Mayor Franklin calls Norwood ‘unqualified,’ makes much-needed return to blogging
October 26, 2009 at 12:24 pm by Thomas Wheatley in News
In March 2008, Mayor Shirley Franklin commented on a Fresh Loaf post about the sentencing hearing for her daughter, Kai Franklin Graham. We were surprised she’d jumped into the online fray, but we welcomed her input. But then for months she went silent, only holding something called “press conferences.” We didn’t hear much from the online persona known only as “Shirley” after that. And we became sad.
On Sunday, someone named “Shirley” commented on a post by the AJC’s Jim Galloway. In it, the poster says Mary Norwood, who according to polls has a big chance of becoming Atlanta’s next mayor, isn’t qualified for the position.
Galloway checked with City Hall to confirm it was Franklin. It was. From her comment:
I support candidates with vision, integrity and intelligence and I have voted for candidates with these 3 characteristics throughout my life. Mary Norwood has none of these. Therefore, I do not support her candidacy for mayor.
Should she win I will wish her well and continue my activism in politics and civic affairs. Race nor gender are the issues for me. Competency is. Norwood has not demonstrated vision, competence or integrity in her public life as an elected offical. Rather she has spent her time building a political network to run for mayor. It looks like she’ll be successful.
She’s provided no evidence in her service on the Council as to her competence to govern. She has not led on ethics or public policy. In fact she’s known for slips of the tongue about what she’ll do as mayor.
Read the rest of Franklin’s comment over at Galloway’s den of political intrigue.
(Photo by Joeff Davis)
October 26th, 2009 at 12:32 pm
Oh my word…well I guess a non-endorsement for that worm Norwood is an endorsement for someone. Maybe Jesse Spikes? She has called him “brilliant” in the past. But she’ll have to mud wrestle M. Alexis Scott over at Atlanta Daily World for it.
October 26th, 2009 at 12:51 pm
Ouch! That hurts!
October 26th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
I wonder how much Norwood paid for that attack from Franklin. It’s definitely more valuable to Norwood than an endorsement from Able Mable.
October 26th, 2009 at 1:48 pm
Mary Norwood isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AS0ekhf6PHM
October 26th, 2009 at 1:57 pm
Was Norwood really a Republican delegate?
October 26th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
Check out this website I stumbled across…
therealtruthaboutborders@gmail.com
Instead of rumor and innuendo, this site is filled with ACTUAL VIDEOS of Lisa ON RECORD, from REAL NEWS INTERVIEWS, and links to CREDIBLE NEWS SOURCES…
Enjoy!
October 26th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
HERE’S THE LINK:
http://therealtruthaboutborders.wordpress.com
October 26th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
Wow! Looks like the Borders’ people are creating stories in desperation…being down in the polls will do that to you. Shameful.
October 26th, 2009 at 2:17 pm
Well, the new poll released today by 11Alive and v103 shows Norwood ahead by 20 points:
11alive.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=136791&catid=8
Seems that about half the city disagrees with Shirley.
October 26th, 2009 at 2:17 pm
You can count on Shirley Franklin to take off the gloves when she wants to and fight with bare knuckles. Can you say…Lee Morris?
October 26th, 2009 at 2:33 pm
Who would give any credence to a mayor who lobbied mightily for a sales tax increase, later admit to over 100 million dollars of mis- managed money, hire an out of work do-nothing police chief and then have the nerve to cry “incompetent”? The corrupt Jackson era is coming to a close just like the Bush Era.
October 26th, 2009 at 3:26 pm
Only time will tell if Franklin is correct about Norwood. Give Norwood a couple of years in office then we’ll see whether Franklin is right.
The budget shortfall next year will be worse than the budget shortfall this year. Let’s see how Norwood will handle that. Also, Norwood as a Republican will have to deal with a Democratic President, much like Franklin and Bush, so she likely won’t get much help from the Federal govt for help.
October 26th, 2009 at 3:46 pm
http://www.notkasim.blogspot.com
A new post has been uploaded. Thugs of a Feather, flock together!
