Carmen Lopez Pages Mr. Ed (Adams)–Work Horse Or Show Horse?

Ganim, Adams
Joe Ganim and retired FBI agent Ed Adams on 2015 campaign trail.

Retired Superior Court Judge Carmen Lopez in an OIB commentary is paging retired FBI agent Ed Adams who was hired by Mayor Joe Ganim to serve as the conscience of the administration.

Joe Ganim is back in City Hall!

So is the FBI!

In 2015, Ed Adams, a former FBI agent and a member of the team that investigated and prosecuted Joe Ganim for public corruption signed on with “Team Ganim,” and its Second Chance message.

In an effort to wipe away the blemish of corruption, Adams told the CTPOST, “Joe wanted me to be part of his administration to make sure that he is doing things right.” (CTPOST August 9, 2018, “Ganim’s G-Man gives Mayor political currency”).

So Ed Adams was hired for approximately $90,000 to be the legal and ethical conscience of the new Administration. Adams rarely makes public statements, and, as a City employee is presumably subject to the “don’t talk without permission edict” recently issued by the Mayor.

But even if Adams has been muzzled, I have a few questions that I believe deserve answers.  It is time that we issued a report card on Ed Adams’ anti-corruption initiatives.

We were promised a Bridgeport Office of Public Integrity to prevent a repetition of the 1990s corruption scandals. Why has no ordinance been passed?

Paging Ed Adams!

Our City Council flagrantly violated the Freedom of Information Act and was ordered by the Commission to undergo training. FOI was an area that Mayor Ganim stated Ed Adams would be involved in.

Paging Ed Adams!

Our Acting Police Chief assigned an on-duty police officer to collect absentee ballots out of private mailboxes at the direction of the Democratic Town Chairman. This police officer was supposed to be protecting the residents and taxpayers of the City of Bridgeport, and not running political errands. Why was no one held accountable for this blatant illegality?

Paging Ed Adams!

It has been established by overwhelming evidence that the Chairperson of the Civil Service Commission is a resident of the Town of Trumbull. A Bridgeport resident and taxpayer called attention to this fact, but our Ethics Czar was silent. How come?

Paging Ed Adams!

Numerous vacancies exist on City Boards and Commissions, and many people are serving expired terms. The Ganim administration says that these vacancies can’t be filled and people can’t be reappointed because of the difficulty in obtaining background checks.

Background checks? In this City? In this administration? Really?

Paging Ed Adams!

Ed Adams was put in charge of the new downtown parking meters. This effort was a fiscal and community fiasco. The ordinance was poorly drafted and premised on a state statute of questionable applicability to Bridgeport. No good explanation for this boondoggle has ever been presented.

Paging Ed Adams!

Before Ed Adams’ successors at the local FBI office arrived at City Hall, the scrap metal scandal was already well known, but no one has been held accountable. Why?

Paging Ed Adams!

Ed Adams is a gentleman, by all accounts. But that is not the issue. The issue is whether the second-chance Ganim Administration has turned over a new leaf, or, in the words of the late great Yogi Berra, is this just, “Déjà vu all over again?”

Paging Ed Adams!

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18 comments

  1. This is how rumors start.
    Nothing shows the stripes of a candidate more than exposing the moral hypocrisy of the mayor’s chosen aide. Nibble at the edges before gorging on the feast.

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  2. Joe Ganim is as usual is using his dog and pony show in his effort to fool the voters. He started with his come to Jesus moment on Emancipation Day program at Rev. Stallworth’s church in 2015, the he hired FBI agent Ed Adams to make it look like there was someone checking to see that Ganim was doing the right thing. Well, the relationship with Rev. Stallworth is finished even though he jumped started Ganim’s reelection and now Ed Adams is a ghost and he’s still getting paid by the Bridgeport taxpayers.

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  3. I was thinking about corruption last night when I went out to St Mary’s to see the “Wolf Blood Orange Moon Eclipse” and instead saw the Black Rock Lights of BROADWAY”. Yes…the “emergency” no-bid atrocity of street lamp overkill.
    Thank you once again Judge Lopez

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  4. There is an ordinance requiring an annual affirmation of residence by elected and mayoral appointed for City office. Last year City Council members were supportive though Board and Commission members including departed Civil Service Chair Guedes, neglected the responsibility. What about this year? Angel DePara, former City Council member and Budget co-chair, now a political appointment guiding Boards and Commissions vacancies could not get members to sign up. Ed Adams, what will you do this week to see that this Accountability to City Ordinance receives the attention of each appointee by email or USPS??
    Even Mayor Ganim is subject to the rule and did sign in last year. Where does he reside this year?
    Finally, all of those Board and Commission members attend one or more meetings each year with an agenda to follow at the meeting and minutes (including financial reports) to be generated after the meeting. Are all of those agendas, minutes and fiscal reports entered into the record and available on the Board or Commission site? Look them up. It’s part of oversight. A call to new WPCA Director last week found her looking for the posting of such documents as I was. Why does such material not surface automatically?? OPEN, ACCOUNTABLE, TRANSPARENT and HONEST?? Time will tell.

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  5. Under the OIB posting 1/18/2018, I also noticed the abscence of Ed Adams,Public Accountability/Head of the Ganim Administration. This is what I wrote. Frank Gyure says:
    January 18, 2019 at 11:50 am
    Ohh..gee. Where is Ed Adams,Mr. Public Integrity of the Ganim Administration. Adams was the “fig leaf” to insure a squeaky clean Ganim Administration. Ed Adams,RESIGN NOW. SHAME ON YOU.

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    1. Carmen Lopez,,,,Thank you for your searing count by count indictment of the complete ineffectiveness of Ed Adams. I would estimate that Mr.Adams has received approximately $300,000 in salary derived from tax dollars paid by the people of Bridgeport and Ed Adams has been 100% ineffective. $300,000 of tax dollars down the drain. Previous accounts of Mr.Adams’ career at the FBI has been characterized as distinguished but all Mr.Adams has lost all his integrity in just 3 years working for Joe Ganim. I repeat what I asked for several days ago. ED ADAMS….RESIGN NOW.

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  6. Since we are talking about Public Integrity,there has been comments of “questionable ” practices of the Vaz bros/Vaz Quality Works Construction Company. It has just come to light the Vaz Construction has been chosen to do the work of the Black Rock Streetscape Improvement Project. Considering the huge cost overruns charged by Vaz ofthe repaving of the Public Works area and seeming other transaction,it may be necessary to reexamine Vaz Construction’s involvement in the Black Rock Streetscape Project. Is it “above Board” or is “connect the dots?”

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