What's Mansoor Up To Now?
WHAT THE HECK?!
OK, can someone please explain this latest move by our young jailer/mayor? The other day the Daily Pilot announced, HERE, that Allan Mansoor - candidate for the 68th Assembly seat currently held by Van Tran - will bring the recently-approved agreement between the city and the firefighters union back to the council for re-consideration. Mansoor apparently appealed the decision from the earlier special council meeting just before the council meeting Tuesday. According to city officials, this appeal will now be held at the council meeting on September 1st.
WHO WILL SWITCH?
Mansoor and his "pal", Eric Bever, voted against approval at the earlier meeting. One can only assume that Mansoor thinks he's managed to sway one of the other council members - most likely Wendy Leece or Gary Monahan - to change their position.
ALL ACTION FROZEN
This move by Mansoor essentially freezes any action on that segment of the budget until the appeal is heard and voted on. If, perchance, he is successful in convincing one of his peers to change a vote, that really snarls up the budget process.
INSUFFICIENT NOTICE?
Mansoor, based on reports, thinks the voting public didn't receive sufficient notice before the new contract was approved. He thinks there's not enough payoff for the city - he termed it, "only short-term savings". It's an interesting statement, since the public has not been privy to the agreements in the past. He's just posturing for potential donors to his campaign.
"NEGOTIATED"
The firefighters negotiated - key word there - the change to their Memorandum of Understanding and actually provided the city with much more savings than it had requested. According to one of their representatives, Fire Captain Jeff Janzen, HERE, the increased retirement incentive that seems to be part of Mansoor's complaint was not something the firefighters requested - the city needed it to attain the staff reductions as part of the 10-point plan to balance the budget.
INEXPLICABLE STUBBORNNESS
Throughout the public elements of the labor negotiations both Mansoor and Bever have shown an inexplicable stubbornness. In Bever's case it might be explained away because he failed to show up an most of the essential meetings during this process so didn't have a clue. It would appear that Mansoor is doing this for pure political posturing purposes. He markets himself as being a hard-liner on taxes, so I guess he thinks putting the city in a headlock at one of it's most critical times in history is a way to demonstrate that "characteristic".
MANSOOR IS BEING STUPID AND CHILDISH
I just think he's being childish and stupid. I think he simply does not grasp the numbers, so feels obligated to say NO!
INTERESTING SIDEBAR
An interesting sidebar to this particular scenario is that Costa Mesa is one of the very few cities whose rules allow the loser on a vote to call it up for appeal. In most other cities only a council member on the winning side of a vote can call it back for re-consideration. Perhaps we should revisit that issue in the near future.
MARKING TIME
So, as the city staff hums the Jeopardy! theme we mark time, waiting until September 1st to see what, if anything changes.
OTHER EMPLOYEES FEEL MISTREATED NOW
Meanwhile, some other city employees feel they were not treated fairly when they negotiated their concessions. Their union representative spoke before the city council last Tuesday, whining about the poor treatment they received. Now, that seems very strange to me. They negotiated - there's that word again - the changes that were approved. Perhaps the employees should be complaining to their paid union representatives. If any of the council members decide to revisit that issue, too, it will create chaos.
SMALL PEOPLE IN BIG JOBS
This is what happens when you elect small people to big jobs... I warned you..
OK, can someone please explain this latest move by our young jailer/mayor? The other day the Daily Pilot announced, HERE, that Allan Mansoor - candidate for the 68th Assembly seat currently held by Van Tran - will bring the recently-approved agreement between the city and the firefighters union back to the council for re-consideration. Mansoor apparently appealed the decision from the earlier special council meeting just before the council meeting Tuesday. According to city officials, this appeal will now be held at the council meeting on September 1st.
WHO WILL SWITCH?
Mansoor and his "pal", Eric Bever, voted against approval at the earlier meeting. One can only assume that Mansoor thinks he's managed to sway one of the other council members - most likely Wendy Leece or Gary Monahan - to change their position.
ALL ACTION FROZEN
This move by Mansoor essentially freezes any action on that segment of the budget until the appeal is heard and voted on. If, perchance, he is successful in convincing one of his peers to change a vote, that really snarls up the budget process.
INSUFFICIENT NOTICE?
Mansoor, based on reports, thinks the voting public didn't receive sufficient notice before the new contract was approved. He thinks there's not enough payoff for the city - he termed it, "only short-term savings". It's an interesting statement, since the public has not been privy to the agreements in the past. He's just posturing for potential donors to his campaign.
"NEGOTIATED"
The firefighters negotiated - key word there - the change to their Memorandum of Understanding and actually provided the city with much more savings than it had requested. According to one of their representatives, Fire Captain Jeff Janzen, HERE, the increased retirement incentive that seems to be part of Mansoor's complaint was not something the firefighters requested - the city needed it to attain the staff reductions as part of the 10-point plan to balance the budget.
INEXPLICABLE STUBBORNNESS
Throughout the public elements of the labor negotiations both Mansoor and Bever have shown an inexplicable stubbornness. In Bever's case it might be explained away because he failed to show up an most of the essential meetings during this process so didn't have a clue. It would appear that Mansoor is doing this for pure political posturing purposes. He markets himself as being a hard-liner on taxes, so I guess he thinks putting the city in a headlock at one of it's most critical times in history is a way to demonstrate that "characteristic".
MANSOOR IS BEING STUPID AND CHILDISH
I just think he's being childish and stupid. I think he simply does not grasp the numbers, so feels obligated to say NO!
INTERESTING SIDEBAR
An interesting sidebar to this particular scenario is that Costa Mesa is one of the very few cities whose rules allow the loser on a vote to call it up for appeal. In most other cities only a council member on the winning side of a vote can call it back for re-consideration. Perhaps we should revisit that issue in the near future.
MARKING TIME
So, as the city staff hums the Jeopardy! theme we mark time, waiting until September 1st to see what, if anything changes.
OTHER EMPLOYEES FEEL MISTREATED NOW
Meanwhile, some other city employees feel they were not treated fairly when they negotiated their concessions. Their union representative spoke before the city council last Tuesday, whining about the poor treatment they received. Now, that seems very strange to me. They negotiated - there's that word again - the changes that were approved. Perhaps the employees should be complaining to their paid union representatives. If any of the council members decide to revisit that issue, too, it will create chaos.
SMALL PEOPLE IN BIG JOBS
This is what happens when you elect small people to big jobs... I warned you..
Labels: Allan Mansoor, Bever, Budget Woes
posted by The Pot Stirrer at 8/19/2009 08:22:00 PM
9 comments