October 26th, 2009 at 3:49 pm
Hey everyone. We deleted some comments that violated our comment policy. We also deleted comments responding to those so as not to confuse other readers.
October 26th, 2009 at 4:59 pm
has franklin endorsed kasim reed, her former campaign manager?
October 26th, 2009 at 5:12 pm
@Thomas Wheatley: So that’s what happened to my comment. Oh well — que sera sera. Still might be something to investigate though.
@wesleywhatwhat: I’m pretty sure it’s coming this week. October Surprise!
October 26th, 2009 at 5:58 pm
Okay, I can’t actually prove that a certain mayoral candidate stole my moped in 1987. I’m willing to let it go. I won’t bring it up again.
But you know what you did.
October 26th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
@dash, the obvious suspect, Kyle, was only 3 in 1987
October 26th, 2009 at 6:14 pm
No wonder Borders was so pissy in last night’s debate. Reed has opened up a 9-point lead on the heiress presumptuous in the latest poll – WXIA. She won’t even be in the runoff. Borders on the ridiculous indeed. Cousins and Price Waterhouse had better start pouring money in Norwood and Reed’s directions.
The poll shows the more educated are favoring Norwood. If true, education is seriously over-rated.
October 26th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
Whoo-wee. What does this do to the mayoral race? Will Shirley Franklin endorse someone next week? Or will she wait until the runoff and cut her risk of loss?
October 26th, 2009 at 6:23 pm
When Mary Norwood said the City used “Enron accounting,” Shirley Franklin went ballistic and demanded that Mary give specific examples of criminal behavior. Shirley Franklin has now said that Mary Norwood has “no integrity.” Will the Mayor be consistent and provide examples of Mary’s lack of integrity?
October 26th, 2009 at 6:45 pm
Mary has no idea for getting the budget under control. Kasim puts pensions front and center, where they belong. It’s obvious who would be the better mayor.
October 26th, 2009 at 6:47 pm
@dash, the obvious suspect, Kyle, was only 3 in 1987
Kyle is indeed young enough to be Mary Norwood’s love child. I’m not saying he is, but I don’t know for a fact that he isn’t. That’s all I’m saying.
October 26th, 2009 at 6:58 pm
Hey, Keyser and Norwood are both White with brown hair…that’s gotta mean something, right?
October 26th, 2009 at 8:49 pm
The Vote-O-Meter agrees with others that second place in the mayor’s race is close, but forecasts there will be a run-off. With Election Day near, uncertainty about who to vote for (and who not to vote for) remains high. The Vote-O-Meter forecasts that if the election were held today, the votes would be Mary Norwood 39%; Lisa Borders – 28%; Kasim Reed – 27%; Kyle Keyser – 4%; Jesse Spikes – 3%, Peter Brownlowe – 0%. Norwood is making a move and trying to win without a run-off. Borders remains in second but by very little and is losing steam. Reed is making a strong move. Keyser is picking up some protest votes and is ahead of Spikes.
October 26th, 2009 at 9:11 pm
Norwood answering that she doesn’t remember who she voted for for president is just plain scary. Either she’s an idiot, or she lacks the guts to say who it was or say ‘none of you business’. Someone should put that in a tv ad. I think people would be shocked. How many people out there can say they forgot who they voted for for PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES? What’s the argument there. Oh, I didn’t really pay much attention to politics and it didn’t seem like a very important decision.
October 26th, 2009 at 9:27 pm
RW: Is it possible that Mary Norwood was not given enough information to enable her to answer the question about who she voted for for president?
October 26th, 2009 at 9:27 pm
RW: Amen. The folks who can’t see through Mary Norwood’s thin bag of tricks are nitwits.
Sadly, 99% of the ATL voters will not weigh this “I can’t remember” quote and properly quantify the wisdom of its source.
We get the government we deserve.
Mary Norwood will be the next Mayor of Atlanta.
While she’ll likely be the most intellectually overmatched Mayor in recent history, I’ll go with this self-sustaining rationalization:
At least she’s less of a scumbag than Bill Campbell.
