Foxtail Highlights Wilmington’s Ethics Problem
Monday night’s marathon hearing of the City Council Joint Committees turned out to be the longest Council Meeting ever. You’ll recall that this meeting was convened to probe how it happened that the City paid for WPD, WFD and Public Works resources used at the Foxtail Festival. I was there until about 10PM, so missed some of the later testimony. It was demoralizing sitting through this — between the deflection attempts by Velda Jones-Potter, the disregard of the City’s Ethics policy by pretty much everyone including members of City Council and the clear lack of command and control within the Administration. The meeting room was standing room only and many of them came sporting safety orange shirts. Not sure what the shirts were meant to do — for a minute it looked like I had stumbled into a convention of the traffic safety folks that wave you through traffic at construction zones.
In the main, this went better than I expected — Theo Gregory kept it all on track and relatively focused (if too long). I was shocked at a few things — that senior administration staff can be unsure of which of them are responsible for what departments and that the Ethics Policy isn’t the second nature it is supposed to be (either for City employees or City Council). It opened with an almost 45 minute statement by VJP. Much of that part of the statement was in trying to guilt critics, noting that these were great kids, doing what you want great kids to do and they hadn’t even been thanked for it. It was a deflective bit of business — meant to lead people to believe that Foxtail and its organizers were under attack and being denigrated. Of course this isn’t true. Most reports count this festival as a success — great music, good set-up, great audience. It didn’t get as many people as they projected (it was its first year) and it is being tainted by the fact that the City helped manage this event in a way that isn’t available to other events. The latter isn’t exactly the fault of the organizers — they were apparently very wet behind the ears as organizers, but they didn’t make the decision to spend city resources here.
Much of the action turned on a set of meetings the week of September 8 — specifically two meetings on September 10 and one on September 12. An early meeting on September 10 was a regular planning meeting, except the item on the agenda was cancelling Foxtail. Not enough WPD had volunteered to police this event and 4 days out the WPD did not think that it would be safe to allow this to go on. It was during this meeting, an upset VJP told the group that she would talk with the Mayor about police coverage. The second meeting on that day was the Leadership meeting — the Mayor’s Chief of Staff (Matlusky), Chief Dunning, Inspectors Ayala, Cummings and Matlusky’s (and VJP’s assistant) Charlotte Barnes and chaired by VJP. This meeting was unusual since Leadership rarely (if ever) meets about a special event. But this one was focused in on getting WPD to the event. What was really clear in all of the recountings of these meetings was that VJP was there representing Foxtail (sometimes in front of her subordinates) and did not represent herself as a private citizen. And how do you do that with some of your subordinates in the room anyway? WHY would you even put your subordinates in that position? That last question is probably the one that colors my response to this. Because putting your subordinates into a position where they need to accept your own unethical behavior isn’t Leadership worth a damn.
The News Journal does a great job this morning in reporting the particulars in how Velda Jones-Potter abused her authority in this thing. It is worth the read. But even though the Mayor is now clearly telling the NJ that VJP definitely abused her authority, it seems clear that City government continues to have a systemic problem with ethics — particularly in insisting that employees abide by the policy, in routinely employing folks who never seem to learn the lesson of ethics and in implementing this policy on behalf of the taxpayers who need to have some trust in their government.
One of the real disappointments from Monday’s meeting was that not only did some senior leadership not call out unethical behavior, but even several members of City Council did not seem to understand that their job was not just in figuring out who authorized the money, but also in defending the ethics policy of the City. Trippi Congo, Justin Wright, Sherry Dorsey-Walker and Maria Cabrera in particular provided questioning or wrap up statements that tried to make this about defending the effort the organizers put into this OR objecting to the fact that all of this testimony put VJP in a bad character light. Really? This is particularly offensive to me, as no one has criticized the event itself — just the expenditure of City funds. And watching taxpayer money is supposed to be what Council does.
Right now, no one knows exactly what happened. But there are big questions out there, not the least of which is who — exactly — authorized the spending of taxpayer money on this for-profit event. It should be important to find this out — and if not, it will be important to remember this in 2016. There’s also other questions — as in Brandon Potter submitted his RDC application in March, but left his City job in May (according to Matlusky). How much(if any) planning work for this was done on City time? Is the $18K the total of city dollars spent here — it seems that there was some extraordinary effort provided by VJP’s staff to push this through and those costs should be counted. Time to get some answers, throw some sunshine on all of it, if anything to make it clear that that when you embarrass the City, no one keeps your secrets.
The last thing that this really brings into focus is the genuine dysfunction of the African American political leadership in the City. It is way past time to stop operating from loyalty only and demand better behavior and better management from these leaders. Other cities are working their way into a different way of operating — Philly and Newark for example — and Wilmington is always going to have a governance problem if we continue to disregard basic competence in favor of this cliquishness that is strangling us.
Tags: Featured, Wilmington
Great article!
