“If I Go There Will Be Trouble, If I Stay There Will Be Double…”

“This indecision’s bugging me…”

We’re hearing a few more voices urging the Indicted Occupant of Trenton’s Mayor’s Office to make like a tree, and get out of here.

A couple of days ago, State Senate President Stephen Sweeney joined the Obvious Club with his acknowledgement of what has been an open secret for a long time: as long as the IO’s name is on the front door in Trenton, the State of New Jersey will not intervene more than it has to provide any more resources than it absolutely positively has to.”“Right now you are basically in a time warp, you are frozen in time, until someone comes in that the state is going to trust that every dollar that is going to be spent in the way they said it is going to be spent,” he told the Editorial Board of the Trenton Times. In turn, that Editorial Board took Senator Sweeney’s message to heart, and published an editorial today bemoaning the situation. However, according to the Times editors, “There is one simple solution, however, to resolve this impasse — the resignation of Mayor Tony Mack.”

That is a simple solution, but one that is not likely to come about, as long as there is no external compulsion for the IO to step aside. And, up until now, there hasn’t been.

“If you don’t want me, set me free…”

There have been attempts. City Council tried to reduce his salary by Ordinance, an effort backed by a majority of Council, but stymied by the three die-hard members of the IO’s loyalist contingent. Two of those, Kathy McBride and Alex Bethea, at least have been consistent in their support of the IO, and in their rationale justifying their support. The third, East Ward Member Verlina Reynold-Jackson has been ludicrously inconsistent on this issue, flip-flopping in ways that are both painful and laughable to watch.

Active citizen and fellow blogger Dan Dodson suggested nine months ago that the City simply pay off the IO, given him whatever salary he’d be entitled to through the end of his term as a lump-sum payment, as incentive to simply leave and allow all of us to start to repair the damage of his Administration. No dice, although that is still a good idea to pursue, I’d say. But again, there is nothing to compel the man to take that kind of deal.

“Exactly who I’m supposed to be…”

Some people trot out one argument against the early departure of the Occupant. As expressed by one Commenter on the Times website this morning, “Until he is CONVICTED of a crime, he has the right to remain in office. If he did resign as the Trenton Times and other politicians want and won his case at trial, could he get his job as mayor back? No – since he resigned. “

This focus on the IO’s legal troubles, expressed also by Senator Sweeney and the Times Editorial Board, misses the point. As I have often said in this space, as early as the day of the FBI raid on his house, to emphasize the allegedly criminal aspects of the IO’s is to miss a larger point.

“Don’t you know which clothes even fit me?”

Even if he committed no crime, the IO’s tenure in office has been one uninterrupted, nonstop disaster. He is a reverse King Midas, with every thing he touches turning to shit. As recently as last weekend, with the brazenly spiteful production of this year’s Heritage Days Festival made possible by the unauthorized expenditure of tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars, it’s sadly obvious how much damage the man continues to do while he remains in office.

So, what can be done? Well, if Senator Sweeney and his colleagues in the Legislature, and the State Department of Community Affairs, are game, and if a simple majority of City Council members can be wrangled to do so, how about an effort to make the IO irrelevant?

Right now, the IO must approve all financial transactions executed by the City. He signs contracts, Purchase Orders, and checks, among other functions. Can this authority be revoked or suspended? Can his statutory role be carved out for the duration of his term?  Can he just be rendered irrelevant and powerless?

I don’t know. But it’s worth looking at. It’s maddening enough to consider that for the three years of this Administration – which went off the rails so early, and which was obvious to so many so long ago – the silence of people such as Senator Sweeney and his colleagues and associates in the State and Mercer County facilitated and enabled the outrages we’ve seen.

Where has Senator Sweeney been, before now? If he is serious when he says, “there are a whole bunch of things that the state could do and they need to do, but they aren’t doing anything right now,” OK then, put up or shut up!

Take away his signature authority on City bank accounts. Have the Business Administrator sign contracts. Don’t let the IO approve Purchase Orders. Give the Office of the Mayor no authority or role in the conduct of the City’s business affairs.

If freezing out the IO can be done by an amendment to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) by which the City receives Transitional Aid, then amend it. If this can’t be done by amending the MOU, requiring legislative action by the State, well then Senator Sweeney, that’s your cue!

If the State needs a request from the City to proceed, well then Council, pass a Resolution asking for this.

“Come on and let me know…”

Is this an extraordinary request? Absolutely. Is this a potential violation of Home Rule? Perhaps. So what?

Senator Sweeney and the Times both acknowledge that the 80,000 citizens of the City of Trenton are suffering each and every day that man continues to occupy the Mayor’s Office and exercise his full powers without interruption.

So let’s interrupt them. Let’s make the man as powerless as we can, as much as we can, as quickly as we can, and for as long as we can!

I call this “Put Down The Pen, Step Away From Your Desk, And Keep Your Hands Where We Can See Them.”

“Should I cool it or should I blow?”

Will this work out? I don’t know. But since the man will not leave on his own, I’d like to try!

This town will surely still see Trouble after the IO – eventually and inevitably – leaves. But, just as surely, as long as he stays, We Will See Double.