Sept 4th Update to the 2017 City of Cincinnati Council Candidates

Today is Labor Day, the traditional start of the full campaign season.  Today I am also posting what should be the finalized candidate list.  Four candidates that turned in signatures did not have them verified and failed to make the ballot.  One new write in candidate was added on.  Write in candidates have a much lower threshold to meet, but they don't have their name on the ballot.  If a voter writes them in, they will be counted.  If a voter writes in anyone else not on the ballot, that vote will not count.

Now we get into who might win.  Based on my analysis this year, there are currently four candidates likely to win. That leaves fives seats really up for grabs.  This analysis is based on a key element: enthusiasm is higher with the  Democratic base.  Getting out your base is a requirement for Council wins.  With a wide field of Dems (endorsed and not) that puts a second requirement of being a known credible candidate.  Incumbents generally get that automatically.  Endorsements, money, media attention, and name recognition make up the other common ways of being credible.  I have never seen a non-credible candidate win.

I've added referenced to a couple of conservative leaning endorsement groups, the FOP and PWR PAC, that announced their endorsements recently.

Lock
P.G. Sittenfeld* (D, FOP, PWR endorsed)

Likely
David Mann* (D,C, FOP, PWR endorsed)
Chris Seelbach* (D endorsed)
Wendell Young* (D endorsed)

In the Mix:
Derek Bauman (C endorsed) (D)
Ozie Davis III (D, FOP, PWRendorsed)
Tamaya Dennard (D,C, PWR endorsed)
Michelle Dillingham (D endorsed)
Leslie Jones (D endorsed)
Greg Landsman (D, FOP, PWR endorsed)
Amy Murray* (R,C, FOP, PWR endorsed)
Jeff Pastor (R, FOP endorsed)
Laure Quinlivan (D)
Christopher Smitherman* (R but pretending to be I, FOP, PWR and for some reason G endorsed)


Outside Chance
Tonya Dumas (D)
Manuel Foggie
Henry Frondorf (C, PWR endorsed) (D)
Seth Maney (R, FOP, PWR endorsed)
Tamie Sullivan (G, FOP endorsed) (R)

Also Ran
Erica Black-Johnson (I)
Cristina Burcica (I)
Brian Garry (G endorsed) (D)
Kelli Prather (D)
Dadrien Washington (Write-In)


Candidate Twitter List: I have created a list of candidates on Twitter. Here is the actual list Twitter handles for the candidates.

Key
* = Incumbent
D= Democratic Party
R= Republican Party
C= Charter Committee (aka Charter Party)
G= Green Party
I= Independent
FOP= Cincinnati Fraternal Order of Police (Union) Endorsement
PWR = Partnership of Westside Residence PAC Endorsement

Post Deadline Update to the 2017 City of Cincinnati Council Candidates

27 candidates are on the list, with 8 of those pending on verification of signatures.  A big list, but not as big as it was expected.  8 other candidates had indications they were running.  1 of those 8 was endorsed by the Green Party and another 1 of the 8 had a full website up and running, but couldn't get enough signatures.

1 new candidate, Peterson Mingo, a fairly well known local Minister, surprisingly submitted signatures and is pending to get on the ballot.  His name recognition is his only asset at this point, but even that is clouded by legal trouble he was in regarding city building code violations.  He might get new voters out to polls, which could drive more votes to other candidates, especially in the mayor's race.  No word on who he is supporting in that contest, but he did get help from John Cranley for the legal trouble his was in.

Now the fun begins.  Money is a key element to know who stands the biggest chance, but face to face connections matter.  Endorsements of various groups matter.  The FOP endorsements are out and they skipped two retired police officers and picked all of the Republicans.  Shocked I am not.

I will continue providing updates to this list as the campaign rolls on, but only to shift candidates to new categories as things change.  Predicting candidates in anything other than general categories is pointless, so their may not be much fluctuation.  News coverage, new endorsements, new money are the drives for much of the fluctuation.  Those who are seen to be pressing the flesh, show they are serious.  Those who look like they are professional serious candidates are more likely than those who appear to be fly-by-night candidates to win, so they move closer to be considered in the mix. The big ride begins now.

