Nuanced positions don’t lend themselves to Twitter or Facebook status updates, so Mayor Tom Richards’ “I’m out, but…” press conference this afternoon will inevitably lead to more speculation and salivation around the November 5 general election.
It came out yesterday that two city employees, Molly Clifford, director of fire administration; and Gary Walker, communications chief, are involved in a campaign to elect Richards on the Independence line. Richards lost last month’s Democratic primary to City Council President Lovely Warren, but he still has the Independence and Working Families endorsements. Alex White is the Green Party’s candidate for mayor.
Richards said this afternoon that he has not campaigned post-primary and he would not do so — for anyone, including Warren. But whatever city staffers do on their own time, he said, is their own business. He said that nobody consulted him about the new campaign and that he has had no involvement whatsoever.
Richards said that he couldn’t come right out and say he wouldn’t serve if in the highly unlikely event he wins the general. Speculation is unhealthy, he said, and there are too many hypotheticals to be definitive either way.
“There are many different scenarios that could occur that would need to be addressed,” he said. “It matters how and by whom those decisions will be made. We should not, and really cannot, resolve these issues now.”
“I know that doesn’t satisfy everybody,” he said. “But you’re going to have to live with it.”
It’s clear that Richards blames the media for fueling this story.
“We’re really going to have to come up with some other news in this community to entertain you guys,” he said.
Richards said that he did want to be mayor, but that he didn’t need to be – citing the recent birth of a granddaughter.
“I want to be a grandfather more,” he said.
Asked if Warren would make a good mayor, Richards said that he would do his best to make sure that whoever is elected is the best mayor that he or she can be.
This article appears in Oct 23-29, 2013.
I want to apologize, in advance for the bluntess of my comments. First, there is no small amount of racial implications to all of this. If, for example, Elaine Spaull had won this primary, non of this silliness would be going on. Instead, because a black woman won, we go through this dance.
Second, the Mayor was out because of family responsibilities but, if he is annointed, he will not say he will not serve. As a democrat, this hypocrisy is sickening to me. It will take our party years to recover from this.
Third, Patty Mc Carthy is close to Joe Morelle, as is Fran Weisberg (sp?) so, it is apparent that he is also involved, because they both are. So, all in all, the big tent party has become a big tent when blacks suit their need, but, not when they may lead.
City, hopefully, will be honest about this story. This is about race…we need to stop this farce and rally behind the real democrat!
Clint, City will not be honest about this story. They are just as guilty as those you rightfully point to.
Saying this is all about race is ridiculous. You make it sound like Rochester has never had a black mayor before. One who was pretty overwhelmingly elected, if my memory serves me correct. And I know that City solidly endorsed him.
Race, may play a big role but, also , some people want to keep their position inside Richards’ administration and outside favors. This so called ” grassroots” is nothing else but mere personal gain and have nothing to do with the interests of the citizens of Rochester. What is amazing, however, is Richards attitude in being unable to give straight answer about people acting on his behalf. It seems to me he is conflicted between his desire to do right and the evil push of his ”friends”. Every sensible person knows that an executive wont have any difficulty of ordering people acting on his/her own behalf to stop what they are doing. If there is a lesson to be learned from this, is Democratic party should reconsider the way betting their candidates. From now on, democrats should not accept a candidate who is supported by other parties. H. Barry
Clint, I COMPLETELY disagree with you. Race-baiting is, in my opinion, one of the lowest forms of discourse – and certainly political strategy. Dispicable. What matters is not that Lovely is black or Tom is white. It’s that she will very likely undo all of the hard-fought gains that the mayor has won for our community. Seriously. You think she’s ready for prime time? A capable, intelligent, ambitious woman – absolutely! A well-seasoned manager, surrounded by an experienced team? Nope.
I urge you to look more closely at this contest. Race has absolutely nothing to do with it.
mabarry… How do you know who is a part of their campaign? And anyways, what exactly is wrong with the fact that the people who have worked closely with the mayor for years, watching him rebuild this city and help it avert financial DISASTER, are supportive & want him to stay around? I’d be willing to bet big money that Gary/Molly/whoever would work just as hard to get elected whether they had a job to lose or not.
Everything is not a damned conspiriacy theory. Geesh!
Another commenter nailed it: Is Lovely ready for prime time? The answer is “No”. Forget about race! The obsession with skin color in this community, and nationally for that matter, is sickening. Who is the most qualified candidate? I think the answer is obvious.
