BLOGExclusive: BLOGMEISTER Reconsiders Running For Mayor

I know, I know, I know.

So what if I am available now on short notice to deliver a speech to community groups on local politics. As the BLOGMeister of course.

I absolutely, positively promised never ever to run for municipal political office in Windsor. My family would commit me if I dared do so.

However, if Edgar (aka Eddie) can consider breaking his solemn oath of not running for more than two terms thereby becoming a typical politician, then why can’t I change my mind also?

Honest, I have had lots of phone calls over the last few days begging me to run for Mayor. The A.B.E. movement is looking for a person around whom they can form a coalition. No, no, no… not that ABE as in Taqtaq, Edgar’s former campaign manager whose family runs the Duty Free shop at the City-owned Tunnel and leases space to the Mayor’s spouse, but that A.B.E. as in: Anybody But Edgar.

Look, it is not that hard a job. I have been telling people that I believe that I could solve most of Windsor’s problems within a month or two after taking office. It is only a town of 200,000 people for heaven’s sake. What would I do for the rest of the four-year term?

The Eminence Greasie has obviously been pretty active over the past few months getting the E-Machine up to speed. How else to explain the Henderson column begging Edgar to break his promise and to save us with a third term with him as Mayor. And then the Star story “Do you think Francis should break an earlier promise not to run for a third term?”

If that is not a pollster’s question, then I do not know what is!

Obviously, if I’m going to run, I have to announce early in the new year to scare off any other possible competitors so that it would be to a 2 person race between Edgar and myself.

As for the Windsor Star, I know how to handle them. The first time they do not interview me or attend one of my press conferences or speeches, I will merely file a complaint with the Press Council. There is an election precedent against the Star that I can use to ensure that I get fair coverage.

My campaign would be a simple one: CHANGE. My campaign slogan would be something along the line of “Windsorites, can you spare some CHANGE.” All of my billboards and campaign literature would show the equivalent of soup kitchen lineups in front of the unemployment office, or maybe a photo of the empty shops on our main street, to get the message across.

The Star story was nothing more than a trial balloon at no cost to the E-Machine campaign funds since it was to test the strength of the anti-CUPE message as Edgar’s claim to fame. Why else would the comments be put in at the end of the story from the CUPE leaders. Watch out PETU! Mini-Gord told you that you are the new devil.

Why else did the Star publish Giovanni Miceli’s letter? He is the new Jim Wood/Jean Fox.

In reading the Star Forum comments, the vast majority of the people who wrote there were opposed to our Mayor. However, the ones who supported him primarily did so because of his tough stand supposedly against CUPE. I say supposedly because the Star has refused to report the story that Edgar and the hardliners lost during the strike and cost taxpayers much more money than if they had settled earlier all along the lines proposed by the so-called pro–Union Councillors.

I would have to get CUPE onside very quickly to end the Edgar myth so that all Edgar would have to run on would be his failed mind’s eye visions. He is STILL talking about Greenlink even now if you can believe it. I would have to get rid of the notion of the specific so-called win by the “inspired leadership” of our Mayor. I would do so by doing the following:

• 1. Ensure that CUPE continued on with its bad faith complaint aggressively so that the real story of the strike comes out and so that CUPE members got some of their back-pay. There go those $72 cheques.
  
  2. Convince CUPE to use some of their wage settlement money to set up a PRB fund for workers to demonstrate that PRB’s could have been achieved for union workers and still have a strike settlement at a much lower cost than Edgar achieved by being so “combative.” Moreover, it would show that there was a way of funding those benefits rather than having an unfunded PRB fund as we have now. That would demonstrate easily that there was no need for a 101-day strike.

I’m not sure however that my family really would be that understanding so I have an alternative Plan “B” in my backpocket.

What I am going to do is start a grass-roots “Draft Brister for Mayor” movement so that he will run for mayor. Gord and Mini-Gord are so supportive and want him to do so. With his ego, and with Edgar not announcing that he is running until late in the day, Brister will have to run if Marra announces since he probably thinks that he could win.

He would be suckered in and could NOT back off and then run as a Councillor. He would look like a fool and coward and would lose. Why else is a supposed WFCU audit being considered, even a limited one on sole sourcing, so that the results come out and crucify Brister right before the election.

In the end, I do not see anyone other than Bill Marra running against Edgar assuming that Edgar is going to run in the first place. I really doubt that Edgar will run because even he understands that no one wants him back as Mayor. Mind you, where can he get a job that pays him so well for doing so little and failing at what he does? I do not know.

I expect Marra to be able to beat Edgar easily even with a third candidate such as Brister running supposedly to split the vote so Edgar can slip in up the middle.

In that way, Windsor is rid of both Edgar and the Councillor formerly known as Councillor Budget at one time.

Hmmmm, what a great Plan "B" after all. That is not such a bad outcome either is it. And I don’t have to appear on the rubber chicken circuit.