It’s important when you are the Democratic mayor of a large
city in Connecticut to have an immovable rug under your feet so that political opponents
may not pull it out from under you, sending you sprawling into anonymity. The
traditional power structures in cities ain’t what they used to be.
In New Haven, while Mayor John DeStefano was tending to more
important things – inviting school unions to partner with him in forming
educational policy for the city, rolling out the red carpet for illegal aliens
or, if one prefers, undocumented workers, community policing – a slate backed
by Yale’s unions seized control of the party last year.
Connecticut is poised on the edge of a fiscal cliff that, scuttlebutt
has it, will result in fewer transfer payments from the state to
municipalities, mostly because state government for years has been unable to
control its spending proclivities.
An announcement that he will decline to run for mayor is
expected from Mr. DeStefano sometime today.
It’s a good time to go and, considering Connecticut’s
economic downslide, a better time to pull up stakes and go.
Within the past few years, Mr. DeStefano has “sold an
investment property in town and bought a second home in Florida,” according to
the New Haven Independent, which has aroused suspicion that the Mayor of New
haven may be Florida bound.
Here is a farewell interview with Paul Bass:
And Mr. DeStefano’s coy announcement is here:
“Please join me and me and my family for an early ‘State of the City’ briefing and reception tomorrow at 5 PM, January 29th at The Russian Lady, 144 Temple Street (formerly The Playwright).
“Our college graduation rates are up 10% in the last year. Promise scholarship students are sticking in college at encouraging rates. Community policing is driving crime down and there is more to come.
“Me (sic), Kathy and our boys look forward to seeing you tomorrow for this very important event.
“Very truly yours,
“John”
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