Lackluster or condescending?

As we all know, I'm probably even less enthusiastic about the "reform" movement in NOLA politics than Adrastos. This year, the two most reform-y of the reformers, Janis Lemle and James Perry ran what Adrastos charitably refers to as "lackluster" campaigns. To me, it looked more like the purpose of these campaigns (especially the Perry campaign) was more about raising the candidate's cred within the smallish enlightened reform-y echo-chamber rather than actually bringing that message to voters. And that's really their point anyway. As long as the enlightened reform-y types all recognize them, who really cares about what happens to the rest of us?

And no, I don't mean that these candidates should have tempered their platforms. I mean they didn't care that anyone outside of their self-selecting circles of enlightened people got an opportunity to see those platforms.

Can we all agree on this one thing?

This excuse is just transparent horseshit.

In his statement, Mauberret cited a desire to avoid an expensive campaign that he felt would likely turn ugly and racially divisive. Williams is black and Mauberret is white.

"I did not look forward to a bruising campaign against someone for whom I have a great deal of personal and professional regard," he said. "... Despite the friendship that Erroll and I share, I fear that others would cast this election in racial terms and try to divide our citizens, who came together in unprecedented fashion on Feb. 6 across racial, geographic, party and socioeconomic lines. I love my city too much to let anything threaten this historic time of unity."

Listening to people talk about this today I've heard these possibilities suggested: 1) Mauberret simply had no chance at winning a runoff and just waited until after the ballots were certified before withdrawing so as to keep the "refrom" candidate Janis Lemle out of the runoff. 2) Mauberret may have struck a deal with Williams in exchange for doing that. 3) Williams already had reached an understanding with all of the former seven assessors that he would be the unified assessor when the change took place. 4) This is somehow all Clancy Dubos' fault.

I'm willing to entertain any or all of these possibilities. But what I'm not going to buy is this lame line that Ed Murray and now Claude Mauberret is feeding us about not wanting to threaten the Great Post Lombardi Gras Golden Age Era of Good Feelings with a "divisive" political campaign. I'll believe a lot of stuff but that is horseshit.

Pols are from Mars

I fail to understand what the big deal is here. Claude Mauberret produces a flier that says Janis Lemle's campaign manager used to work for Bill Jefferson. True statement. Who cares? Apparently Lemle is outraged. I don't get it.

Meanwhile Mauberret, who, by all appearances, is behind the factual, if irrelevant and innocuous statement, goes way out of his way to illegally obfuscate his involvement. Why? I don't get these people.