Leavenworth Street has heard now from a number of sources that Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey has decided that he WILL run for re-election.
Fahey is scheduled to make his announcement on Tuesday morning at Hanscom Park.
While there seem to be convincing arguments for and against him running, the word is that numerous people have heard, from him, that he plans to run. At this point, it would seem to be an awfully big punk to a number of people if he decided against running in 2009.
To top it all off, we've heard that Fahey has sent out invitations to Tuesday's shindig. Not the sort of thing you usually do for a retirement announcement.
But then, who knows? Maybe the Real Powers That Be in Omaha will change his mind for him...again.
Fahey is scheduled to make his announcement on Tuesday morning at Hanscom Park.
While there seem to be convincing arguments for and against him running, the word is that numerous people have heard, from him, that he plans to run. At this point, it would seem to be an awfully big punk to a number of people if he decided against running in 2009.
To top it all off, we've heard that Fahey has sent out invitations to Tuesday's shindig. Not the sort of thing you usually do for a retirement announcement.
But then, who knows? Maybe the Real Powers That Be in Omaha will change his mind for him...again.
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33 comments:
Please run Mike...there are so many friends in Elkhorn, South Omaha and North Omaha that really want to cast a vote in May of 2009..oh and did I mention the all the business leaders as well!!
Daub will beat Fahey. Daub polled 5 points up on Fahey before the Sokol debacle.
Interesting photo. Is he actually talking out of the side of his mouth?
Daub used a noted republican pollster. That is a huge skew. I don;t believe 5 points ahead, maybe 5 points behind sounds more likely.
And, the RSVP to the "shindig" is a 444-telephone number. Now, Mayor Fahey wouldn't possibly be using Omaha City Government Tax dollars to manage his political career, would he?
Will he blame this one on Landow of the City Law Department because NOTHING is ever Mike's fault!
ITK
Ha! I wonder if the Mayor's of LaVista and Papio will contribute to Fahey's re-election bid.
Fahey's failure to have the vision and foresight the privious mayor had has been a huge boost for our neighbors to the south. Then again...Fahey will just go take them anyway.
Fahey's borrow from Peter to pay Paul (not Landow) style of government is coming home to roost.Maybe he's running because he thinks he can push his huge debt down the road a few more years?
anony 9:58,
Are you just trying to stir up trouble? If you had half an ounce of sense you'd have noticed that "444" number goes to the Omaha World Herald. Do you want to now make the claim that the OWH is part of the Omaha city government?
Fahey's internals has him up over Hal 48-40.
GOOOOOO SUTTLE!!!!
Ok give us the 444 number and we will see who answers...It will be either Paul Landow or John Gottschalk....lol Idiots..the city doesn't own the prefix 444...lol
Dang it, what does this do to Van Argaykis' chances?
Son of a...
Fahey is taking credit for a lot of stuff Daub started.
Mike has been an outstanding Mayor. I hope he seeks re-election, an election he would surely win. However, I also understand why retirement from elective office would be extremely appealing to him.
Mike has been a scrapper all his life. My hope is that Mike's strategy all along has been to make to appear that he was retiring (anemic fundraising; etc.) for the specific purpose of drawing Hal Daub into the race -- and in for the kill.
Anyhow, regardless of Mike's decision, the real losers are the so-called GOP up-and-comers like Dan Welch; Jim Vokal and Franklin Thompson, each of whom clearly are lusting for higher office.
Hal's refusal to leave the stage makes these guys look really weak and, frankly, kind of pathetic.
Personally, I don't think you'll see Dan Welch hang around for another term as bridesmaid. Vokal and Thompson will resign themselves to another term because they've got nowhere else to go.
The fact is, the next Mayor and Council are going to have to raise property taxes. Mike has the sack to stand in the pocket and do this. Hal, of course, will do it because he would have the political cover of blaming Fahey ("We-have-no-choice-because-of-the-reckless-and-irresponsible-spending-of-my-predecessor").
Wake up, people!
Wake up NE VOTER: Mike Fahey sold this city out with the Pension contracts that will nearly bankrupt this city. Guess who was the Firefighters Attorney for the contract.....hmmm....well John Fahey..Mike's brother. Guess who was head of the fire union at that time and now was a 120k a year job as fire Chief...hmmm.. Mike McDonnel...Wake Up NE Voter..Fahey will be held accountable!!
3rd Floor:
I though elections served the purpose of providing the "accountability" moments. Four years ago, the voters resoundingly rejected Dave Friend.