Lock
P.G. Sittenfeld* (D endorsed) ‡

Likely
David Mann* (D,C endorsed) ‡
Chris Seelbach* (D endorsed) ‡
Wendell Young* (D endorsed) ‡

In the Mix:
Derek Bauman (C endorsed) (D) ‡
Ozie Davis III (D endorsed) ‡
Tamaya Dennard (D,C endorsed) ‡
Michelle Dillingham (D endorsed) ‡
Leslie Jones (D endorsed) ‡
Greg Landsman (D endorsed) ‡
Amy Murray* (R,C endorsed) ‡
Jeff Pastor (R endorsed) ‡
Laure Quinlivan (D) ‡
Christopher Smitherman* (R but pretending to be I and for some reason G endorsed) ‡


Outside Chance
Tonya Dumas (D) ‡
Manuel Foggie ‡
Henry Frondorf (C endorsed) (D) ‡
Seth Maney (R endorsed) ‡
Beverly Odoms (D) ‡
Tamie Sullivan (R) ‡
Peterson Mingo ‡

Also Ran
Erica Black-Johnson (I) ‡
Cristina Burcica (I) ‡
Herschel Chalk II ‡
Brian Garry (D) ‡
Kelli Prather (D) ‡
Theo Barnes ‡

Not on the Ballot
Dawud Mustafa
Kit Earls (G endorsed)
Mary Hall
Damon Lynch IV
Michael Rachford
Edith Thrower
Orlando Welborn (D)
Matt Teaford (I)

Candidate Twitter List: I have created a list of candidates on Twitter. Here is the actual list Twitter handles for the candidates.

Key
* = Incumbent
‡ = On Ballot (signatures turned in)
D= Democratic Party
R= Republican Party
C= Charter Committee (aka Charter Party)
G= Green Party
I= Independent

August Update to the 2017 City of Cincinnati Council Candidates

This coming week is it for candidates trying to get on the ballot for the 2017 Cincinnati Council race. August 24th is the deadline and there are many who announced they are running, but have not turned in their signatures yet, including several endorsed candidates.  I don't know what would be taking so long for the endorsed candidates, they should have plenty of party members to sign, unless it's the Green Party.

Making the ballot will not be finalized on the 24th, it will require review of the signatures before the candidate is officially on the ballot.  I think the maximum number on the ballot will be 28, which leaves out the "Are They Actually Running?" group below.  With only 16 listed on the BOE unofficial listing, that is quite a bit of activity for the remaining 12.  I'll post an update to the listing once the ballot is finalized, hopefully in 7 to 10 days.  After that I'll start reviewing the financials of candidates and see who else any sense of a campaign.


Lock
P.G. Sittenfeld* (D endorsed) ‡

Likely
David Mann* (D,C endorsed) ‡
Chris Seelbach* (D endorsed) ‡
Wendell Young* (D endorsed)

In the Mix:
Derek Bauman (C endorsed) (D) ‡
Ozie Davis III (D endorsed)
Tamaya Dennard (D,C endorsed)
Michelle Dillingham (D endorsed) ‡
Leslie Jones (D endorsed) ‡
Greg Landsman (D endorsed) ‡
Amy Murray* (R,C endorsed) ‡
Jeff Pastor (R endorsed) ‡
Laure Quinlivan (D) ‡
Christopher Smitherman* (R but pretending to be I and for some reason G endorsed) ‡


Outside Chance
Tonya Dumas (D)
Manuel Foggie ‡
Henry Frondorf (C endorsed) (D) ‡
Seth Maney (R endorsed)
Beverly Odoms (D)
Tamie Sullivan (R) ‡
Matt Teaford (I)

Also Ran
Erica Black-Johnson (I)
Cristina Burcica (I) ‡
Herschel Chalk II
Dawud Mustafa
Kit Earls (G endorsed)
Brian Garry (D) ‡
Kelli Prather (D)

Are the Actually Running?
Theo Barnes
Mary Hall
Damon Lynch IV
Michael Rachford
Edith Thrower
Orlando Welborn (D)

Candidate Twitter List: I have created a list of candidates on Twitter. Here is the actual list Twitter handles for the candidates.


As always:  If anyone has any other names please send them my way (cincyblog@aol.com) or if anyone named above wants to confirm they are not running, I'll remove them future postings of this list. If there are other social media or full websites I don't list, send them along as well.

Key
* = Incumbent
‡ = On Ballot (signatures turned in)
D= Democratic Party
R= Republican Party
C= Charter Committee (aka Charter Party)
G= Green Party
I= Independent

WCPO Fails to Address the 800 Pound Recession

One sentence, that's all the mention the Great Recession got in this WCPO article about the last ten years of the Banks development and wasn't even referenced as major recession:

Since then, a recession has come and gone.

Ten years ago in 2007 the American economy was on its way down and in 2008 it hit rock bottom and has been slowly rising ever since. That played a part in how the the project and every element of business and government has functioned since. That massive fact was not addressed in the article.  That leaves a big hole in this piece and undercuts the theme about the choice of the developer being the cause of the Banks not meeting its deadline.  I think there is more to the story, but WCPO didn't do the homework.