Exactly what did Tom do. Duffy was still running Rochester through Tom. I heard one of his people that’s trying to get re-elected say that he put together a great team in City Hall. All of those people are the people that Duffy put in place.
It’s amazing that some people think race is never an issue. I worked for a guy that refused to promote blacks and promoted under qualified white employees. Did race have anything to do with it? After the company lost a few EEOC suits because of him, they fired him. So, race is sometimes a factor. It’s not always the lowest form of discourse. I’m black and the last thing I look at is race being the reason for things. But sometimes it truthfully comes down to race whether you want to admit it or not. Isn’t Molly a Democratic official in the 28th district? (I think it’s 28th). If so, shouldn’t she be supporting the candidate that the party is endorsing. Was Tom ready for prime time? I know he worked for RG&E. Didn’t he let a foreign company take over that place? By the way I think Tom is a super nice guy. But his press conference didn’t make him look good. He’s an executive, right? You can’t tell people to stop pushing for you to be mayor? You’re going to tell me that everybody knew that they we campaigning for you, but you didn’t know. Either he is totally out of the political loop or he’s not telling the truth. Not a good look for Tom. Why can’t he answer the question as to whether or not he would serve if elected? That was the main reason for the press conference. Like I said, not a good look for Tom. The people have spoken. Everybody should live with it.
I’m not sure why anyone has a hard time figuring out what’s going on with Tom Richards. He seems to be the man who said he’d be Mayor IF the local Dems did the work to get him elected. For the re-election, I get the sense that Monroe County Dems promised to reinstall him as Mayor…again with Richards doing next to nothing.
Two things come into question. Was Richards unable to participate in his own campaign because of serious family issues? And does an aversion to campaigning make a candidate less worthy of holding office? I don’t k now the answers to either question but I will say candidates should at least exhibit some passion and excitement about what they are doing. Richards has always been too lifeless for my liking.
I believe the primary results tell the story. While Lovely was out engaging with the people, Richards was occupied with family matters. So, while Richards is vaguely toying with the voters, it should not be forgotten the Richards has already lost the primary. The voters just weren’t that interested in Richards. Only the media and a few political insiders seem interested in attempting to perform CPR on the Richards campaign.
It is time the citizens of Rochester end the speculation and forget about Richards. It is time to deal with reality. It is time to look at the Lovely Warren vs. Alex White race for Mayor. Who has the best and freshest ideas for Rochester? Who has the courage to debate and who will not dignify voters with a debate?
It’s time to shake up Rochester. Vote Alex White.
ROCStar, you are asking me how do I know, who is part of their campaign?
This is the answer below:
1. I am a concerned citizen of this city
2. I am curious about anything political around this environment
3. It became an open secret, about who is who in this campaign due to the different mistakes Richards’ supporters made.
Thank you for asking.
Rocstar,
You asked a specific question of me, allow me to give a specific answer. You asked whether I thought Lovely Warren was ready to be Mayor. The answer is an absolute yes! In fact, more qualified than Bill Johnson was after running the Urban League…more qualified than Bob Duffy, who ran a paramilitary organization as a police chief. More qualified than Maggie Brooks who was a county clerk, and, more qualified by her 6 years on council, and 4 as council president than Tom Richards, who ran a utility was when he took office.
The reason is that she has woked in the legislative branch of city government and knows that side well. She now, in a strong mayor city, can work between the legislative and executive departments to create a better Rochester.
I believe that whe will be a collaborative and outreaching Mayor. I believe that she will have challenges, but, she is an agent of change when we need one. Someone said…”this is the end of the “smugtown” era of Rochester…the era when white business people told the city what to do and how”…I agree with that assessment!
The Democrat and Chronicle got it right with their endorsement editorial today. Now, we should all rally around Lovely and work together to make a better Rochester. I fear that the current attempt to derail her election will damage the Democratic party for years to come.
ROCstar–your comments sound a lot like what Molly said to Jim Lawrence, detailed in his editorial, “Molly Takes Exception”. http://blogs.democratandchronicle.com/edit…
Glad all you City Hall “turnoutforTom” operatives are using the same talking points. Message discipline is key for these astroturf efforts. ROCStar, everyone knows you are the man behind the curtain.
Hey City–Your censorship of this conversation is pretty agregious, especially for an “alternative” paper. Let the people have their dialogue without your petty interference.
To darlingdyan: The purpose of our website is to foster a discussion of issues. We routinely delete comments that are personal attacks against other commenters.