Now I’m sure everybody in Nor’Town enjoyed the Las Vegas Sun’s repetition of the Unions vs. Richard Cherchio meme. Granted, we’ve all heard the local press repeat the same thing for the last five months, but, hey, how else do you make Norf’Town’s dull little off-off-year elections interesting?
Well, discussing actual issues that are or soon will be before City Council might be a start, but you won’t be hearing much about that, especially from the Public Safety…sorry, I mean, Public Safety Unions….no, no, wait, I mean, the Police and Firefighters Political Action Committee to Preserve Six-Figure Salaries for Administrators who Haven’t Smelled Smoke for 20 years candidate.
Indeed, who knows where Wade Wagner (R-Police Unions) really stands on anything? In the Sun article we read:
Wagner said he makes only one promise to residents: “My door will be open and you can come in and talk to me anytime.”
That’s it? Nothing about sweetheart deals to developers, if they ever return? Or building pointless government buildings like the new City Hall or the Wastewater Treatment plant to nowhere? How about improvements to North Fifth Street, which should be renamed the Road to Nowhere since the big old development up there went bankrupt? Nothing to say about the Tule Springs’ fossils monument?
Your answer to all of the above is: “my door will be open”?? Mr. Candidate, have you read a newspaper in the last five years? Read a council transcript? Read the budget?
Or consider his breathtaking stand on “fiscal responsibility” for the official campaign site:
City leaders have an obligation to the taxpayers in North Las Vegas to spend their money wisely. The investments made by our local government must be both creative and fiscally sound.
Vapid is too colorful a word to describe this empty, pointless pap. The candidate’s site looks like it was designed by the same guys who did that one about him being a puppet seeing how poorly it counters his image as a union pawn.
Oh, and if you’re interested in the fines that the guys working against Cherchio got slapped with for paying more to Wagner’s coffers than the law allows, the letter from the Secretary of State are here.
Meanwhile, the race for Ward 2 is trying to beat Wagner in vapidity, that is, until Goynes sent the ‘Monger’ household a mailer full of public service union logos. So, the question is, are public safety union scare tactics going to be the main political force in Nor’Town politics for the next few years? Indeed today’s Sun story mentions that councilgal Anita Wood will be the main target in 2013. Note, of course, that the Mayor, who’s up for re-election, wasn’t mentioned. That’s because her 4-1 minority votes against balancing the city budget have insulated her against such attacks.
But now, picture this: Wagner wins and Goynes wins. Does that mean those 4-1 votes will become 2-3 votes, with the majority of council supporting cutting everything in the city first except six-figure salaries for Police and Firefighter administrators? Is that the new community of choice?
Gee, when I asked a campaign caller for Wade Wagner what days he was going to be available to hear a presentation on Tule Springs or other citizen concerns, I was told by the young lady “Wade will be handling all citizen concerns by email”. Really????? Councilman Cherchio answers a call within a hour or so unless he is in a Council meeting, but certainly by the next day!
Really…………tule springs?????? The City is going bankrupt, 258 layoffs, 150 inmates will be released back to the City and we are asking about Tule Springs……wow this says it all.