a bribe from a sleazy contractor, and one plea to a misdemeanor by a former reporter who worked for McNamara and had illegally used a County computer to prepare a political mailing, thus violating the rule against using government assets on overt electoral politics. Truly a paltry showing for the years of effort and resources put into it be the feds.
McNamara was a skilled politician who won elections and accomplished quite a bit for the County. He also tolerated political favoritism for friends, and some folks were paid far above their value to the public. He hired Bernard Kilpatrick when BK was Chair of the Wayne County Commission, but had no illusions about , shalll we say, BK's weakness in the area of ethical judgment.
Painting McNamara , and anyone he appointed, as corrupt is simply not accurate,just as painting every Kilpatrick appointee as a crook is not accurate . There are good people who worked for Kilpatrick who have been badly damaged by their association with him, and others who , one may presume, are quietly mortified that they will forever be known as a former appointee of Kilpatrick.
Bob Ficano has his own rteam and his own program going. Don't confuse him with McNamara. Accurate analysis requires that one appreciate history, complexity, nuance, and politics and have knowledge of the individuals involved.
Perhaps, but painting him as innocent would be as simple as saying, Coleman Andrew Young was innocent because they couldn't pin anything on HIM either. Same evidence.
Fact that these exit bonuses existed and they defended them is enough for me...the rest of the evidence trail that surfaced including the Catholic church and monies possibly going overseas and land purchased from the county for a $1...surely all peripheral.
But that is all we had on KWHYME before the text messages, too.
So...I say where there is smoke, someone sparked a fire.
Cheers!
Last edited by Gannon; October-29-11 at 01:07 PM.
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