If Mike chooses to run, he will crush Hal Daub. The only question is whether Mike wants to serve 12 years.
Take it to the bank.
Wake up, people!
Let's see here:
1.) Fire and Police Pension debacle
2.) Elkhorn annexation
3.) Rosenblatt debacle
4.) Sokol debacle
5.) Crime/Gang increases
6.) Public Safety Auditor debacle
Shall we go on..
Make any list you want.
If he chooses to serve three terms, Mike Fahey will be re-elected.
I know this is hard for you Republicans to swallow, but it's Mike's decision.
I want to say a word about the City of Omaha/MECA issues that no one seems to get: The City has a responsibility to challenge MECA's authority.
The legal relationship between the City and MECA is very undefined. The City has a duty to provide a check against any potential -- or actual -- overreaching. For example people like to criticize how the City handled the downtown ballpark scuffle over the parking lots. Folks, these parking lots belong to the City (read - you and me), not MECA. MECA's authority over the lots is governed by a lease -- not a deed.
So, the City was and is correct to undertake a process to make sure the tail is not wagging the dog.
What would you think of a Mayor who laid down because a tenant didn't like a plan to develop the property? C'mon.
Since I'm in an expansive mood, let me also address the issue of Sokol's residency problem. Whether you like it or not, once Sokol decided to change his voting residency (done in a well-thought out and deliberately ambiguous manner), he ceased to be a resident elector as a matter of law -- not Mayoral fiat.
Paul Kratz is a straight shooter. His legal opinion was a no-brainer. Once Sokol made that change, his fate, whether he liked it or not, was in Mike Fahey's hands. How do we know I'm correct on this point? Easy. If Sokol's resident status had not changed back to Nebraska (by virtue of his rapid and abrupt purchase of a downtown "princpal residence," there would have been no need for him to have to be re-appointed to the MECA board. In other words, his submission to being re-appointed (and the Council's resolution to do so) represents an acknowledgement that he had compromised his "resident elector" status.
Don't get me wrong, I have a lot of respect for Dave Sokol and appreciate what he does for our community. However, he screwed up in attempting to be a little cute with his residency status. Clearly, he wanted to create a "gray area" that would allow him to make a potentially persuasive argument -- at tax time -- that he was a Wyoming resident (or a resident of one of the other no-income tax states in which he owns a home.
The bottom line: Mike Fahey and the City would not be doing their jobs if they failed to probe the contours of MECA's relationship with the City. I think you'll see more Omaha-MECA standoffs in the future regardless of who is Mayor. If you don't, then you should be worried that the Mayor is truly in the tank for MECA. That would be a bad thing for Omaha.
The rest of your list is smoke. I don't disagree that our new neighbors in Elkhorn are ticked, but Elkhorn sealed its own fate when it moved to annex its way out of Omaha's annexation powers. If you think Omaha should have allowed Elkhorn to escape Omaha's grasp, please publicly say so. I doubt you will.
As for the police/fire pensions, sure it's a big liability, also aproved by the Council. Why did the Mayor and Council do this, many critics pretend to wonder. Look no further than the City property tax rate which, because of these and other decisions, has remained stable for seven years. Would you have preferred that taxes have been increased to combat those obligations? Perhaps you say so know, but I doubt you felt that way then.
Gotta go for now.
Wake up, people!
Funny how NE Voter doesn't mention the name "John Fahey". Hmmm... him and his brother cost the citizens hundreds of millions of dollars in future pension liability. Before Mike seeks another term he should level with the voters on where the budget will be five years from now because of this payoff to the fire union.
3rd Floor:
I engage in political debate. I do not waste my time with red herrings. I assume you are implyng a conflict of interest on John Fahey's part. Let me dispense with this.
Should we open discussion on David Kramer's representation of OPS during the "For The Kids" OPS tax-raising spending orgy? Or David Kramer's representation of the CC/Arena committee? Or Hal Daub's partial ownership of Rick's Cafe Boatyard -- must have been great having al that inside information, eh?
Yawn.
I hope you can do better than that. Or perhaps you are merely the last person in town to realize that this is how Omaha has done business since its founding. If so, I feel sorry for you. But, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you are just trying to score a political point.
I am waiting for a worthy opponent.
Wake up, people!