Enquirer's Jason Williams Carries Cranley's Water, Again

The Enquirer's sometimes reporter sometimes columnist Jason Williams wrote another column yesterday and not surprisingly the it touts a Cranley political attack. This column is very pro-Cranley and paints him with an altruistic brush, one crafted by Cranley supporter. Williams has been carrying Cranley's water for years and shows no signs of letting up.  His value as a journalist is weakened every time he does what Cranely or his staff wants.  Show truth, don't just spew one side's argument.

If one wanted to read an article with more value, one would do better by reading the Cincinnati Business Courier's Chris Wetterich in his article covering the same topic as Cranley's grandstanding on attending meetings. What you get from Wetterich is another side of the story, from Charlie Winburn. The lame duck Republican member of council pushes back hard on Cranley's grandstanding. Winburn should know about that too, he's a known expert at grandstanding.  This is the type of journalism we need on a local level, more detailed and less stained with the fingerprints of the staff of one of subjects of the article.

July Update to the 2017 City of Cincinnati Council Candidates

We are into the home stretch for those declaring their candidacy and getting on the ballot. There are only 12 candidates thus far who have submitted signatures to qualify for the ballot. The filing deadline is August 24th, so there is still time for those out there trying to get on the ballot, but not much time life. Unless there is a very well known or wealthy person who wants to gets on the ballot, then at this point it would take a massive effort for a new candidate to break into the top half of finishers. With four year terms, serious candidates have been working at this for months now and have raised some money and built a ground game.  This is not the type of race that can be won with a Facebook page and a few handmade signs.  Organization is the key to this race and reaching and motivating voters is the goal.  As August goes on, I'll update the listing if there is significant activity before the 24th. Once the ballot is set, I plan on maintain a listing of candidates based on likelihood of winning.


Lock
P.G. Sittenfeld* (D endorsed) ‡

Likely
David Mann* (D,C endorsed) ‡
Chris Seelbach* (D endorsed) ‡
Wendell Young* (D endorsed)

In the Mix:
Laure Quinlivan (D) ‡
Greg Landsman (D endorsed) ‡
Michelle Dillingham (D endorsed) ‡
Leslie Jones (D endorsed)
Ozie Davis III (D endorsed)
Tamaya Dennard (D,C endorsed)
Jeff Pastor (R endorsed) ‡
Derek Bauman (C endorsed) (D) ‡
Christopher Smitherman* (R but pretending to be I and for some reason G endorsed) ‡
Amy Murray* (R,C endorsed)

Outside Chance
Tonya Dumas (D)
Henry Frondorf (C endorsed) (D) ‡
Manuel Foggie ‡
Beverly Odoms (D)
Matt Teaford (I)
Tamie Sullivan (R)
Seth Maney (R endorsed)

Also Ran
Dawud Mustafa
Brian Garry (D)
Kelli Prather (D)
Cristina Burcica (I) ‡
Kit Earls (G endorsed)
Erica Black-Johnson (I)
Herschel Chalk II

Are the Actually Running?
Theo Barnes
Orlando Welborn (D)
Mary Hall
Damon Lynch IV
Edith Thrower
Michael Rachford

Candidate Twitter List: I have created a list of candidates on Twitter. Here is the actual list Twitter handles for the candidates.


As always:  If anyone has any other names please send them my way (cincyblog@aol.com) or if anyone named above wants to confirm they are not running, I'll remove them future postings of this list. If there are other social media or full websites I don't list, send them along as well.

Key
* = Incumbent
‡ = On Ballot (signatures turned in)
D= Democratic Party
R= Republican Party
C= Charter Committee (aka Charter Party)
G= Green Party
I= Independent

Is Seth Maney Intentionally Trying to Appear Snarky and Abrasive?

I am not sure if this was intentional or if this image was partially shaped by the presentation of the Enquirer's Jason Williams in his PX Column For this gay Cincinnati candidate, 'identity politics is a joke', but Republican City Council Candidate Seth Maney comes across incredibly snarky and abrasive.  I think I'm being generous with that observation.  What wasn't reported in the article was how Maney can square being openly gay with running as candidate for a political party that is openly anti-gay. That is a question he will face from anyone who supports LGBTQ rights.

Instead the article paints Maney as being almost self righteous about not running as the gay candidate, while still making sure everyone know's he's gay.  He is still playing identity politics, but he's being a hypocrite about it.  You can't honestly be against calling attention to the fact you are not doing something, when by calling attention to that you in fact do the thing you are against.

With the stances of the Republican Party on LGBTQ issues, it is a mystery why an openly gay person would run for office as a Republican.  This article didn't dig into that.  The local media hasn't been too interested in asking local Republican candidates about their stances on Trump or other State or National issues that make the GOP and their followers appear to be theocratic fascists, or just not willing to publish their answers.

