Vincent C. Gray’s mayoral campaign is responding to comments from Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee that his victory in Tuesday’s election is “devastating for the school children of Washington D.C.”
Traci Hughes, a Gray spokesman, called Rhee’s statement “unfortunate.”
The comments were made last night at the Newseum, where Rhee was on a panel for the premier of “Waiting for Superman“, a documentary in which she is featured. Chancellor Rhee is supposed to meet with Gray next week: “Awkward”, party of two.
DCPS Chancellor Michelle Rhee is such a polarizing figure that yesterday, some voters seemed to be voting either for or against her, rather than for Vince Gray or Adrian Fenty. After Fenty’s loss, Rhee has been on a lot of D.C. minds. Will she stay under Gray? Or will she move on?
I thought it would be interesting to take a look at what people were saying about her, on Twitter. Continue reading →
We usually serve links in the morning, but after yesterday’s historic primary, we’d be remiss if we didn’t round up the best post-mortems we’ve seen. Today, all anyone can talk about is, “What happened to Adrian Fenty?” The five features below have answers. The first article, from the Washington Post, is excellent– if you can only read one, that’s my pick.
How Adrian Fenty lost his reelection bid for D.C. mayor “…the story of a mayor who misread an electorate he was sure he knew better than anyone, who ignored advisers’ early warnings that key constituencies were abandoning him, who shut out confidantes who told him what he did not want to hear and who began to listen only when the race was all but lost.” (The Washington Post)
Adrian Fenty loses D.C. mayoral primary: Why his re-election bid failed “The price that Fenty was paying for all of those recreation centers, for all of the ribbon-cuttings, for all of the education initiatives, was the most powerful block of voters in town.No one could argue that he’d neglected black neighborhoods, but in the end, that was almost the point: Black neighborhoods, in many instances, didn’t want to see the brand of change Fenty was providing. Asked about the sparkling Deanwood Recreation Center, a Ward 7 resident quoted in the Washington Examiner said, “Fenty is getting ready for white people moving into the community.”" (tbd.com)
Post-Election Analysis: It’s Not The End of The District “Finally, reform just doesn’t turn back on itself, as Fenty tried to say it would. Over the last 12 years, each mayor has left a foundation upon which his successor has built. We can all marvel at what Fenty has done in four years, but not much of it would have been possible without Mayor Anthony Williams. Gray will enter office in uncertain economic times — but also with many of the toughest decisions already made for him. Reforms gain momentum and evolve — and even if he wanted to, Gray wouldn’t simply be able to stop the city and throw it into reverse. ” (DCist) Continue reading →
It’s finally election day in Washington, D.C. (and Maryland).
With all the attempts– and by this I mostly mean television ads– to frame Mayoral challenger Vincent Gray as regressive and old skool, I found it interesting that GLAA, The Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance of Washington, D.C., gave Gray a score that was twice as high as Adrian Fenty’s on their primary ratings, a screen shot of which is to the right.
Fenty disagrees with GLAA on a number of issues, and his record is mixed. While his administration led the exceptional legal fight to keep and defend our marriage rights; they also spent nearly two years obstructing the Domestic Partnership Judicial Determination of Parentage Act, which is now a model law protecting the rights and responsibilities of LGBT parents. We were struck by the numerous promises made four years ago that were promptly broken.
…(Harry) Thomas said there are pockets of the city and residents who are not benefiting from its new status, with a population that is steadily increasing as urban centers become more attractive. “The issue becomes not just about race but about economics, salaries and opportunities,” he said…
Some members of Congress “ran this city like a plantation until Marion Barry came into office,” said Bernard Demczuk, assistant vice president of District of Columbia relations at George Washington University. “Blacks made up 70 percent of the city and did not have those jobs.”
Have you seen “Formerly Fenty“? It’s an offshoot of Vince Gray’s campaign site featuring voters who were once fans of our current Mayor. Most interesting/potentially damning? The videos from two ex-Fenty staffers, who describe their issues with their erstwhile boss. Here’s his quondam Deputy Chief of Staff, Neil Richardson:
On TBD’s “NewsTalk“, Ward 3 Councilwoman Mary Cheh just endorsed Vince Gray for Mayor.
I haven’t taken a formal position on the Mayor’s race, but I’ve been asked by many many people how I’m going to vote and I can tell you I did vote yesterday– I voted for myself– but I voted for Vince Gray.
And I’m going to support Vince Gray and I hope the residents of my ward and around the district also support Vince Gray because I think having worked with him over the past four years, shoulder-to-shoulder, I have become an admirer and I was someone who came skeptically to him because I supported his opponent when he ran for chair. But he’s a man of integrity, he’s thoughtful he’s intelligent and he’ll be a leader, the kind of leader that we need now.
Look what I missed, while I was running around looking for my “Reporting for Dummies” book; after today’s debate at the Newseum, the City Paper’s Loose Lips got mischievous.
When Post Executive Editor Marcus Brauchli went over to Gray after the debate to introduce himself, LL couldn’t help but try and stir the pot, asking Gray what he thought of the Post’s editorial page. Which, in case you didn’t know, is very pro-Fenty. (And, also in case you didn’t know, a part of the paper Brauchli has nothing to do with.)
Depending on what sticker one was wearing, half of a crowd would cheer wildly as people exited the Newseum.
Mayoral challenger and current Council Chairman Vincent Gray put Mayor Adrian Fenty on the defensive at the Big Debate which just occurred at the Newseum; yes, I know it ended an hour ago. But I promise, you’ll appreciate my inability to update this space in SUPER-FAST fashion when you read the last paragraph! No, really, lower your expectations right now, please. I’m not DCist or the Washington Post (one of the sponsors of this Big Deal, along with WRC-4 and my wonderful, supportive, delightful employer: WAMU). I’m just a blogger who was chosen to write about a city I love. So that’s what I’ll do.
All morning long, my Twitter feed has contained references to the fact that Mayoral candidate Vince Gray liked the HBO show “Sex and The City” so much, he slipped out of work to watch the movie alone, at Gallery Place. I find this admission quirky and endearing, but my larger reaction is, “So what if he did?” Putting aside the “sneaking out of work” bit, what’s so wrong with seeing a film, alone? Even if it is that film? Everyone learned about this trip to the movies via an article by Tim Craig, at The Washington Post: “Friendships that last have molded Vincent Gray’s life“.
