NAACP candidate forum (7-13 version)

For the second Thursday night in a row, it was a lengthy sitting process for me as I attended the NAACP Candidates Forum held last night at the Mills Memorial Baptist Church. Last night’s edition focused on several county races, most notably the County Council and County Executive contests.

Writing this I have the slight advantage of the Daily Times article being in front of me, but I already have one issue with them. I think they overstated the attendance somewhat – unless the number of seats on the other side of the aisle was larger, there were only 144 chairs set up, plus a few side tables. And there were quite a few empty seats. My guess for attendance would have been closer to 90 or 100. Bear in mind, though, that we had 25 candidates there to wade through. This is why the forum took 3 hours to complete.

As it turned out I again had five pages of notes, plus those scribbled in the program. In this case, I tried to summarize what each candidate stated during his or her brief moments at the podium. So it works out pretty well for my format, I can just do a brief line or two on each responder to each question. It’s too bad the Daily Times reporter left prior to the County Executive portion of the forum, the moderator asked a question I submitted. (Didn’t have time for Ten Questions, but I got one in!)

Register of Wills:

The evening began with a brief appearance from Register of Wills Karen Lemon. Since she’s unopposed, we got a standard rundown of her background and what services she provides. As the name would imply, she works with the probate division of the court system when it needs to be, but most wills are relatively cut-and-dried.

Clerk of the Court:

We got to hear from our first contested race after Lemon concluded. The Clerk of the Court race has a 19-year incumbent running against a young political neophyte.

Incumbent Mark Bowen has been the Clerk since being appointed in 1987 to fill an unexpired term, but won election in 1990 and has won each election since. The native of Wicomico County graduated from Salisbury University and actually began his work career with the Clerk’s office in 1983. The office handles all the legal records for the county, and contributed $12 million in revenue last year through a vast array of fees and charges.

28 year old James Gillespie is seeking the office in his initial political run. His main focus would be on more efficiently running the Clerk’s office, with better accessibility, extended hours, more automation, and an emphsis on timeliness. He’s also a local native and SU grad.

The night’s first question centered on the main goal of each gentleman would be to improve the office if elected. While Bowen cited a need for improved technology, Gillespie noted that in conversations he’d had with frequent users of the office, they wanted an improvement in service.

Being an NAACP forum, it was no surprise that the second and last question centered on diversity within the office. Bowen claimed that diversity was “very important” and pointed to having 7 blacks among his 24 employees, who shared his goal of “effective, friendly service” – a swipe at Gillespie’s charges. Gillespie, in turn, answered the diversity question by saying that all employees would have a right to state their opinion and have an equal say in office matters.

County Council:

With regards to the council positions, it was pretty much agreed that, despite the questions that attempted to frame the debate to how the problems in our county could best be addressed from the perspective of minorities, the main three issues were jobs, crime, and education, with a dash of growth thrown in. It’s almost best to just address what was the most memorable about each candidate, because all of them were for better jobs, less crime, and better education, along with being more communicative with the voters.

I wrote down 5 or 6 lines for each candidate (there were 17 total who showed) as I distilled their 50 to 70 second answers into one line. So I’m going to do the same for monoblogue, a short summary of each hopeful works best.

District 1 Democrat Mac Hayward went with the big three issues, but mostly commented on education. A large concern of his was meeting the needs of those students who didn’t have the skills or money to go to college. He cited wanting to follow in the footsteps of current Councilman Ed Taylor as his reason for running and his teachers for being his largest influence.

The other District 1 candidate, Democrat Sheree Sample Hughes, was very descriptive of herself, saying she had a “passion to serve” and was “energetic.” She also claimed that “to work for people, one must work with people.” Calling the revenue cap a “necessary evil”, she wanted it removed eventually, and made other interesting remarks as well. One I found a bit troubling was about wanting felons to be reintegrated into the community and given back voting rights (by Maryland law this is already allowed.) I liked her thinking better on looking abroad for business, it wasn’t something that many others said.

Incumbent District 2 Republican Stevie Prettyman pretty much stuck to the bread-and-butter issues described above. In her opening statement, she went over what she described as her “experience, reliability, (and) fairness” and said that she wasn’t a “love ’em and leave ’em politician”, which to me implied she wasn’t looking for a higher office. Her main theme that she espoused and claimed as a guiding principle was to work against high taxes and big government, which reflected on her standing foursquare against rescinding the revenue cap for at least the extent of her coming term.

Another Republican incumbent, District 3’s Gail Bartkovich, also agreed with Prettyman on the revenue cap, saying that she couldn’t support the County Council putting it back on the ballot. She further informed the room that, despite the cap, county revenues had grown $30 million in the last four years. But a lack of personal safety was what she claimed was the biggest threat to our county, and called upon the Sheriff’s Department to reopen the former substations. One interesting move she made was using her closing statement time to clarify an earlier statement about county education dollars, saying that the amount would be dictated by the new County Executive, but actual allocations are through the Board of Education.

