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| This MarineView resident was not a signatory of the August 16 letter asking to bar DeFusco from the resident's only meeting. Are the floodgates of unhappy First Ward residents about to open? |
Yesterday started off with a press release (preceded by a Tweet-storm) from attention-seeking First Ward Councilman Mike DeFusco. What was he whimpering about now? This: his indignation at being barred from attending a "residents-only" meeting at Marine View Plaza. Per the DeFusco leitmotif, he drew media attention in what he thought was a direct hit on Mayor Bhalla, host of the meeting.
Unbeknownst to the sniveling Councilman, it was not the Mayor's decision to exclude him from the resident's only meeting.
On August 16th, a group of Marine View residents contacted the Office of Constituent Services (letter below), stating that if the Councilman showed up, they would leave. City Hall responded, promising that their wishes would be respected. Note: the Office of Constituent Services did not receive a single request to include or invite their Councilman to the residents-only meeting.
More: prior to the meeting, Councilman DeFusco called City Hall to say that he would be attending the meeting. He was politely told not to attend; he could host a meeting with Marine View residents anytime. City Hall did not wish to embarrass the Councilman by turning him away, fully committed to complying with the wishes of Marine View residents. DeFusco chose to crash the meeting and make a scene.
DEFUSCO ATTACKS MARINE VIEW RESIDENTS WHO SENT THE AUGUST 16 LETTER
Surely, the revelation of the letter written by his own constituents was embarrassing to Councilman DeFusco. Plus the revelation that not a single meeting attendee asked that he be allowed into the room, despite the ruckus he made in the hall outside- validation that he was not welcome.
But, instead of eating humble pie and going quietly off into the night, Councilman DeFusco chose to discredit the August 16th letter; in a statement to Hudson County View, he calling it an "anonymous message" sent by a "supposed" resident and "absolutely laughable."
“If their decision to block me from a taxpayer funded event is based on an anonymous message that supposedly came from a resident, then that is absolutely laughable,” the councilman stated.No, Councilman. The letter is real. And not "anonymous"- it was signed by four real Marine View residents, with real first and last names. City Hall redacted their names when forced to rebut the Councilman's press release and Twitter tantrum; the letter was released to the media by City Hall's communications officer.
Well, at least MarineView residents know what their Councilman really thinks of them. Their dissatisfaction with his failure to "meet monthly" with them (a campaign promise) is "laughable."
Yep, Marineview residents. Your concerns are "laughable"-- that's why Councilman DeFusco failed to hold his promised monthly meetings with you. All of you are just votes to him. And if you are unsatisfied with that, he will attack you.
What about this lady? Is she "laughable"?
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| ANOTHER dissatisfied resident, who does not want anonymity. Watch out, he's coming after you! |
GA has heard scuttlebutt about how unhappy First Ward residents are with Mike DeFusco. They desperately need attention to their concerns-- the kind of attention that they were promised in the 2015 municipal campaign.
If I recall, candidate Mike DeFusco campaigned that his opponent, incumbent Terry Castellano, was "tired," that First Ward residents needed his "new energy." (GA fell for the con, too; I supported him back then.)
So, where is that "new energy" when it comes to meeting with Marine View residents? The Councilman doesn't have enough "new energy" to hold his own residents' meetings- he has to crash the Mayor's! Of course, DeFusco's broken promises pissed off the residents of Marine View!
Marine View residents do not want to be treated as votes, they want their council rep to fulfill his promises. Their concerns are not "laughable."
Here's the August 16th letter that is so "laughable" it has the First Ward Councilman in stitches:
The thumb thing is ok. But Mike is going to have to turn up the dismissive contempt for people who don't like him if he wants to make inroads with the Huge Huge voting base. The Hugerati as we call them. My conservative, poorly educated Stableboy army who don't care if I shoot someone on 5th Avenue. Great Americans!
ReplyDeleteHere's my signature move with people who criticize you. You can use it in almost any situation. Everyone loves mocking misfortune!
#MAGA!
While a few wealthy First Ward bar owners may be willing to pour money into DeFusco's campaign it is the actual voters living in the First Ward will decide who will replace him or to keep him as their Councilperson.
ReplyDeletedefuscos got too much baggage.... saccos tired of him. got his eye on someone else. youll see.
Deletewell that went well. the people that didn't like him before like him even less now. the people that didn't know him before, now don't like him.
ReplyDeletenothing left to do but shoot the messenger.
I'm sure it's all part of yappy's master plan. we're just not smart enough to recognize the mastery. you wait and see. he's very strategic.
DeleteThe most ridiculous argument posed by DeFusco and his apologists is that by releasing the constituent emails asking that DeFusco not be invited to the meeting, the city somehow violated DeFusco's right to privacy.
ReplyDeleteLeaving aside the pretty obvious point that the correspondence is a public document subject to OPRA and not a confidential communication, the only privacy interest involved would belong to the letter writers not to DeFusco.
The idea that DeFusco has a privacy right in keeping other people's correspondence that is critical of him secret is so ridiculous that it is hard to believe anybody could conceivably genuinely believe it.
DeFusco faces a problematic re-election campaign, since he has no political base of his own. He has succeeded so far by borrowing the political bases of others - and he has failed miserably at developing his own. Except for the few votes Ramos can influence in the 1st ward, those borrowed bases will likely be unavailable to him in 2019, leaving him to sink or swim on his own.
This whole brouhaha reeks of panic. Without substantial support in MVT, DeFusco is in serious political trouble, even more so if runoff elections return and he faces a low turnout December runoff.
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DeleteBingo. Beyond borrowing bases rather than having his own, his strategy of building a career off of scorched earth tactics has also burned many bridges making opposition to him intense. There are some who will work to see him not elected now because of the way he's chosen to conduct himself. All his opposition needs for him to do is to encourage him to keep talking, tweeting, scolding, lying, politicking above all else. It will be his downfall. This feels like Beth all over again.
Delete