BMORENEWS.com : News, video and live radio for the black community in the Washington D.C. and Baltimore area
http://www.bmorenews.com/blog/tgr-dixon-vs-rawlings-blake-09-the-gloves-are-off.shtmlTGR: Dixon vs. Rawlings-Blake ’09: The Gloves Are Off!
On one hand, the Baltimore City Council has challenged Mayor Sheila Dixon’s budget. They have suggested that the city’s first (black) woman mayor’s cuts could have been done differently – pointing to the closing of some recreation centers as an example of much needed services that are now in jeopardy.
On the other hand, the Mayor responded Friday with a memo that made small of the City Council’s issues and, further, seemed to castigate the Council in a minimal light as being ill-informed.
By Doni Morton Glover, www.bmorenews.com
(BALTIMORE – June 13, 2009) – Well, it has been brewing for a while – sadly. It appears as if two former teammates are now rivals for the power to run the City of Baltimore.
Bleeps and blurbs have surfaced before in the press and through the grapevine, however, this time it is for keeps.
You see, once it hits the media in full force, it’s out there; public knowledge; everybody knows. There is no more need for speculation. The lines of demarcation have been drawn.
On one hand, the Baltimore City Council has challenged Mayor Sheila Dixon’s budget. They have suggested that the city’s first (black) woman mayor’s cuts could have been done differently – pointing to the closing of some recreation centers as an example of much needed services that are now in jeopardy.
On the other hand, the Mayor responded Friday with a memo that made small of the City Council’s issues and, further, seemed to castigate the Council in a minimal light as being ill-informed.
The next election isn’t until 2011. With the Mayor dealing with clouds of suspicion overhead and a pending case coming to trial in the fall, it appears as if the Council – under President Stephanie Rawlings-Blake – is intent on holding this Mayor’s feet to the fire. Some also say Rawlings-Blake might very-well want the city’s top post.
As for the Mayor and her current legal problems, the law says that one is innocent until proven guilty. Yet, for some reason the sharks seem to be circling. It's as if they smell blood in the water.
Amazingly, two women who have worked together to win in the last citywide election in 2007 are now at each other’s throats … in public … in the media.
The only thing I can think of is that 45 minutes to the south of here is Washington, DC. No, DC isn’t perfect; but black people there do seem to play the game rather well. Having a black mayor for three decades to them in a majority black city is the norm.
Not so in Baltimore, also majority black. And in 2011, there are already rumblings of a Michael Sarbanes and/or a Mary Pat Clarke mayoral run. Both are white. And both can do damage to either Dixon or Rawlings-Blake’s political goal: running the city.
Now, having a white mayor of a majority black city is not necessarily a bad thing. However, it does beg the question of the black population: What’s the matter with us? Why aren’t we better organized? Why don’t we have more young dynamic black leaders in Baltimore like a C. D. Witherspoon and a Tara Andrews waiting on deck to take the baton?
Who will lead Baltimore if, in fact, Mayor Dixon no longer is mayor? Is it Madame President? And if so, can President Rawlings-Blake maintain her resolve to lead in light of a Sarbanes attack for her seat?
Again, Dixon and Rawlings-Blake campaigned together the last time ‘round, and now they are at odds. How sad … for them, but more importantly, for the City of Baltimore which deserves nothing short of world-class service. Nothing less will do!