Same as it ever was.
Barack Obama was a once-in-a-lifetime gift to us.
We now return you to our regular programming.
October 26th, 2009 at 9:37 pm
@rico While sharing your sentiments about govt we deserve, I’m not giving up yet. It’s quite a hurdle for Mary to get over 50%, mostly for the bad reason of race. Kasim may still pull it out and then may – may – turn out to be an improvement over the last few decades and actually get the place in order.
October 27th, 2009 at 10:38 am
@Concerned – Mary & integrity. Mary’s refusal to vote for the property tax increase, knowing that enough others would, is the only evidence you need. Hiding behind the city’s non-material accounting sloppiness to avoid facing the fact of a big gap between revenue and expense is intellectually dishonest.
Mary’s not on the take, but she wants to have things both ways. Her umpteen-point crime plan and no tax increase. Come on.
It will get ugly if she becomes mayor and has to make real world choices. We will tire of her silly grimaces even sooner than we tired of those flowers.
October 27th, 2009 at 6:30 pm
shirley franklin are you listening? PLEASE go back PHILLY!. you have left a mess for any new mayor to clean up and it is SHOCKING that YOU would try to call out anyone. you are the most imcompetent mayor that i have ever seen in the 10 citites i have lived in. i am couting down the days until you are left to blogging and not affecting atlanta in any real way. GOOD BYE!
October 27th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
Anyone that Franklin endorses, is not my candidate. As far as Norwood, she responds and shows up when residents in the city have problems. Speaking of HONESTY & INTEGRITY…Remember the infill issue? Who stepped forward? Not Franklin….she & Borders are in bed with residential developers. Norwood’s actions were a real inconvenience for Franklin. Mary worked with the neighborhoods to keep the Tree Ordinance enforced. When asked, by the neigborhoods for support, Franklin and Borders did NO-THING. Kasim is another “slick talking-big spender”. Been there-done that…Bill Campbell. Republican, Democrat, Libertarian….non-issue. EVERYONE who is eligible, needs to vote for our next Mayor and their City Council Reps. Kwicherbichen!
October 27th, 2009 at 9:56 pm
Does anybody remember Norwood, led by Borders, voting to roll back taxes in 2008 in the midst of a recession. Is that the type of leadership we need as a mayor? Cut taxes at any cost and then blame someone else for the decision.
October 27th, 2009 at 11:19 pm
Read the blog Franklin gave an example of Norwood’s cutting corners on ethics. And Norwood voted to weaken the city’s ethics law. Those are the facts, documented in Council records for all to read.
October 29th, 2009 at 10:24 am
Even with a tough, competent mayor in office, council could block needed action.
Lamar may be better than his opponent, Shelitha, God help us. She commits to keeping pensions at 100% in her mailer. Whatever that means exactly, it’s bad news: reducing pension benefits sharply is the only way to get the finances in order. Lamar’s corruption did not cost taxpayers anything. Shelitha’s fondness for the cops could drive the town bankrupt.
Anyone know which of Brackman and Watson is more beholden to the cops? I’m leery of Brackman when I see his material showing the cop and fire unions as supporters.
This is truly a miserable election.
October 29th, 2009 at 10:45 am
@rob, your statement that Franklin has left the city in a mess for the next mayor is off the mark. Truth is, she inherited a city that had faulty sewage lines, horrible accounting practicies and other foul-ups. Thank you, Bill Campbell, who likely was the worst mayor this city has ever seen. I have this mental image of Shirley, the day after she won the first time around, taking a good look at the books, etc., and slapping herself on the forehead: “Damn that Bill Campbell!” she hisses.
Yet Franklin is hardly blameless. She has billed herself as a coalition builder, and I think this has not always worked in her favor. Sometimes, a mayor has to be tough: She has not always risen to that challenge. Perhaps she didn’t want to rile the old pols in the (now faltering) Jackson machine? She should have demanded more accountability from city departments, too. Anyone who has received a water bill, or tried to deal with Ferdinand’s office, knows of what I speak.