St. Petersburg Candidate Forum-Tuesday, July 14, 6pm

[Tom]

St. Petersburg City Council & Mayoral Candidate Forum
Tuesday, July 14, 2009, 6:00 to 10:00 PM
Mirror Lake Lyceum, 737 – 3rd Ave., North, St. Petersburg

**Open to interested union members and community activists**

This event is not a screening! It will be a forum which allows each candidate to introduce him/herself, followed by a question and answer session. Refreshments provided.

West Central Florida Federation of Labor
http://www.wcffofl.com/

From what I'm seeing there isnt much to choose from. We are doomed

[Pearldrops]

From what I'm seeing there isnt much to choose from. We are doomed

Kathleen Ford has a plan that will please you. Like any candidate, she has to be careful what she says. As the process goes on, it will become more evident.

Ha..she's a loos cannon and a nutjob

[Tom]

"Loose cannon"? Why would you say that? These anonymous comments add nothing to the debate. Do you have a reason for saying this or is it just to boost another candidate?

Ford has had a good plan for getting the city back on a sound footing. As she did 8 years ago she makes public safety a priority. She was honest with southside residents, telling us the economy would not improve for us until we make people feel safe to shop and do business here.

The Uhurus and the media relentlessly portrayed her as a racist and "loose cannon". That's starting up again as the poll shows her leading the race.

She also said she wouldn't get rid of Harmon. Was that because she would say anything to get elected, so she's catering a certain vote? Or does she mean it, and is putting it out there?

One way or the other, how do you trust her?

Vote for "None of the Above."

at the budget meeting she made some good points about the city"s hidden money...but wasn't completly accurate that the funds could be used for raises.

[Pearldrops]

She also said she wouldn't get rid of Harmon. Was that because she would say anything to get elected, so she's catering a certain vote? Or does she mean it, and is putting it out there?

One way or the other, how do you trust her?

Vote for "None of the Above."

Brewster, don't go saying things you can't back up, this is too important. She never said she wouldn't get rid of Harmon. She is not going to go out on a limb and say anything foolish. She has said she wants to address crime problems city wide. Read between the lines. Rest assured, she has a plan. Have you spent any time talking to the candidates or reviewing exactly what their position is? I have. Trust me, she is the ONLY one that has the wherewithall to do what needs to be done. Ask MM at PBA how she measured up against their endorsed candidate. I'll bet you he will say she was neck and neck with the other one.
As for being a loose cannon, there is no truth to that assertion either. Think back to when she was on City Council....What is the first image you see when you recall that? It is her calling out some city staffer, usually a manager of some type to explain why they did or did not do something. She always had the interest of the citizens and employees at heart. Over the past few years, she has mellowed some, but I'll GUARANTEE you, she will fix the PD.

I stand corrected. I looked back at the article, and she stated she did not have enough information to make that decision at this time. If she wants to address the PD and other city-wide problems, when is this going to happen? Is she afraid if she says something now, someone will steal her ideas?

You GUARANTEE she is going to fix the PD. How" She still appears to have no backbone when it comes to saying what needs to be said. You say "read between the lines." I say "hogwash." We need a mayoral candidate that uses plain speak so there are no misinterpretations. You say she's mellowed. Maybe. But I think she has lost her nerve, and is pandering to different groups for their votes.

She hasn't taken much of a stance on anything. You say she has a plan. Well, now would be the time to put that plan before the constituents so we know what the hell we are voting for. That way, she can't come out later and say "I never said that" ala Rick Baker and Harmon. Those two use the "If I don't say it, it can't bite me in the ass if it goes wrong" model of government.

Is that the kind of candidate she's going to be?

You say to ask MM and the PBA about her? Those are good character references you put out there. MM has been heard to say that she's a quack. But don't sweat that. No one really believes anything he or the PBA have to say about candidates anymore. We know that whoever they support has promised them something in some way for their endorsement. So whoever they endorse is the last person I will vote for.

I want to know what I'm getting when I vote for it. Seems to me that the current regime made promises to do something if they were elected, but didn't say what that "something" was. Now, after many years, I am still awaiting word of when it's going to get done. I don't want to wait more years waiting to hear something has been done. We all know there are problems in the PD and city. What we want to know, is what the hell are they gonna do about it?

[Tom]

Ford is wise not to promise to fire Chief Harmon or any one else. She should keep her options open as a new mayor and review all top positions. As the leader in the only publicly available poll she is very likely to be the next mayor.

In my opinion Chief Harmon has been a scapegoat for the failings of the mayor and council. Council knew the department was understaffed yet did nothing to shore up the numbers when they had lots of tax money. Officer safety has been ignored. We are the only city where throwing rocks and bottles at officers is rewarded with city grants. Council allowed $177,155 of our very scarce tax money to be wasted on the Uhuru gym, let them name it to honor a drug dealer and then let them off the hook when they failed to meet a grant requirement to serve residents. Council members whined about this but failed to show leadership and stop it from happening.

During Fords term she stood up to the city administration over the city funding of Uhuru member Doug Tuthill. He had been running errands for Omali as a city funded staff member of the USF Urban Initiative. His funding was cut.

The city's funding for the initiative has been controversial before.

Former council members Bea Griswold and Kathleen Ford opposed funding it last year. They were upset that former Urban Initiative staffer Doug Tuthill had worked with the National People's Democratic Uhuru Movement to apply to open a charter school.

Tuthill's job was supported by the $50,000 the city had contributed. Instead of pulling the funding, the council signed a contract limiting the use of its money to the support of its reading, business and Challenge programs. Tuthill resigned a month later.

http://www.sptimes.com/News/083001/S...es_progr.shtml

The unions and SPPD officers have direct experience with Harmon's leadership. I don't know what they know but I see politicians vote to underfund the department and then sit back and not take responsibility.

Again, in my opinion Ford has stood out as a leader while Curran, Danner, Bennett, and Foster have gone along with what ever the administration told them.


Doug Tuthill, by the way, is now the president of the Florida School Choice Fund, which raises money for the state's $118-million corporate tax credit voucher program and can help the Uhurus open a charter school with our tax money.