I used to be a community organizer in the 90’s and I was stymied by cliques in the Black community (of which I’m a member). It was very frustrating to deal with people who thought that I should have some sort of permit to try to find solutions to our city’s problems.
cassandra, thanks. I read the WNJ article this morning and said to myself, “There’s other stuff I need to know.” Your post covered about 75-80% of that other stuff. Great blogging.
Indeed, bravo.
Thank you all. I wonder, Steve, what’s the other stuff you need to know?
I had a conversation with someone about Wilmington and its lack of any progressive tendencies. This is really unusual in Democratic cities and as I think about it I think that this is really attributable to City leadership that doesn’t need to do much of anything besides mobilize its partisans. The other thing that is unusual in a blue state is that a leadership role in its largest city isn’t a pathway to bigger and better political office. Ted Blunt’s effort to run for Lt. Governor died on the vine as many in Wilmington were certain that the “community” would step up and get its guy in Dover. But back to the cliquishness — City Ward committees are a closely held thing and this seems to be one part of the problem.
The other thing I want to repeat is that if the city had an Independent Auditor (or IG), there might be better attention paid to these kinds of possible ethical issues. At the very least — employees and residents would have someone outside of the City or City Council to bring their concerns to. If that position had some teeth and resources, that might provide a good check on this kind of stuff. But perhaps not — especially if one of the usual suspects gets elected to do this.
“The last thing that this really brings into focus is the genuine dysfunction of the African American political leadership in the City.”
Are you allowed to say this?
To my ear, it comes purt darn near close to “The blacks can’t govern themselves.”
Why wouldn’t I be allowed to say that? Especially since I think that I made myself abundantly clear.
Well, y’know, because it suggests that Wilmington can’t govern itself.
I guess because white southerners are just so awesome at it?
1 ETHICS concerns does not begin or end at Wilmington’s borders- there are other incorporated areas up and yes downstate that need strengthened rules on ethics. Probably of the three largest governmental entities out there – New Castle County has both the rules and funding to protect the public and yes our publicly elected and appointed positions. Is that sufficient – well – that’s up for debate- but it is light years ahead of the City rules, enforcement and teaching on ethics. It would be a start to have this conversation NOW- the credibility of running this City both for the residents and all Delawareans which would more transparent and credible will be crucial – for all stakeholders. BTW who is the Chair of the City’s Ethics Commission? and why the absolute public silence from the Commission on what just occurred and perhaps how this could have been mitigated. There is a institutional weakness here and NO ONE is better served in keeping this situation as status quo ante.
Hey, at least when our idiots fuck up, it’s very clear-cut: Underage sex or drunk driving. We don’t go in for this ethical violation / misuse of government funds stuff, with all that grey area shit.
In all seriousness, if you want to suggest that Delaware’s majority-minority city needs an unpigmented person in charge because people of color can’t get their shit together, it’s your ass, not mine.
Cassandra, Great Work! This is the Peaceful Rioters, we are in total agreement with your article. It is unfortunate that some like SussexWatcher cannot appreciate the advantage of Wilmington’s many demographics. Wilmington is an example of our country’s ever changing character. Cassandra and others, please view our latest article at https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=434571253330846&set=a.369634786491160.1073741828.334759926645313&type=1&theater
I can’t appreciate the advantage of Wilmington’s many demographics? WTH does that even mean?
Look, all I’m trying to say is that I’m very surprised that someone is publicly saying that Wilmington’s politicians can’t lead their city – and specifically calling out politicians of a specific race. That was pretty eye-opening. If I or anyone else who was not a person of color had said that, I daresay we’d be called out as evil racists. But Cass gets a pass, I suppose.
if you want to suggest that Delaware’s majority-minority city needs an unpigmented person in charge because people of color can’t get their shit together
This would be the source of your confusion. Since I suggested no such thing.
cassandra didn’t see your question till just now.
What more I need to know is some information about the interpersonal relationships/power structure inside those office, and I’m not really in a place to name the names of who right this second.
But I’m in fact going to dinner with one of those folks tonight, so it should be an interesting conversation.
SW: I’ve said, elsewhere, the same thing Cassandra did and nobody called me out as an evil racist. The cliques in Wilmington exist throughout the city — whites who oppose each other, blacks who oppose each other (the Hispanics I’m not sure about).
The city has had mayors both black and white since McLaughlin, and none has been able to equal him. It’s not about color. It’s about candidates who put the city above themselves and the members of their particular clique. Bill McLaughlin was a good mayor because he didn’t care one way or the other about getting credit. It takes someone with a healthy ego, who can take criticism without losing focus and can take praise without getting a big head about it.
Thinking of this — I don’t think that there is anything here that I have’t said elsewhere right here in DL. I wasn’t here when McLaughlin was here, but I hear all over that he was very good. Frankly, I didn’t think that Baker was hugely awful — the city government was mostly competent. I objected to his Administration’s attitude to public safety and to investments (not making many) in neighborhoods vs the Riverfront or Market St.
To quote – I believe – Chairman Mao- I don’t care if the cat is black or white – as long as it catches mice- The 20 and 30 somethings in the City and around the State will move the political gauge on voting for people whatever their background more readily than their parents and grandparents- that is the reality of that young electorate-