Maney didn't give an stance on the Streetcar to the Enquirer, which is not surprising.  As a person involved with OTR he likely at least voiced support for the project, if not a documented supporter, but will do what ever he can to make City Republicans either never find that out or if he goes against the project think it is "Fake News".  As a resident of Clifton he is going to have to take a position on extending the Streetcar up to UC and Pill Hill.  His website lacks any policy positions, so other than this article, we don't have much public info on any of his stances on the issues facing the city. At best we have caricature of Seth Maney and so far he is not acting like someone who has something offer the city, he just wants to promote his image.  That's not much of a candidate and just makes him look self absorbed.

​Republicans Have Conceded the 2017 Cincinnati Council Race

Throwing in the towel when you announce your endorsed candidates for Cincinnati Council seems like a shooting-yourself-in-the-foot move, but that is ​exactly what the Hamilton County Republican Party did when they officially announced their slate of THREE candidates for Cincinnati City Council this past week.

Yes, you read that correctly, THREE.

To make sure you are thinking correctly, yes there are Nine seats on council, and Five seats are needed for a basic majority to pass any ordinances. Six seats are needed for a veto proof majority from the Mayor.  Even if closeted Republican Chris Smitherman wins, that still leaves them short from the start. For those grasping at straws, a coalition Council with Charter Committee endorsed candidates is a pipe dream, with all but one of their endorsements being solid Democrats/Progressives.

So, the GOP has conceded the 2017 Cincinnati Council Race.

Three candidates is the lowest number of endorsed candidates for the Republicans in decades, if not in the history of the party.

If you need any additional evidence of the GOP giving up on the city, I don't know what you could get.

The person who should be most worried about this slate of candidates is John Cranley. The only way Cranley can win the Mayor's race is by getting nearly all of the Republican votes in the city. He not only has to win their vote, he needs to get them to come out and vote. They didn't do that as well in the primary this year as they did four years ago. If the GOP in Mt. Washington, Hyde Park, Mt. Lookout and Westside don't vote in strong numbers and vote for Cranley, he has no chance to win.

So, without any chance of gaining the majority seats of the law making body of the city, with the real power to make policy, what will motivate a City Republican to vote this November?

June Update to the 2017 City of Cincinnati Council Candidates

The update this month brings one new candidate and some new endorsements from the Green Party of Southwest Ohio.  The Green Party locally is pretty flaky (or down right nuts) and their support for Smitherman shows they don't know what they are doing. The GOP finally put out their endorsements and have three and no Smitherman! My "Smither-man, Republi-can" T-Shirts are still on back order.


Lock
P.G. Sittenfeld* (D endorsed)

Likely
David Mann* (D,C endorsed)
Chris Seelbach* (D endorsed)
Wendell Young* (D endorsed)

In the Mix:
Laure Quinlivan (D)
Greg Landsman (D endorsed)
Michelle Dillingham (D endorsed)
Leslie Jones (D endorsed)
Ozie Davis III (D endorsed)
Tamaya Dennard (D,C endorsed)
Jeff Pastor (R endorsed)
Derek Bauman (C endorsed) (D)
Christopher Smitherman* (R but pretending to be I and for some reason G endorsed)
Amy Murray* (R,C endorsed)

Outside Chance
Tonya Dumas (D)
Henry Frondorf (C endorsed) (D)
Manuel Foggie
Beverly Odoms (D)
Matt Teaford (I)
Tamie Sullivan (R)
Seth Maney (R endorsed)

Also Ran
Theo Barnes
Orlando Welborn (D)
Dawud Mustafa
Brian Garry (D)
Kelli Prather (D)
Cristina Burcica (D)
Michael Rachford
Kit Earls (G endorsed)
Mary Hall
Damon Lynch IV
Edith Thrower

Candidate Twitter List: I have created a list of candidates on Twitter. Here is the actual list Twitter handles for the candidates.


If anyone has any other names please send them my way (cincyblog@aol.com) or if anyone named above wants to confirm they are not running, I'll remove them future postings of this list. Also, since I have added a party affiliation, if there are changes, let me know.

Key
* = Incumbent
D= Democratic Party
R= Republican Party
C= Charter Committee (aka Charter Party)
G= Green Party
I= Independent

May Update to the 2017 City of Cincinnati Council Candidates

This month Charter Party announced it's 5 endorsements for City Council.  Still no official word from the Hamilton County Republican Party.  At this point, they only have three announced candidates that likely will get an endorsement.  It seems like most Republicans think they will have a chance in Hell of winning, so I wonder if the Hamilton County GOP will just not bother.  They are actively working to hurt cities all over the country, so not endorsing candidates wouldn't be a shock.

