The candidates for Richmond’s mayor have been attentive and patient suitors, indeed.
I mean, c’mon: Has Richmond ever seen this many Mayoral debates? Hear, hear and all that. Let’s only hope it’s a trend that will be followed for future elections. (And it continues tonight…)
I have attended three of these programs so far — and only Paul Goldman really sounded convincing to me. Beyond the jokes, the aggressive attitude, the constant reminders that he’s the one who originally pushed to have Richmond’s Mayor directly elected — we get it, Paul — he has been the real stuff; the only Mayoral aspirant with a grasp of the city’s (and the country’s) fiscal challenges, the only one who took a strong early stand of support for such important citizen-led initiatives as the Downtown Plan, the only one to stump on greater citizen inclusion and involvement (he proposed a citizen-led Unity Council to advise City Hall). He has clearly been the smartest, if not most qualified, runner in the race. He has also been (by far) the crankiest, he has a “Yankee” accent and is often fond of using ill-advised motion picture analogies on the podium and in his press releases.
Here, in Richmond, he didn’t have a chance.
Goldman exits race for Richmond mayor
By the Associated Press
October 21, 2008RICHMOND, Va. - Paul Goldman dropped out of the race on Tuesday and tossed his support to Del. Dwight C. Jones. Goldman is a former senior adviser to Mayor L. Douglas Wilder and former chairman of the Virginia Democratic Party.
With Goldman out of the running, Jones and three other candidates are seeking to govern Virginia’s capital city of 200,000.
The others are City Council President William J. Pantele, corporate lawyer Robert J. Grey Jr. and architect Lawrence E. Williams.
Wilder has not endorsed his successor, and expressed his disappointment with the field in a column in Sunday’s Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Why was Goldman doomed?
Perhaps attorney Michaeal Morchower said it best in the RTD:
“What Paul doesn’t have is old Richmond. What’s important in Richmond is who’s your daddy, and where you go to church.”
No, Goldman wasn’t running a distant fourth in the Mayor’s race because he didn’t have ideas — he has had those in spades and perhaps a few too many. Goldman was lagging behind because he never received support from the rich Republicans who have traditionally pulled Richmond’s puppet strings — Robert Grey is their candidate (look for the RTD endorsement soon!) — or from developers salivating over precious river views — those would be Bill Pantele’s people — or from a tired city Democratic machine responsible for the kind of go-along leadership that provoked the city to begin electing its own mayor in the first place — that would be the voting block pushing Dwight Jones. This is Richmond, remember — we run in packs.
A few days ago, Goldman was snarling at House of Delegates member Jones because of a blatantly rigged endorsement from the Richmond Democrats. But that’s politics for you. According to Style Weekly’s Chris Dovi, who was at the joint press conference that the two politcos arranged Tuesday morning:
Goldman told the gathered throng of reporters and TV crews that he’d made up his mind to drop out during the last mayoral debate hosted by Style Weekly on Oct. 14. He says he realized mid-answer while standing on stage that “there’s only two guys here for change.”
Goldman called dropping out “a practical decision” to allow one of those two guys a better opportunity to win. He cited “powerful forces” lending financial support to the campaigns of Bill Pantele and Robert Grey. Grey is rumored to be planning a major television advertising blitz in the coming weeks that could be a just-add-water solution to his problem with name recognition among voters.
Goldman says he’s hoping that his endorsement will help Jones. “It’s best that we join forces.” From a practical standpoint, that endorsement could lend votes to Jones in West End districts where Goldman has his base and Jones is weakest.
Although Goldman said he plans to remain active in the race, now campaigning for his former opponent, both Jones and Goldman also swept aside questions about any possible arrangement having been reached to provide Goldman a position in a possible Jones administration.
“Mr. Goldman is absolutely somebody who knows a lot about Richmond, but this is not some deal,” Jones said. “No promises have been made.”
Goldman went further, saying he would decline any possible City Hall post offered by Jones.
“It’s not the odd fellows getting together because we have stood together on many of the same things in most instances in this campaign. We stood before the press and we talked about where the raises for senior citizens where. We have stood together on transparency as it relates to the Center Stage project, we have stood together for making sure the dysfunction of the last four years doesn’t continue to be a part of Richmond’s history.”
Needless to say, I’m very disappointed in Goldman’s pledge to turn down a position on Jones’ staff, if asked. We need both innovative ideas and basic competence from the next administration if Richmond is going to take that next step forward to being something other than Charlotte-Lite. Goldman’s out-of-the-box thinking is what is really required when you are stuck in a box like Richmond’s. I’m not the only one who thought Wilder was doing pretty good when Goldman was around, and when he left…
But, OK, let’s say he can’t get the man himself to come aboard.
Nothing says a Mayor Dwight C. Jones couldn’t pick and choose from the many, many ideas and plans for reform that Paul has already thrown out into the public square — and to heed the man’s persuasive warnings about Richmond’s financial situation.
Transparency and accountability would be nice.
And you know what — a Unity Council might be just the thing to bring about some unity around here, what do you say?
Note to voters: Do you want an easy, informative and downright illuminating way to keep up with the Mayor’s Race as it heats up in the final days? Try the Richmond Good Life’s special page on the campaign. It’s worth noting that Ed of the Good Life was the only area pundit to correctly guess that Goldman’s “surprise” press conference on Tuesday was to announce an endorsement of Jones:
Goldman to shake-up Mayor’s race tomorrow, October 21, with major announcement
(Hmmmm, my wild ass guess = Joins Team Jones…IF that happens, give Jones the mayorship…that is unless Pantele and Grey join up to form Businesstron…)
Ed wins the toaster!