June 01 2005

I Dont Mind Telling You
DeWine Leaves the Door Open for Those who can Hackett
Local politician's irresponsibility glaring compared to two candidates

By Michael D. Altman
Queen City Forum Magazine editor in chief

In baseball we have the Yankees—the best team money can buy. But at week’s end, the Bronx Bombers, as well as some other through-the-roof payroll teams, are lingering in mediocrity. The world champion Red Sox, who have the second highest payroll in baseball, and the Yanks are five and four games out of first place, respectively.

In political circles, the edge is often given to the guy or gal who can raise the most money—just as ball clubs with a high payroll are more often than not predicted to finish well, the difference being that public opinion plays a very different role in the reality of a ball club and a possible elected official.

So is the best Congress (or City Council) that money can buy performing like the best teams money can buy? This Congress has failed abysmally to hold the country’s purse strings, in terms of pension and social security. Simply put, there is no money for either one, and budgetary oversight is Congress’ job. Furthermore, President Bush isn’t going to seek relief that is possible by taxing in a more realistic manner.

A tradition of overachieving

Meanwhile, somewhere in Northern Kentucky, gazing over the Cincinnati skyline, Paul Hackett has been joined by his parents to attend the going away engagement for a young doctor who is rejoining Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Major Hackett, an attorney from Indian Hill, is running for the Democratic Endorsement in Ohio’s 2nd congressional district. He grins, standing tall, commanding, but not without humility, as he is introduced to the gathering one person at a time. His parents greet people as well. They are pleasant and have a comedic double-act air to them. Hackett’s father, has a boyish, mystified look on his face. He leans into a reporter upon mention of his son’s candidacy, “Do you really think he has a chance?” Hackett’s mother knifes in as well, waiting for a response. His father goes on to confide that he doesn’t know why he bothers with trying to figure his son’s odds.

On the merit of his prep school “reform,” a young, still rough around the edges Paul Hackett was accepted to Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. The turnaround and follow-through by his son wasn’t enough for Mr. Hackett to become a believer. Hackett’s father wasn’t sure the fiery young man, who was prone to drinking and fighting, would finish. He was so unsure, in fact, that he took out an insurance policy on the investment of his son’s college education. Mr. Hackett and his wife nod wide-eyed as they are taken back to the time of young Paul.

“Sure enough, he finished in four years and said to me, ‘Dad, I think I want to go to law school.’” Mr. Hackett deliberately laughs, bringing pause to the story. During his time in undergrad, Paul became notorious for saving lives. Once, during his employment at the school library, he chased down the perpetrator of a rape and physically detained him until the police arrived, another time saving a student from drowning at a pool.

Young Hackett refocused his primal energy into discipline during his sophomore year at CWA, joining the Marine Corp as a reserve officer. He deferred his three years of service until after he graduated from the Cleveland Marshall College of Law at Cleveland State University.

Each step of the way, Paul Hackett has surprised even those closest to him, and yet those people never failed to be surprised, like when he put his money where his mouth was on serving the United States as an example to his daughter and two young sons and now his bid for congress. So if you ever meet Hackett, pay attention to his rich, confident smile. And his family will caution you not to be too surprised if he tells you that, after a Congressional tenure, he plans on pursuing a career in Major League Soccer or hog wrestling. The element of surprise is wrapped around who he is.

The flow of Dem to Congress, Eby of Repub to Council

One of Paul Hackett’s fellow candidates for Congress is a gentleman named Jeff Sinnard, who resides in Anderson. Sinnard’s platform is comparable to the other candidates on the Democratic primary with the exception of him being a pro-lifer, and a strict one at that. Paul Hackett isn’t your typical Democrat either, as he is so pro-gun he almost smells of lead.

The intimacy of the current campaigns grows when we look and see that Jeff Sinnard is actually the cousin of Republican City Council candidate John Eby. Eby, a John Goodman-esque character—burly, comfortable, fatherly in appearance, is also a “not-yer-typical,” as in, Republican.

Eby is the first true new West Sider to emerge since Pete Witte’s ill-fated attempt at replacing Pat DeWine on Council. The “ West Side guy” angle becomes important in the 2005 City election, particularly after Sam Malone’s arrest and the fact that Chris Monzel has shown poor campaigning ability in each of his last two runs for council. If a candidate can capture the imagination of the west side, he has a chance of absorbing more GOP votes across the city.

“I come from Price Hill and Westwood. To some that means that I’m stodgy, conservative and stuck in the 50s,” Eby says, appealing to the citywide misportrayal of the West Side. “The reality is we have family values, we love our neighborhoods, and we support our police.”

Eby is a third generation West Sider and has lived there for 37 of his 43 years. “Crime is a major concern on the West Side. It’s the number one reason businesses don’t come here.” Eby has a little bit of insight into the crime matter in Cincinnati, having sat on the panel of the Citizen Complaint Authority as part of the collaborative agreement. The panel oversaw police-community relations by reviewing accusations of misconduct of police on citizens.

Eby sees the current politicians as being completely disconnected on crime issues. “They tell us ‘we want to reduce crime by 20 percent, but they don’t tell us how they’re going to do it. They don’t show us that they have an intelligent plan.”

The long and the short of it

A candidate shouldn’t have to assure the voters he or she will finish his or her term. However, Pat DeWine has single handedly made it a necessity. The good news is that in DeWine’s version of commitment to the voter, he has opened the door of three offices to at least two guys who have actually accomplished something…other than raising money and moving as quickly as possible from office to office. And folks, you can take that to the bank.

Michael D. Altman writes “I Don’t Mind Telling You” based on insight into the direction politically and socially of this, the Pepsi Generation (No--- that’s Gen Y?). The fact checker responsible for this confusion has been sacked (fired). The column appears as a weekly feature in QCF magazine.

Contact Information
· michaelda@queencityforum.com