“SPRINGFIELD NEEDS LEADERSHIP OF PROFESSIONAL POLICE COMMISSIONER” (by Domenic J. Sarno in The Springfield Republican, October 15, 2020)

What a crock of horse manure from the pen of Springfield’s mayor! If Mayor Sarno had conducted a professional national search for any of the three police commissioners he has appointed rather than simply dipping into the local pot with no effort to conduct a national search nor to consult any of the responsible people in the Springfield community – who would have been more than happy to participate in such a national search and selection – there probably would be much less insistence on reverting to an independent citizen police commission. Domenic Sarno has never conducted a national search for a “professional” police commissioner and everybody knows it. Rather, the commissioner selection has been a product of his sole, despotic discretion and his misdirected bias in favor of a commissioner from within the ranks. And his choices have not been good nor “professional.”  They have been products of his personal preference alone and the results have spoken for themselves at a very heavy cost to Springfield’s taxpayers. Every single one of his selections have come out of the clear blue sky as surprises without consultation from anybody and the costly consequences, which he refuses to own up to, are the fault of Mayor Sarno alone. He wrote in the above referenced article: “The best candidate (for Police Commissioner) might be a homegrown applicant but under our current system, the pool of eligible candidates is not limited and “in house” candidates must compete with a broader range of perspective [“prospective,” maybe?] leaders from throughout the country.” That is an outright Trump-light lie. And if I am wrong, I challenge Mayor Sarno to provide all of us with the lists of all the national applicants for police commissioner that competed with his last three, extremely mediocre in-house selections. Give us their resumes and the dates and times of their interviews. He can’t. Which is why, as circumstances have proven, a police commission is absolutely necessary for the transparency needed for a truly professional search and selection.

YOU CALL HER PROFESSIONAL?!

The current Springfield Police Commissioner is petulant and vindictive. No “professional” police commissioner would yank its officers from federal joint task forces designed for purposes of fighting crime simply because members of her department are under investigation for breaking the law unless she herself was unprofessional (see article in The Republican, October 26, 2020). And what about the unprofessional manner in which our current police commissioner fired NAACP President Bishop Talbert Swan II as a volunteer chaplain after his 10 years in the position. Who believes that the ill-considered firing was anything but retaliation for Swan’s legitimate criticism of the police department? And one only needs to read some of her regular, intemperate press comments to conclude that she was not a good choice for police commissioner. Such degree of power has proven to be way above her pay scale. And poor Mayor Sarno is forced to defend her every blunder and bluster because he appointed her without conducting a national search.

ODE TO DARRYL MOSS

Darryl, do you think Mayor Sarno would have fired Tom Ashe for the same policy violation that he fired you for…as quickly and summarily as he fired you…without a hearing? Of course he wouldn’t have and you know it. But, as you fight the good fight to make him pay, reflect on the many times you remained silent while the same mayor insulted, bullied and otherwise offended Black folks with his arrogance while you said nothing. Some, like the late Malcolm X, might view your misfortune as “chickens coming home to roost.” Don’t get me wrong. You have my sympathy and my profound empathy. I know how it feels to be the target of bigots with power―both Black and White. It’s not very comfortable, which is why I wish you the best in your future endeavors as much as I hope you’ve learned the most important lesson that all young Black folks (although you’re not that young) must eventually learn. In the end, in the minds of certain White folks, you are just another expendable ni–er. 

“BIDEN WILL MAKE AMERICA LEAD AGAIN”

When such headlines make the Wall Street Journal (October 21, 2020), you know Trump has a problem.  The writer, William McRaven, a retired Navy admiral, wrote: “This week I went to the polls in Texas.  Truth be told, I am a pro-life, pro-second Amendment, small-government, strong-defense and a national-anthem-standing conservative. But, I also believe that black lives matter, that the Dreamers deserve a path to citizenship, that diversity and inclusion are essential to our national success, that education is the great equalizer, that climate change is real and that the First Amendment is the cornerstone of our democracy.  Most important, I believe that America must lead in the world with courage, conviction and sense of honor and humility….If we remain indifferent to our role in the world, if we retreat from our obligation to our citizens and our allies and if we fail to choose the right leader, then we will pay the highest price for our neglect and shortsightedness….I voted for Joe Biden.” And so should you have.

THE BENNETT WALSH SITUATION WITH THE HOLYOKE SOLDIERS HOME MAKES ME UNCOMFORTABLE

Scapegoating is not new to American politics. And the more I read about the tragic debacle that led to the deaths of 76 elderly Holyoke Soldiers Home residents from the coronavirus, the more I am inclined to believe that Bennett Walsh is taking the bullet for folks way up the line, starting with the President of the United States who knew of the danger of the virus months before the Soldier’s Home breakout and did nothing to prepare the country for it. And the need for expanding the overcrowded, under-staffed Soldiers Home had been known to folks in Boston all the way up to the governor and ignored for years. I’m especially uncomfortable with the criminal charges against Bennett because so many nursing homes and elderly residence homes were caught off guard by the sudden appearance of the virus and didn’t know how to respond to it. None of the heads of these homes across the state or country were prepared or could have been prepared given the speed and broad reach of the virus and its especially virulent impact on the elderly. I don’t know who should be blamed for the deaths of the 76 residents (if anybody), but I do believe that singling out Bennett Walsh is problematic and most likely unfair and I seriously doubt if he will be convicted of any criminal charges.

THE FILIBUSTER BLUNDER

I certainly regret seeing Amy Coney Barrett confirmed for the United States Supreme Court by the partisan vote of 52 Republican senators but, any way you look at it, her confirmation by a Republican majority vote would have been unlikely if an earlier Democratic senate hadn’t changed the rules.  Remember former Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Mitch McConnell’s equivalent? In 2013, he changed the filibuster rule for lower court judges from three-fifths of the 100 senate votes to a simple majority―60 votes to 51 votes―in order to allow his Democratic majority to confirm three Appellate judges. Under the 60 vote requirement, any one senator could block a bill by filibustering (taking the floor and arguing against the bill) and it would take 60 senators to sit him/her down. It was an ancient rule that both parties had honored until Reid changed it while excluding U.S. Supreme Court candidates from the change. Well, when Republicans gained control of the Senate, Mitch McConnell added Supreme Court candidates to the mix and that is how the Republicans have been able to confirm Gorsuch, Kavanaugh and now Amy Coney Barrett. It’s just another case of the chickens coming home to roost. ■