Next month I will work new groupings of the candidates, based on their chances of getting elected.  Also several of the reported candidates below have nearly nothing to publicize their campaign, so unless they get on the ballot, they may find their own category until they actually get on the ballot, which we won't know until the end of August.


Incumbents:
P.G. Sittenfeld (D endorsed)
David Mann (D,C endorsed)
Chris Seelbach (D endorsed)
Christopher Smitherman (R but pretending to be I)
Wendell Young (D endorsed))
Amy Murray (C endorsed) (R)

Returning Candidates:
Laure Quinlivan (D)
Greg Landsman (D endorsed)
Michelle Dillingham (D endorsed)
Brian Garry (D)
Theo Barnes
Orlando Welborn (D)

New Candidates
Ozie Davis III (D endorsed)
Kelli Prather (D)
Tamaya Dennard (D,C endorsed)
Cristina Burcica (D)
Jeff Pastor (R)
Derek Bauman (C endorsed) (D)
Tonya Dumas (D)
Henry Frondorf (C endorsed) (D)
Manuel Foggie
Leslie Jones (D endorsed)
Beverly Odoms (D)
Dawud Mustafa
Mary Hall
Damon Lynch IV
Edith Thrower
Matt Teaford (I)
Michael Rachford
Tamie Sullivan (R)

Candidate Twitter List: I have created a list of candidates on Twitter. Here is the actual list Twitter handles for the candidates.


If anyone has any other names please send them my way (cincyblog@aol.com) or if anyone named above wants to confirm they are not running, I'll remove them future postings of this list. Also, since I have added a party affiliation, if there are changes, let me know.

April Update to the 2017 City of Cincinnati Council Candidates

This month we didn't have anyone new announce and I've not heard of anyone dropping out, but we did get the Democratic endorsements announced with mostly the expected candidates getting the nod.  Leslie Jones was a surprise, as a first time candidate, but still got the backing of the local party.  The GOP still only has two announced candidates and I've not see a formal endorsement announcement, but have heard support from local party officials.  With the Mayoral Primary coming up next week, more attention will fall on the council race and if there will be any GOP or Charter candidates endorsement announcements.  At this rate, there is not even enough conservative candidates running to block a veto proof majority for the Democratic Party, so will anyone else step up?

Incumbents:
P.G. Sittenfeld (D endorsed)
David Mann (D endorsed)
Chris Seelbach (D endorsed)
Christopher Smitherman (R but pretending to be I)
Wendell Young (D endorsed))
Amy Murray (R)

Returning Candidates:
Laure Quinlivan (D)
Greg Landsman (D endorsed)
Michelle Dillingham (D endorsed)
Brian Garry (D)
Theo Barnes
Orlando Welborn (D)

New Candidates
Ozie Davis III (D endorsed)
Kelli Prather (D)
Tamaya Dennard (D endorsed)
Cristina Burcica (D)
Jeff Pastor (R)
Derek Bauman (D)
Tonya Dumas (D)
Henry Frondorf (D)
Manuel Foggie
Leslie Jones (D endorsed)
Beverly Odoms (D)
Dawud Mustafa
Mary Hall
Damon Lynch IV
Edith Thrower
Matt Teaford (I)
Michael Rachford
Tamie Sullivan (R)

Candidate Twitter List: I have created a list of candidates on Twitter. Here is the actual list Twitter handles for the candidates.


If anyone has any other names please send them my way (cincyblog@aol.com) or if anyone named above wants to confirm they are not running, I'll remove them future postings of this list. Also, since I have added a party affiliation, if there are changes, let me know.

Anyone Want to Bet on Who the Enquirer Endorses in the Mayoral Primary?

You will find out today live on Facebook because I guess print is dead.

Who wants to bet with me? I'll bet a case of beer on who I think they will pick.

More Attacks on Dwight Tillery - From Cranley?

It is not clear why this massive attack article was dug up to hurt Dwight Tillery. My only theory is that the John Cranley campaign is trying to discredit Tillery and thus try and hurt anything he may say, like who he would support for Mayor against Cranley.  That might have a small affect on the primary or general election, but only if Tillery is seen as an influencer, primarily within the African-American community.

If anything, this gives Tillery yet another reason to want to punch back at Cranley. This article is too complicated to affect the average voter (and is behind a pay-wall), so it's impact is more within political circles (within the city political beltway). It feels more like punishment on Tillery for opposing Cranley.  No one gains from this, but a scorched earth fight by Cranley is going to make any political efforts in his future difficult, unless he is trying to court GOP voters, beyond his need for them to win this year.