Bartkovich’s opponent, Democrat Michael Pretl is a ’60’s activist who grew older but stayed active in various causes, moving from the civil rights area to environmentalism. The comment I have the most argument with was, during the question regarding the threat to civil rights, he slammed the “Republican leadership (in Congress) trying to strip the Civil Rights Act” and its voting rights. Whether the opinion is valid, it’s not the place for such a soapbox view. However, he also termed the revenue cap “a mistake” and criticized a lack of interaction between local elected officials and various organizations – he gave an example of one organization he belongs to only seeing elected officials attend their meetings twice.

Like Sample Hughes, Pretl also drew inspiration from a foreign land, citing Ireland as an example of a place that went from rural backwater country to provider of high-tech jobs. I did like that example of thinking.

Council District 4 was represented by the two Democrats in the field. Neil Bayne, as noted in the Daily Times article, brought the most applause by saying 10:00 a.m. weekday County Council meetings were not conducive to public input. He had the most cautionary tone of the candidates, warning that one person and one vote can’t solve the county’s problems. Also, he cited a problem with the county having to compete with bigger cities and their higher wages.

The other Democrat, David MacLeod, didn’t have the number of applause lines Bayne did and pretty much stuck to the base issues that most of the others did. I thought he had quite the interesting background, though, as he’s an Army and Reserve vet with a Jesuit education and 22 years in the CIA, traveling throughout the world. He did make the statement on his open that “development needs to be consistent with the environment” so I’m thinking he’s cast his lot on the CBF side of things.

We had the most district candidates show up from District 5, where Republican incumbent Larry Dodd stated that “education is important to me”, so it’s obvious what his pet issue is. With the focus on youth, he continued as an advocate for more youth resources from the county. But it wasn’t at the expense of overspending, as he talked of a $17 million surplus in the county but also didn’t want to give the county’s elected officials an “open checkbook” by repealing the revenue cap.

Fellow GOP’er Joe Holloway, though, started out by saying that he felt Wicomico County had a “good economy, and (he) wanted to keep it that way.” Also going with the same common issues most of his cohorts did, he did take a few monents to stress parental involvement in bringing up the youth as “most important”. He also was one who noted about Neil Bayne’s point regarding evening meetings that the idea was tried before and attendance was no better – Holloway suggested moving the meetings to other communities.

On the Democrat side, Ed Werkheiser stressed public safety and family in his remarks. But he also chided a lack of “vision in economic development” in his comments, and vowed to “support legislation to support the family.” Otherwise, it was a case of wanting what all the others wanted.

We also had the at-large council candidates there, at least 7 of the 9 were. Now they got a completely different set of questions than the district hopefuls with the exception of both getting a revenue cap question. But the questions for the at-large were more about the issue of race and minorities than the district’s were.

I’m going to start with the Democrats, since they spoke first. Leading the way is the youngest of the Democrat crop, Gary Tucker. Of all the candidates, I think he was the least prepared as far as clearly expressing his thoughts. Ironically, his key issue was communication, but he seems to be more comfortable in a one-on-one setting right now. He has staked out his position as being an advocate for youth, though, and that does have its appeal.

Bill McCain, a local businessman, stressed his community involvement most of all as his qualification for the post and wanted folks to “expect a lot out of me.” He had a couple of intriguing ideas regarding affordable housing, like tax incentives for first-time homebuyers and targeting affordable housing districts. I would expect nothing less from a guy in a real estate-related business. However, he still had time to express his support for affirmative action and at least a modification of the tax cap.

The final Democrat to speak was Carl Crumbacher, who said right up front that he’s running because “citizens are sick of bad service.” He also claimed that the way the county spent money was “irresponsible” because of personal agendas, so he was in favor of keeping the revenue cap. But overall we needed a vision, a plan, and a dedicated team to run the county properly.

On the GOP side, MJ Caldwell drew a lot of applause when he noted that the worst thing that’s happened in both Wicomico County and on a national scale was “when they took God out of the schools.” He also commented on the need to keep growth in its core areas, and offered to “hold the budget hostage” in order to promote hiring diversity.

John Cannon, by and large, was cut from the same cloth. His key word was “opportunity.” This was present in his comments about affirmative action, equal rights, and housing. He did come up with something that perked my ears up a bit more though, as he advocated developer agreements to build more affordable housing in the Fruitland/Delmar/Salisbury core areas.

Because the final two candidates are running as a tandem, I’m going to comment on both Lucy Graf and Sheryl Peters in one fell swoop. It’s obvious that neither are career politicians. And I respect them for throwing their hat into the ring. But there were a couple times that I wondered why they chose to run as Republicans when some of the things they were saying seemed more in line with what the Democrats say. Like Peters stating she’s for across-the-board equality in legislation. Or Graf telling the assembled that she “believed in affirmative action.” But then Sheryl topped her in coming out for “equal rights for all” in education, affordable homes, jobs, and equal pay for equal work. And both thought the revenue cap should be at least “revisited”. We in the GOP have a big tent, but sometimes I thought these two stretched the cloth a bit thin. Perhaps it was the nature of the audience makeup.

Into the home stretch now, as we all finally got to the County Executive candidates. All five were there, and it was a more manageable number for questions and answers. Part of the job during the forum was soliciting questions from the audience, and he did use the question I submitted for the County Executive candidates. The question I wrote was as follows (it was somewhat different as presented):

With being the highest elected official in Wicomico County, what influence do you think you’ll have with the local members of the General Assembly, and what priorities would you like them to address next January?

