By Ron Kirk, KERA 90.1 commentator
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-470190.mp3
Commentary: Vote 'No' on Strong Mayor Proposal
Dallas, TX –
Aside from being a husband and a father, being mayor of Dallas for six years was the greatest experience of my life. It was an honor and a privilege and, sometimes, a challenge.
Now that I'm teaching my sixteen-year-old daughter to drive, some of the challenges I faced as mayor don't seem so tough after all. Sitting in the passenger seat while Alex practices getting onto Central Expressway makes the Trinity River project seem like a day at the beach.
In fact, let's talk about the Trinity for a minute. When I was mayor, there were times I got so frustrated at the slow pace of the project that I wanted to pull my hair out - if I had any hair. But the truth is the Trinity plan has improved with age, just like those of us over 50. If I had possessed more power as mayor, I could have made it move faster. But would the speed that comes with power have made it better? I don't think so.
At the current time I serve on three corporate boards. Corporate governance is a major issue in America today because of the accounting fraud at Enron, WorldCom, and other scandals. How did those corporations get into such a mess? It was secrecy, lack of accountability, and too much power in the hands of one person.
The Blackwood Charter proposal fails on all three of those issues. Blackwood does not provide for an elected controller as the Houston charter does. That leaves the mayor's office in charge of not only the budget and all hiring and firing, but also puts the mayor in charge of the flow of information. One thing I know from my years in government is that information is power. Without providing adequate oversight, Blackwood guarantees secrecy. It was drafted behind closed doors, and it will keep the doors of City Hall closed to the average citizen.
Blackwood lacks accountability. Its proponents claim that this whole election is about accountability. But there is no accountability without access to power. There is no accountability without adequate checks and balances.
Blackwood puts too much power in the hands of one person. Did I want more power as mayor? Sometimes I did, but most of the time I had all the power I needed by developing consensus and building coalitions. Politics is not rocket science. It's people science. In a democracy, you have to be able to work with people to get things done. Blackwood will influence future mayors of Dallas to be more interested in power than building coalitions. But it's the people that we are elected to serve.
It's like I tell my daughter when I'm teaching her to drive - a car has a lot of power. It can get you where you want to go. It can also hurt people.
The Blackwood proposal is like a shiny convertible in a used car lot. Big engine. Lots of horsepower. But do the brakes work? Is it reliable? Will it protect my child?
This Blackwood deal is pretty simple - you don't put people you love in a car with lots of horsepower and no brakes. You don't buy your child a car that is capable of going 120 miles per hour and really expect them to drive at 60 miles per hour. Blackwood gives too much power without enough balance.
Thank you for the honor as serving as your mayor. I'm Ron Kirk, and I urge you to join me, the League of Women Voters, ten chambers of commerce, the Dallas Homeowner's League and the Dallas Citizens Council on May 7th. Vote NO to Blackwood.
Read the opposing commentary by Steve Bartlett