Thursday, June 29, 2006
Wasn't Going to Post Tonight But...
Billboard Ben*, the Talleyrand of N.O. politics:
made the front page. Scary paragraph you might have missed:
I really hope I was wrong:
Actually, I backed away from that, calling it a mindfart. But I can say, in all honesty, that a lack of time kept me from finishing a week-before-the-election post about what we could expect in 2-3 weeks if Nagin were re-elected. One prediction was that James Gill would write a sarcastic, innuendo filled column about the mayor's reputation for integrity or we'd see a wishy-washy editorial about appearances, or Stephanie Grace would write something in between. I would have been wrong, but I think the prediction might have only been off by a month. There were stories* that should have prompted such editorials about a year ago; I'll assume that Katrina prevented that.
Finally, my sources tell me that the Gambit Story did not exaggerate. They also tell me, that in response to the article, a rule was enacted that Water Board members were not to have contact or dealings or even direct conversations with Water Board employees. They tell me that Edwards routinely ignores that rule.
*Unfortunately, Times Picayune links that worked for months no longer seem to be working.
Benjamin Edwards was originally appointed to the S&WB by former Mayor Sidney Barthelemy and was retained by former Mayor Marc Morial. Nagin has not reappointed Edwards, but has allowed him to continue serving although his term expired in late 2003.
made the front page. Scary paragraph you might have missed:
It's not the first time investigators have examined Moore. He pleaded guilty to a single federal felony charge last year for his role in a kickback scheme involving a massive energy contract at City Hall. He agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in that case, in which several defendants are set to go to trial in September.
I really hope I was wrong:
Nagin would be the biggest patsy of all time if he thought the he had made a deal with the Bush White-- he blames everything on Blanco and Bush supports him in return. Then the White House helps Nagin get re-elected, knowing that the Justice Department was planning an investigation.
Actually, I backed away from that, calling it a mindfart. But I can say, in all honesty, that a lack of time kept me from finishing a week-before-the-election post about what we could expect in 2-3 weeks if Nagin were re-elected. One prediction was that James Gill would write a sarcastic, innuendo filled column about the mayor's reputation for integrity or we'd see a wishy-washy editorial about appearances, or Stephanie Grace would write something in between. I would have been wrong, but I think the prediction might have only been off by a month. There were stories* that should have prompted such editorials about a year ago; I'll assume that Katrina prevented that.
Finally, my sources tell me that the Gambit Story did not exaggerate. They also tell me, that in response to the article, a rule was enacted that Water Board members were not to have contact or dealings or even direct conversations with Water Board employees. They tell me that Edwards routinely ignores that rule.
*Unfortunately, Times Picayune links that worked for months no longer seem to be working.