Die Innenstadt hat einen langen Schnurrbart

I joined an organization this year. It's not a secret group.  It's a very open group. There are few limits to joining the organization, other than $20.  You get a scarf.  You don't have to actually do anything once you join.  The group's purpose is to support FC Cincinnati.  If you like soccer and like Cincinnati, especially OTR/Downtown, then consider joining and watching some local sports.

March Update to 2017 City of Cincinnati Council Candidates

For this month's update I have included links to campaign websites.  I have not included Facebook pages, only stand alone websites.  A Facebook page alone is not a sign of a serious candidate.  Taking the time to create a stand alone website is not expensive or overly time consuming and it is critical to creating a fundraising mechanism.  Facebook pages do work well to engage voters and volunteers and donations, but pointing them back to a real website is as sign of professionalism.

Incumbents:
P.G. Sittenfeld (D)
David Mann (D)
Chris Seelbach (D)
Christopher Smitherman (R but pretending to be I)
Wendell Young (D)
Amy Murray (R)

Returning Candidates:
Laure Quinlivan (D)
Greg Landsman (D)
Michelle Dillingham (D)
Brian Garry (D)
Theo Barnes
Orlando Welborn (D)

New Candidates
Ozie Davis III (D)
Kelli Prather (D)
Tamaya Dennard (D)
Cristina Burcica (D)
Jeff Pastor (R)
Derek Bauman (D)
Tonya Dumas (D)
Henry Frondorf (D)
Manuel Foggie
Leslie Jones (D)
Beverly Odoms (D)
Dawud Mustafa
Mary Hall
Damon Lynch IV
Edith Thrower
Matt Teaford (I)
Michael Rachford
Tamie Sullivan (R)

Candidate Twitter List: I have created a list of candidates on Twitter. Here is the actual list Twitter handles for the candidates.


If anyone has any other names please send them my way (cincyblog@aol.com) or if anyone named above wants to confirm they are not running, I'll remove them future postings of this list. Also, since I have added a party affiliation, if there are changes, let me know.

Mass Shooting at Cameo NightClub in Cincinnati - Local Media Coverage

Hats off to the local media for the coverage of the mass shooting at the Cameo Nightclub in Cincinnati.

Enquirer: 16 shot, 1 killed at Cameo nightclub in Cincinnati; police identify deceased
WCPO: Cincinnati nightclub shooting leaves at least 15 injured, 1 dead at Cameo Night Club
WLWT: 16 shot, 1 fatally, at Cincinnati nightclub
Local12: 16 shot, 1 dead in East End night club shooting; victim identified
FOX19: 16 shot, 1 dead in East End night club shooting; victim identified
WVXU: Nightclub Shooting Leaves One Dead And Others Injured

I applaud the sanity. This is still a developing story, but panic and fear could have taken over. I am glad the local media has not gone off kilter. I've not being paying attention to the national or international media, honestly, so I don't know how they played it, but hopefully they are taking clues from the local media.

Passing the Ball to Yourself Isn't a Completion, It's More of a Recovered Fumble

The Enquirer sometimes reporter and sometimes columnist Jason Williams wrote a story this week about what would become the subject of his column PX: Yvette Simpson dropped ball on 'pale male' comment.  He created the issue by personally taking offense to the word "pale" being using against John Cranley.  Or it is possible he was fed the article by the Cranley campaign who wanted to play the reverse racism card.  Either way this was self manufactured outrage by Williams.  Then he writes the column and get's up on his soapbox and champions the fight against racism, against white people.  He even pulled in the opinion of former scandal ridden Hamilton County prosecutor Mike Allen who appears to be willing to play a newly minted white race card.

I didn't know those existed, but if any one locally would have one made for himself Mike Allen would be that guy.

Jason's sanctimonious column rings hollower with every Republican or Conservative Democrat he thinks to ask for comment on this topic.  He, and Cranley's camp, have contrived a slight that is so minor, that is so meaningless that NO ONE WOULD CARE ABOUT IT if he didn't bring it up.  Cranley wouldn't have cared about it if someone didn't bring it up to him.  If anyone other than a black woman used that phrase, Williams or Jay Kincaid or Cranley himself (who ever fed Williams the story) wouldn't have bothered to use it as a race based campaign tactic.

That's the Cranely goal here.  The Cranley camp is playing racial defense. They know they are not going to win the majority of the black vote for Mayor with two black candidates running.  That fear is exacerbated when a former Cranley ally (one very influential in the black community) defects after Cranley's actions.  What does that mean?  It means he has to win the white vote big.  The white vote, which is no more monolithic than the black vote, does have one segment that tends to think alike, the GOP vote, which is nearly all white. Cranley has to win the GOP vote, something he hurt his chancing of doing when he advocated making Cincinnati a "sanctuary city."  How better to draw in white outrage than creating race based outrage against a black candidate?  Well, there are other ways to be a legitimate candidate who pulls in votes of white people, but why would Cranley want to win legitimately when crass actions make it more likely he wins at all?