No NE Voter, you didn't dispense with anything!!! You mention David Kramer and Hal Daub and nothing of the substance on my point dealing with John Fahey and the fire union contract. Here is the facts NE voter. Fahey bought and paid for the fire unions support with hundreds of millions of pension concessions.
Next.
Wake up, people!
Still no answer NE VOTER...Wake up!! Daub will run on his record, Fahey will run away from his.
Well, apparently I have no further takers this evening.
Funny how this board goes silent when real debate begins. Sweeper, you should do an orientation session for your followers.
3rd Floor: I don't comment often here, so it was nice visiting with you. Next time, come with some arguments. From the left, I am the Kimbo Slice of Leavenworth Street.
With the same result.
Until next time.
Wake up, people!
And now lets give a big round of applause and welcome NEVOTER or shall I say, Paul Landow to Leavenworth Street.
Mr. Landow, you obviously have not been around this board when the topic dives into Lee vs. Jim Esch.
There is real debate on the issues.
Paul Landow? Please.
You do not need to welcome me. Sweeper can confirm that I've been a LS denizen for almost as long as the blog has been here. If he/she is honest, SS should be able to tell you that, while I do not post often, I do post substantively and with a minimum of bomb-throwing.
I assure you, I am no insider. I consider myself well-informed and thoughtful -- I do my own research and analysis. I expect the same from those who wish to debate.
I will also tell you that I do not work in government. I am an Omaha professional.
No one seems willing to engage in an actual debate on this topic. I'll be back when that happens.
TTFN.
Wake up, people!
Let's see...are there any issues that will move a block of voters from Fahey?
1. Elkhorn = 10,000 voters who are pissed at the Fahey administration. That right there is enough to swing an election.
2. Save Rosenblatt = a large number of voters in an area Fahey would expect to call a base.
3. Projections of tax increases based on union contracts. Issue will move some conservative fahey supporters away from him.
4. Lack of foresight and vision, losing jobs and businesses to LaVista/Papio and the ability for Daub to tell voters most of the big business/development gains in Omaha were started under his administration. Hmmm...how about a PRIME example to solidify this point? Marriott v. Hilton. That new ballpark would be well served with the larger Marriot, but Fahey couldn't see it.
You can paint as rosey of a picture for fahey as you'd like but the fact is he has pissed off large voter blocks and put issues into play he could have avoided.
He's not the guy everyone likes because he's a good ol boy. His warts are exposed. Two years ago, I'd have said his re-election was his to take. Now, he'd better be ready for a big time fight.
Brief reply to anonymous 9:21.
As I posted hours ago, make all the lists you want.
The only obstacle to Mike Fahey serving until May of 2013 is Mike Fahey declining to seek re-election.
Before I go to bed (I have a job after all!), I want to, in a summary fashion, deal with this new "Because-of-Fahey-all-the-development-and-jobs-are moving-to-Papillion- La Vista" talking point": The entire metro area is on the move because of Mike Fahey's business-friendly/pro-growth policies.
Stated another way, a rising tide lifts all boats.
Now, please identify for me on Mike Fahey policy or decision that is anti-growth.
Wake up, people!
Ne Voter, you mean the growth policies Hal Daub put into place? Ok here you go, why go to Sarpy County. Well the citizenry isn't being shot at or being overrun by gangs, the city services are better (trash, snow, parks), The sewers don't overflow, their part-time mayors spend more time in the office than the full time mayor, their police and fire pensions don't create huge potential property tax bills in the future.......Sarpy County seems more business friendly than Omaha
ne voter writes over 1400 words here and keeps telling people to "wake up".
Spellbinding authorship. Zzzzz.
3rd floor
Sarpy is more business friendly that Omaha? Then why do the big business people in omaha support Fahey? Flawed logic...
If i am correct the city council gave approval either 6-1 or 7-0 for that new contract with fire and police unions. Is that to big? Yes, but lets not forget that this was done because both unions agreed not to take raises for several years, thus helping the city out of a huge budget crunch it was having (a budget crunch that can be attributed to Hal Daub). Fahey probably decided to run again because he knows he could beat and do better than Daub. He is irish and he "got his irish up" so to speak. IF he runs, which it looks like he will now, he will beat Daub easily. 25 year CWS contract anyone???
Why do you think Cabela's moved to LaVista and not Omaha. It was because Fahey's group was not willing to negotiate with Cabela's.
Too bad Fahey/Omaha wasn't willing to go after Google and allowed them to park themselves in CB.
http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_page=1208&u_sid=10392740
Read this "one in omaha".
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