Citizens of Charlotte ( North Carolina) will soon have the difficult task of electing a new Mayor. For those of you not familiar with this popular Southern city, please allow me to enhance your knowledge of Geography.
The city is located in the Southeastern region of the U.S. and with a population of 1,897,034 (per 2007 Census count), it's currently the largest Metro area within the state of NC.
During its Economic Boom largely due to the Banking Industry's two biggest banks (Wachovia & BOFA) having headquarters here, Charlotte once earned the moniker " Wall Street of the South".
(Note: To date as of November 2008, while the BOFA headquarters remains intact within the Charlotte region, Wells Fargo purchased the now defunct Wachovia corp. Well's headquarters is located in San Franciso, CA.)
Faced with a Recession and the seemingly failing American Banking Industry, the City of Charlotte under current Mayor Pat McCrory's leadership, is attempting to re-invent itself by becoming a Global Tourist/ Conference/ Think Tank Venue.
To increase the likelihood of Charlotte becoming a major Tourist Attraction, a High-Speed Rail study conducted by the Federal Railroad Administration for the Southeastern corridor, resulted in the proposal of a Passenger Rail Line from DC to Atlanta. First to Richmond, Raleigh and Charlotte, then Charlotte to Atlanta/Macon and finally from Raleigh to Columbia, Savannah and Jacksonville.
Considering President Obama's show of strong support for Rail Service in America by including more than $8 Billion dollars in his Stimulus package, it looks as though that study may become a reality soon enough.
So what's holding back progress on the construction of this project? North Carolina Democratic Politics! Imagine that!
The Democrats have been control of the state's purse strings for years, thus the state has experienced major corruption, wasteful spending, Uneducated students and a $3 Billion dollar deficit!
A deficit NOT caused by the Recession just Stupid, Outdated Ideas, Arguments, Cronyism, Lack of Vision for Modern Transportation, Power Struggles, Discrimination, Lies, Scandals and "Pay for Play" Politics.
You see the NC State Legislators (I'm talking Democrats here) want to receive BIG City Dollars from the Feds but they want to disburse those funds like Small-Minded, Hick Town, Partisan, Good 'Ole Boys (and Girls).
Thus Mayor McCrory had to fight tooth and nails to even get a Light Rail system constructed for Charlotte-Mecklenburg. What a darn shame!
(For the record I'm not opposed to the entire Democratic Party, just the corrupt one in North Carolina.)
Well....after 14 years of McCrory (previously nicknamed "the Telefon Mayor"), its now time for new leadership. As you all sadly remember McCrory (R) lost his Gubernatorial bid for the NC Governor's seat to Bev Perdue (D) during the general election.
In this instance my use of the word "sadly" shouldn't be taken lightly.
Pat McCrory may have actually been the right man to point North Carolina in a less corrupt direction. However due to the well-deserved hype over President Obama's run for the presidency (Obama's a true Leader), many of McCrory's sound principles were lost among the roar of the "Obama Tsuami" and Bev. Perdue ( also NC's former Lt. Gov.) the state's first Female Gov. was elected into office.
Even I, yes even I was fooled by Bev's campaign promises. After all she did appeal heavily to the state's Black Vote and like President Obama she too promised Change.
Yet....no sooner was she elected when she appeared to have forgotten who helped make her dream of higher office possible, by neglecting to appoint any African-Americans to her Transition Team.
She CHANGED her tune only AFTER the NC NAACP and the NC Black Legislative Caucus reminded Gov. Bev which constituents largely helped her win that seat.
As it stands I still haven't seen the CHANGE that Bev promised while on the campaign trail. In fact after taking a look at her proposed Budget, it most certainly wasn't the so-called CHANGE I voted for last November.
Looks like the Recession also gave her a pretty good excuse hmmphf, I mean reason, to cut out all of the State-funded programs previously established to help North Carolina's Minority citizens and Low-Income Children.
Going forward is this all the NC Black Vote can hope to receive until 2012?
Lord how mercy, Let us pray! Since the bible does say to "pray for your Leaders", I'll be sure to keep Gov. Bev in my daily devotion but I will return to my soapbox on this issue at a later date.
As I was stating above, now its time for McCrory to move on (hopefully to Congress) and time for Charlotte to pick a new Political Leader. Not just any leader though. Preferably another Strong Leader like Mayor McCrory.
Currently two men have stepped up to announce their bids for the "Queen City's" throne: At-Large Charlotte City Council member John Lassiter (R) and At-Large Charlotte City Council member Anthony Foxx (D).
For the moment I'm betting my money on Lassiter.
Why have I a disillusioned Democrat chosen to support Lassiter a Republican (for the moment that is)? After all both men are well-known Attorneys and Politicans right?
Well for one thing Lassiter is not a part of the Corrupt Democratic/ "Pay for Play" process currently reigning in North Carolina Politics. More so in the Black Community.
I don't want a Leader who's going to require me to "fit in to get in" by any means necessary in order for real CHANGE and Reform to occur.
Instead I want a leader who's not afraid to accept unique ideas. A leader who's not afraid to encourage Inclusion even if the folks he (or she) wishes to include are from the wrong side of the tracks. A leader who refuses to go along with Corruption. A leader with the type of vision required to help Charlotte re-invent its image and take this region to the next level even after the Recession subsides.
Am I saying that Foxx is afraid of being Unique, afraid to step outside of the "Democratic Box", afraid to accept anyone unlike himself (Black, Professional) into his Political clique, lacking in Vision? Maybe yes, perhaps no but if I had to toss a coin, I'd toss heads for "Yes"!
John Lassiter is a proven leader and a Successful Businessman (he's President of Carolina Legal Staffing). A man who has created and provided more than 10,000 jobs during his 20 years in the world of Free Enterprise.
A family man who served for 11 years on the local school board and has served for 6 years on the Charlotte City Council.
John's a Grassroots, down-to-earth, people kind of guy. A guy who much like President Obama, doesn't mind getting his hands dirty and isn't afraid to make unpopular decisions.
On the other hand, Foxx is only in his second term in Public Office. While he does possess an impressive resume, has basically secured endorsements from former BOFA Ceo Hugh McColl jr and the Charlotte Observer, unlike President Obama Councilman Foxx currently has no real Political Grassroots experience.
I don't doubt that Foxx is sincere in his quest to become Charlotte's next Mayor, however without that real Grassroots background it will be difficult for him to relate or plan for all of the needs of the Charlotte constituency.
In addition there was also a little controversy not long ago regarding how his wife Samara possibly got her job with the local DSS dept.
Charlotte's future may look a little shaky right now but that's just temporary.
The question is who do Charlotteans believe is the most qualified leader to help us rebuild our foundation once the ground stops moving?
While I truly believe that Lassiter may be the right candidate for Charlotte's new Mayor, considering the bad rep the Republican Party is currently dealing with, if Lassiter doesn't get in the ring with his gloves on ready for a dirty fight or if he underestimates Foxx, he's going to lose. Period!
Anthony Foxx will announce his official bid for Charlotte Mayor on April 16 from West Charlotte High School. Lassiter threw his hat in the ring for the bid on Feb. 10 from Eastland Mall.
May the best Candidate win!
View Larger Map
Sources: Creative Loafing, Newsobserver, Charlotte Observer, Carolina Politics Online, WCNC, WRAL, votelassiter.com, anthonyfoxx.com, Charmeck.org, WSOC, Wikipedia, politics.mync.com, NCGop.com, Google Maps
.jpg)
No comments:
Post a Comment