In order of their answers, BJ Corbin cited eminent domain as a main concern, and that the County Executive needed to make time to testify before the body on that and other issues. Bob Corwin said that our state delegation needs to serve Wicomico County, and bring back as many state dollars as possible. The County Executive, he continued, needed to be a cheerleader and part-time (January thru April) lobbyist for the county. Ron Alessi promised to spend some time in Annapolis building a good relationship with our local members and “get our share” of funds for schools, public safety, and recreation. On the other side, Rick Pollitt asserted that he already has a strong relationship with General Assembly members on both sides of the aisle, and complained a bit that the Eastern Shore doesn’t have enough influence in Annapolis. But Tom Taylor took a different (and refreshing) tack, saying that it was more important to keep money in the hands of those in Wicomico County and not have it need to pass through state hands. Of the answers given to my question, I liked Taylor’s and Corbin’s the best.

Aside from a sop to the diversity/affirmative action crowd with questions about lack of minority department heads and about the “achievement gap”, I actually liked the questions they presented the wannabe County Executives the best. The other three of the five questions were my question, a question about the crime rate, and also about what I call a new broom sweeping clean.

Ron Alessi actually was the first of the CE candidates to speak. He stumbled a bit in my eyes by conceding that “the county (employees) will represent the diversity of the community”. Alessi did say, though, that his “first priority” (accompanied by his finger thumping the podium for emphasis) would be to solve problems with the educational structure that he claimed hadn’t been addressed in the eight years since he previously ran for a County Council seat. Overall, he wanted not to clean house, which would be “foolish”, but to present a vision and set a course for the county to follow.

Addressing the similarities between his previous job with the Private Industry Council and the position he seeks, BJ Corbin is running to create a “more effective” county government. This extended from being a leader and building a team of good department heads to increasing efficiency in our children’s education, and working with the budget, including, as he stated, a declining one – something he had to deal with during cuts to the PIC budget from federal sources.

“Confidence, common sense, and communication” form the backbone of Bob Culver‘s campaign. He touted his experience as a businessman, and had a key statement, saying the “best government is one people don’t care about because it’s looking out for their interests.” I sort of place that analogy with one that says the best job an umpire can do at a ballgame is the one where he’s never noticed. He also ended up answering the diversity question the politically correct way, as Culver would stress diversity to the county’s Human Resources department. But he did vow to place more cops on the street, he was not a believer in lockdowns and deputies in schools. Above all, Culver opined, the county needs a “strong leader” who could handle a $120 million budget but say “no” when its required.

Rick Pollitt asserted that he’s already got relevant experience for the County Executive’s post because of his longtime position as Fruitland’s city manager. “Government exists to serve people” he claimed, but it also “needs to reflect the face of the county.” He also noted that Fruitland currently has the county’s only DARE program, as schools are helping to raise kids. To further outreach to county children, Pollitt advocated youth alternative programs, like a recreation program, and saw community policing as a tool to influence youngsters. One idea I liked was an employee incentive program for county employees. But I thought Pollitt’s overall theme of “Building Bridges, Building Communities” seemed a bit trite.

Finally, at the end, is one Tom Taylor. Taylor, who sees himself as the David in a David vs. Goliath race, did make several interesting points aside from his answer to my question. Clearly he was the non-politician of the group, dressing casually amongst a group who otherwise wore suits. I’d say it went in with his desire to “keep Wicomico County’s character” and have government work for individuals. He did score a bunch of points, believing in affirmative action yet wishing to have the best qualified person take a job. Taylor made a reference to “protecting property rights” and wanting “citizens to have the ability to protect themselves.” He further stated that the County Executive post should be a “bully pulpit to (tell people to) prepare for the worst and hope for the best.” He also came out for an elected (rather than appointed) school board, which I’m more familiar with so I see both sides of that issue.

Finally, Taylor cited his perseverance as he embarked on his longshot run, but he wanted Wicomico County to be “a place people want to come to.” Sort of like me, a guy who came and doesn’t want to leave.

In two weeks there will be a second candidate forum, which promises to be shorter. Instead of 25 officeseekers getting to speak, the next forum will mainly focus on the Sheriff’s race and its seven candidates. Also featured will be brief introductions for Orphans Court judge candidates, and remarks from Davis Ruark since he’s not opposed for another term as State’s Attorney. In addition, me and my cohorts running for the Central Commitees will be recognized (but we don’t get to speak.) That’s probably good because I write better than I talk, but I can be long-winded at both – just have to be descriptive in both instances I suppose.

However, the final forum on August 3rd again promises to be lengthy as it will host all of the state candidates.

On a final note, because this account took so long to write (it’s after 2 a.m Saturday and I worked on about half last night) I’m extending my apologies to those who await my Ten Questions. They will be answered by a prospective U.S. Senator in a post later today (in other words, July 15th.) Hopefully by Tuesday I’ll be back on track for another in the Ten Questions series. By the way, I now have three answers back from state candidates, it’s working out better as I predicted it would.