November 16, 2005
Shaking Up the City Council
In a sign of troubled times to come for the D.C. City Council, first term council-member Kwame Brown (D-At Large) has announced that he is endorsing council chair Linda Cropp in her run for mayor, notes the Examiner. In exchange for his support, Cropp has named Brown co-chair of her campaign.
This is significant on a number of fronts.
First off, since launching her campaign, Cropp has been seen as lacking the young blood that competitor Adrian Fenty (D-Ward 4) seems to have designed his campaign around. With the addition of the 35-year-old Brown to her team, Cropp can fully exploit the talents and energies of the man who unseated Post-endorsed incumbent Harold Brazil in 2004 by engaging in a year-long door-to-door campaign.
Second, this alignment will no doubt complicate internal politics within the council, which is currently struggling under the weight of three mayoral candidates and two council chair candidates in its ranks. If there was infighting before, it may soon get worse, and with Cropp having opened this can of worms, there is little doubt that both Fenty and remaining mayoral candidate Vincent Orange (D-Ward 5) will go fishing for endorsements of their own. Is this healthy for the city's only legislative body?
Thirdly, and possibly most important, there is the question of what Brown stands to gain from siding with Cropp this early on. He's clearly thrown his eggs all in one basket, a risky decision Fenty will probably choose not to forget should he emerge victorious next year. Cropp is obviously a powerful woman, so Brown stands to gain from this alliance in the short-term. But what exactly is it that he wants? No political favor goes unpaid, so the only question mark is what that payment will be.
Oh Kwame, you just better hope you made the right decision!
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there's one more stone to turn over... kwame's father, marshall brown, who was the architect of kwame's council race is also a senior advisor in linda cropp's mayoral race...
Maybe Kwame, like many others, realizes this is a two person race and, like many others, fears a Fenty win as tragic to a City that has made great strides in recent years.
Shocker- Martin looks for a negative spin on an endorsement of someone other than Fenty.
By the way who said Cropp is, "seen as lacking the young blood." outside the Fenty camp?
As for the realtionships on the Council, which are poor and bordering on embarrasing, I find one member endorsing another to be the least offensive political gesture of the season.
Isn't Cropp just Anthony Williams Part II?
Hocker,
I've never endorsed Fenty's campaign. Though I don't think I need to say who I am for at this time, let me say this much -- it isn't Fenty.
Martin
gosh no, martin is certainly not entitled to an opinion. or perhaps a vote for that matter. it's not like this is a community blog where people are free to express their opinions - even the authors. i don't read dcist for objective journalism. i read for commentary and opinions.
You gotta admire Kwame Brown - he got traded to the Lakers, yet he still serves on our city council.
It's Linda's time -- simple as that. She has everything we need; i.e., experience, integrity and the stones to fight for the citizens of the District. I supported Adrian against Charlene and I still support Adrian as my councilman but not my mayor. He's good for Ward 4 and there's no reason for change. He'll get his shot. Now's not the time.
Kwame Brown's endorsement is a liability.
I voted for Brown because he said he was going to work on domestic violence issues--a hushed topic with devastating social and economic consequences for the family, especially children, and the city as a whole. I'm angry at the energy he is now devoting to politics, rather than people. He is clearly a political opportunist who cannot stay focused on what he has committed to. I was duped and that makes me angry. I didn't vote for him to spend his energy in another political campaign. I'll say this again. I was duped and that makes me angry.
I am inclined to believe with the hairy campaigns shaking up that one candidate endorsing another will have long term, negative consequences.
I use to hang around Adrian Fenty when he was young guy, knew his parents well, jogged with all of them but Adrian has changed and not in a good way. He has become a major ego-maniac, more focused on himself than on you and while I am not saying who I would vote for, Adrian is starting to piss off a lot of people I know who voted for him in the past and said not this time.
I believe it may in time turn into a 3-way race between Cropp-Fenty-John even if some might disagree as I think John will get some impressive endorsements in months to come.