Jason Williams continues to be a poodle of the Cranley camp.  He has it out for Yvette Simpson and is willing to dump this type of bullshit column out there and hide behind the comments of Mike Allen.  I'd call it brazen if it wasn't just so biased.  It is biased on multiple levels: Pro-Cranley, race, and gender.  It is by far his worst column of this election season, but I am sure it earned him brownie-points within the Cranley camp. It won't 'earn' him a position in a Cranley administration, but it inches him that way.

As a case in journalism, this episode falls into the don't make your own news category.  Williams didn't make news in the sense that he became part of the story, but he sure did as a columnist.  His column is largely framed as him not liking how Simpson's campaign responded to HIM.  Add that to the the race based logistics I write about above and this column is a shit-storm.  He built the controversy and he attempted to bottle it.  I call that trying to catch your own pass, something you can't do in American football, unless someone else touches the ball first.  Simpson didn't touch this story and that pissed off Williams off, but didn't stop him from catching his own pass.  That is what I call a fumble recovered for a loss.  Journalism and politics need forward progress, not steps back.  This is a step back.  The worst part, he could have written about this topic and not made it such a big deal and made an actual point about the Facebook comment.  That doesn't help his cause, so fair play be damned.

Question Chris Smitherman and He Will Play the Race Card

When I read this week's Enquirer Politics Extra column: Smitherman: Using race card on Cranley 'appalling' I smiled.  I found it funny.  No, racism isn't funny.  Chris Smitherman, Cincinnati City Council Member, however was doing something that I found worthy of a grin, he was contradicting himself.

That's not a surprise, I know, but still worth a quick grin.  He's attacking black people for doing what he thinks is playing the "race card" against Smitherman's ally, Mayor John Cranley a Conservative Democrat.  Cranley has his own issues, but on this point, Smitherman is the one walking off the ledge with his gross hypocrisy. Here's the relevant part of the column:

Racism is real," said Smitherman, former head of the local NAACP. "It's not something that anyone should be taking lightly. It's appalling that they would so loosely try to define (Mayor) John Cranley (and Enquirer reporters) as racist. Unacceptable. It diminishes a long history of civil rights work and the fight against institutional racism that continues today."

His contradiction is quite simple: Smitherman has played the race card.  How do I know?  Simple, he used it against me on Twitter for daring to call him out for being a Republican. His implication was that I was questioning him because he is black. So, yes, total bullshit from a bullshiter. Here are some examples from last year:

@cincyblog because I am a free AA man. Do you understand that concept? @DougMoormann @UnityBaptist7 @linleeth @gragstonlaw @1stLadyOfWater

— C. Smitherman (@voteSmitherman) September 30, 2016

@cincyblog again this shows your disrespect for African American's and why so many are leaving your candidates. Example Rev Damon Lynch Jr

— C. Smitherman (@voteSmitherman) October 3, 2016

@cincyblog are you going to attack all of these AA leaders today for their Independent right to endorse a republican @robportman @Enquirer

— C. Smitherman (@voteSmitherman) October 3, 2016

Where did his this come from you might ask? It came directly from my efforts to question Smitherman on his political affiliation. It is my contention and the overwhelming evidence supports it that he is a Republican.  He publicly will not say he is a Republican and his twitter responses above are part of his reaction to my questioning him because of his public endorsement of Republicans.  That however was just the latest.

Smitherman's Republican affiliation has a bizarre origin.  It started publicly with Smitherman, as president of the local chapter of the NAACP, joining forces with local right-wing extremist group COAST and their lawyer and sometimes leader Chris Finney.  Finney has is a long time anti-city activist who also was the author of the anti-LGBTQ article XII amendment that was passed (later repealed) making it legal in Cincinnati to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation.  This is odd because Smitherman has generally voted for LGBT rights issues, but none-the-less he joined forces with a known bigot. Smitherman and COAST joined forces to attack the City and efforts to improve the city, specifically Downtown and OTR.

Fast forward to the 2016 primaries. Chris Smitherman had in the past voted in the Democratic primaries for president.  In 2016 he switched parties.  He voted in the Republican primary.  This is publicly available information and is the closest in Ohio to being considered a "registered" Republican. Later on last year he started endorsing candidates for office and the only ones I could find were republicans:

I endorse @JudgePatFischer for OH Supreme Court. For 7 yrs Judge Fischer always made himself avail to Cincy NAACP members. A Good man!

