By Lee Cullum, KERA 90.1 commentator
Dallas, TX –
It's never too early to think of the next election. Certainly that's Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel's view. Looking ahead to 2008, he's already raising money to run for president in the GOP primary. The Republicans could do a lot worse. A charming speaker, witty and urbane, Hagel is both conservative and internationalist. He's a Vietnam veteran who supported the war in Iraq, but in a multilateral context and not as an endorsement of the "preemptive use of force." He has compiled a strong record, largely centrist in foreign policy, supporting the treaty to ban land mines and opening Cuba to U.S. exports with full access to travel and credit.
John McCain was Hagel's choice for president in the primaries of 2000. The question is, what does McCain have in mind for 2008? Some in Arizona say they're certain he will run, but he doesn't appear to be raising money yet.
Columnist George Will is convinced that the Republican nominee three years from now will be Senator George Allen of Virginia. This is a former governor whose voting record in the Senate is in many ways similar to Chuck Hagel's. But he sounds like a rougher kind of guy. The Almanac of American Politics quoted him as saying to a GOP state convention, "My friends - and I say this figuratively - let's enjoy knocking their soft teeth down their whining throats." It's not the style I prefer, but no doubt there are voters who like their presidents with an edge. Even so, he would have a long way to go, just like Chuck Hagel, to overtake John McCain.
As for Dallas, it won't hurt to look ahead to the post-Miller years at City Hall. Three prospects occur to me.
First is Bill Lively, a dynamo who's spearheading the Center for the Performing Arts. He once led the Mustang Band at SMU before becoming vice president for development. Lively says he would not consider it, but if he would, he could be as effective as Meredith Willson's Music Man with "76 Trombones."
The second is retiring Council member Veletta Forsythe Lill, a master of perseverance for the sake of a cause and also adept at political relations. She has lots of fans in many quarters.
A long-shot is speech pathologist Lynn Flint Shaw, who wowed the audience when she won the TACA Award for support of the arts by saying that the city's cultural life is "more important than garbage collection." An African-American member of the DART board, she should be brought into Dallas politics at the earliest opportunity. Whatever happens to the mayor's office, she - or the other two - could hold it someday with aplomb.
But will they want to? The pay is low. The powers are few. Little, it seems, can be accomplished. Does this mean that the plan to turn the administration of the city over to the mayor, as voters will consider in May, is the answer? I don't think so. That goes too far in abolishing the balance of power that the city manager and the city attorney provide. It's fine for the mayor to hire and fire these two officials, but that should be subject to confirmation by a majority of the council. Otherwise we risk a runaway train and worse chaos than we have today. However, veto power for the mayor would be an important reform. Better pay is a good idea too.
If the City Council would formulate a clear alternative to which all members are willing to commit themselves, it would go far toward defeating the all-or-nothing measure on the ballot in May. It also would reassure the public about the seriousness of the council and attract future candidates for mayor to a job that should be productive and exhilarating.
Lee Cullum is a contributor to the Dallas Morning News and to KERA. If you have opinions or rebuttals about this commentary, call (214) 740-9338 or email us.