Roy Exum
This Wednesday the voters in the city of Chattanooga will begin early voting for the Mayor and the City Council. And it is the consensus of those whose opinion I trust in our community that Chattanooga is in severe trouble, this before the first and the last vote will ever be cast. I believe, as do others, that of the four men running for Mayor, there ain’t a winner for our community in the bunch.
Oh, we’ll count the votes and the person who gets the most will win the election but then what? Without trust there is no leader and my biggest fear this spring is “Where are we going from here?” Let me share a story and see how it resonates with you …
Lou Holtz, the football sage who is the only coach to take six different college teams to bowl games, is a genius who inspired his players to win everywhere he went. One blustery afternoon, he sat in his office at Notre Dame, just after winning the national championship, the two of us talked about leadership. “When you break it down, it is pretty simple,” he told me.
“Here is the way it works. Wherever you go in life and no matter what it is you want to do, it takes people who believe in the same thing you do. And from the first day you meet ‘em, they all want to know the same three things: Can I trust you? Do you care about me, and … where are we going from here,” he said as though it was tattooed on his heart.
“I don’t care what it is … asking somebody to marry you … picking out a heart surgeon … coaching a major league baseball team … running a Fortune 500 company … buying a used car … sitting on a sofa with a college recruit and trying to get his momma to entrust you with her child,” Lou shared his mantra, “Make sure you know those three things before you ever hitch on with anybody.”
Ever since, I have used Lou’s formula and so help me it’s true. Oh, I have messed it up some, and others have let me down – that’s the human gene – but by and large if you keep your end of the bargain, you will never be the one to carry a regret or a grudge.
This week early voting begins before the March 7 election for the Mayor and the City Council. In the race for Mayor are the incumbent, Andy Berke; the leading challenger, Larry Grohn; and two others who hardly stand a chance – David Crockett and Chris Long. While each candidate is likable, would be a good neighbor and has some good and measurable things they have done, I don’t believe there is one in the bunch who would get my vote.
Trust me, I’ve had friends beg me to support “their man” but the reason I have balked is because – this in total honesty – there is not a one who I would vote for. If I don’t believe in it, I sure am not going to try to sell it to somebody else. And that’s why I believe Chattanooga will suffer for the next four years no matter who gets elected.
ANDY BERKE – Andy got himself involved in some despicable behavior in the past year and, yes, the way he responded was about worse than making out with another man’s wife in the parking lot of some Mexican restaurant. My pal Jay Greeson, a columnist at the Times Free Press, claims Berke will be remembered as the only mayor without one major accomplishment, not one in four years.
Yet when the newspaper’s two editorial pages endorsed Berke last week, it was unexplainable that “public trust” was never mentioned in either opinion. Ironically, my view is that trust is the biggest factor in any election. “Do you care about me?” “Where are we going from here?” My mercy! Without trust the other two are totally moot.
The way Berke runs City Hall makes me wonder why he hasn’t installed a moat with alligators. Want to visit – send a fax and they’ll reply within 48 hours or some similar nonsense! The way he allows some immature pixie to shuffle through staffers is abhorrent to public policy, and his “encrypted telephones” crushed every vestige of public trust like a stale cigarette butt.
His determined efforts to groom a brownfield in East Chattanooga make you giggle over just who exactly owns the adjacent properties and, if ever there was a self-serving Democrat, he’s the very mirror of the now-endangered species. The Andy Berkes of the country are exactly why Trump now lives in the White House and liberals can’t understand why they now face such ridicule with people like Berke in charge.
I am on record in my belief that Berke is far and away the worst mayor I can ever remember, this based solely on his actual decisions and actions. I have watched a lot of mayors for a lifetime but all Andy has shown is “all bicycle lanes and no riders.” Think about the direct correlation.
My only hope for the future is that Chattanooga will shake its long-withered stance and adapt “home rule” where the city government and the county government will become one. The cost savings alone would be astronomical and it would further root some hapless pretenders from public office.
All of that aside, yes, push it out of your mind for a moment. Here’s the coup-de-gras: What Andy Berke openly did to Bobby Stone – this coming after Bobby publicly alleged “Andy Berke f***** my wife” -- was the worst mark of a man I can ever remember. Forget politics and the allegation that every U.S. president we have had has confused sex with power. Even delete the allegations the Mayor liked to play games in his office.
There is no denying that Andy Berke ruthlessly used his police chief’s ethics, his ridiculed staff, and the sanctity of his elected office in an attempt to hide his personal failings and cover his true character. He horribly embarrassed his wonderful parents, his faithful wife and his own children while trying to throw the innocent Bobby Stone under the bus. We all know it and we all detest him for it, both as a person as well at the city’s top elected official.
It was handled so badly, was so raucous, that District Attorney General Neal Pinkston told his staff there was “no way morally” Bobby Stone could be prosecuted. Police Chief Fred Fletcher and some other respected police officers were absolutely compromised and shamed. Berke should have resigned immediately. But because he once again failed to do what was morally right, he will forever be remembered for exactly what he is and, brother, be real bold when you etch your own description in stone.
LARRRY GROHN – I believe Larry has some great ideas, leans on a wonderful background for what he believes, but the fact he has about as much tact as a king cobra has placed him in a position, with less than a month remaining in the race, with “no juice.” His fellow City Council members even hold him in low regard; equate that to the voting public.
If you will notice Grohn has no big businesses, no shakers and movers, in his corner. He’s got hardly any of the funds to run a campaign and, while his volunteers are noble, you can’t make chicken salad with chicken feathers but you need a whole lot of “lettuce” too. This is a fact proven through time.
But the worst? Grohn balked horribly at naming a park in East Brainerd for the beloved Jack Benson. Why? Grohn ran against Benson for his City Council spot and, apparently, some bitterness lingers. People adored Jack after a lifetime of service to children and the community. Grohn all but committed hari-kari when the whole City Council voted against him as he abstained in the most-costly political mistake he’s made. Never, ever, settle a score when you are already asking for votes.
DAVID CROCKETT & CHRIS LONG – It will not happen. Why discuss it? Pointing out either one’s short-comings accomplishes nada. Neither has a cut dog’s chance. Both are good guys, have loads of friends, but what is the real reason? I don’t see where knowing you are a loser before the race even starts can boost an ego or make you think people in this day and time enjoy your vacant and meaningless rhetoric. That said, I appreciate anyone who is willing to stand up for the public good and do what is best for our community.
Why, oh why, have Chattanooga’s leaders allowed a roster without a star?
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Can I trust you? Do you care about me? Where are we going from here?
royexum@aol.com