— C. Smitherman (@voteSmitherman) October 30, 2016

I endorse Dewine for Ohio Supreme Court. I am an elected independent in Cincinnati and served w Dewine on City Council. @patdewine @700wlw pic.twitter.com/B0BslpvMRt

— C. Smitherman (@voteSmitherman) October 11, 2016

OH is one of the most important States in the election. Early voting starts soon. I endorse @robportman @senrobportman in 2016 sen race.

— C. Smitherman (@voteSmitherman) September 30, 2016

Additionally, Smitherman endorsed also-ran Republican Hamilton County commission candidate Andrew Pappas over long time fairly moderate Democrat Todd Portune. You noticed that there were not any Democrats above.  He didn't voice support for single Democrat running for County wide office, at least not publicly that I could find.

To top it off, Smitherman tweeted several things that show his allegiances. On election day last November where did he go? Surprisingly he went to Republican strong-hold Sayler Park:

At Sayler Park at polls w Karen Gillen w heavy turn out. Get out and Vote. Nothing should stop you. @700wlw @55KRC pic.twitter.com/pJxHereHvJ

— C. Smitherman (@voteSmitherman) November 8, 2016

Sayler Park was one of the very few parts of Cincinnati to vote in favor of Donald Trump for President. He didn't tweet from any other neighborhoods on election day, so if he went to any, they didn't make the cut for publicity.

I also want to point out his affinity for Dusty Rhodes.

Very good to see my friend @AuditorRhodes at Greater Cincinnati Firefighter Memorial. @gragstonlaw @cincyblog pic.twitter.com/y9RuP0AZsm

— C. Smitherman (@voteSmitherman) October 13, 2016

I point this out because I have questioned Dusty's political affiliation more than I have questioned Smitherman's. This is important because Smitherman's basis for his response to my questions on his political affiliation is based on his fabricated belief that it was because of his race. That's the race card I was talking about before. It is the game he is playing to mislead the public.

His re-election strategy relies on votes from black voters in Cincinnati. Being a Republican is not a positive to a large portion of voters in Cincinnati, particularly black voters. He also needs to get the support of Republican voters as well, if he has a chance to get back on council. He only got on council by around 2,500 votes and has not made any new friends that he already didn't have. Thus knowing his party affiliation and allegiances is a valid consideration for a voter. 

Another consideration is honesty.  He's not being honest when he pretends to be independent. Independents don't pick one party to the exclusion of the other(s.)  Smitherman's desire to mislead people shows that his real motivation is for himself. He wants to run for County Commissioner and the only way he can is by being a Republican. He's put himself in such a corner that he will never be able to win. The only type of coalition that would be similar to conservative blacks and far right-wing COAST Republicans would be Trump supporters and that is not a winning team in Hamilton County. He appears willing to create illogical alliances, but even he stayed away from directly endorsing Trump.

As long as Smitherman continues lying about not being a Republican, I will continue to call him out on his dishonesty and hiding his true motivations and allegiances.  He can try to fool people, but that doesn't mean the people will be fooled.

Smitherman Campaign Publishes a Confidential Document Including Bank Account Number

The campaign for Cincinnati Council Member Chris Smitherman (R) published a document online that was marked confidential from a State of Ohio commission.  The document includes the image of a hand written private organization's check with the routing number and checking account number fully visible.  The marking of confidentiality was clearly visible on the bottom as excerpted below:

It is the intention of Cincinnati Blog to never violate any laws, therefore I am not publishing the full document since it is marked confidential and does include the bank account of a private organization. It is the opinion of this blog and I hope all other people that it is wrong to publish any bank account numbers as it increases the possibility of bank or check fraud.

25th Annual Bockfest Starts This Friday March 3rd

At what some call the real drinker's Oktoberfest, March 3rd starts the 25th Annual Bockfest in Cincinnati. The parade starts off as usual at 6PM on Friday night.

For those new, my suggestion to watch the parade would be along Main Street North of 12th or 13th streets. There are several bars that won't be so crowded. But, if you want the full Bockfest experience, you need to be up at Bockfest Hall and/or Arnold's (where the parade starts).

A couple of hints: Eat a big lunch and eat a dinner. They have food there. Just remember, you need to eat. Bock beer drinks like a normal beer, but is higher in alcohol content, so it can hit you when you don't expect it.

Remember to plan ahead. The streetcar still works well if you get off a the Race/Liberty station, so park downtown at the banks and ride up.

OR be smart and take the METRO/TANK to downtown and Streetcar up. If you stay really late then you can cab/Uber/Lyft your way home, just plan ahead and keep your cell phone charged. What ever your transportation plans, Do not drink and drive!

More from the Enquirer, WNKU.