Everyone’s favorite local milk man Doug Wade, owner of Bridgeport-based Wade’s dairy, knows what it’s like for the cream to rise to the top.
He’s hoping Lamond Daniels, a former Finch administration official, is that mayoral candidate.
Four years ago Wade supported State Senator Marilyn Moore for mayor but has soured on her performance as a candidate for the top municipal position.
Wade said Moore “had her day and really screwed up.”
It’s not just one thing, but a variety of Moore gaffes and peccadillos that cost her the mayoralty. How you perform as a candidate is reflective of a skill set, or lack of, as a mayor.
Moore has lost sizable anti-establishment support, some who’ve gravitated to Daniels, others to John Gomes and still others deciding three months from a projected Democratic primary.
Be it disorganization, sans message and original ideas, placing a woman in charge of her absentee ballot operation who a year earlier pled guilty to absentee ballot fraud in connection with a Stratford race, calling on Mayor Joe Ganim to fire Police Chief Armando Perez but pledging to keep him if elected (really?) botching the simple task to petition onto the Working Families election line in November, and then fined $300 by the state in connection with that, the “honest and integrity” candidate has certainly displayed ineptness as a mayoral candidate far away from the safe harbor of her cozy legislative position unscrutinized by other media outlets.
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None of this seems to bother the conflicted community group Bridgeport Generation Now that wired an endorsement for Moore under the charade of an open process, for all candidates, to keep up appearances. One of its founders Gemeem Davis served as Moore’s campaign manager in 2019 and will certainly have an active role this mayoral cycle.
Daniels, for one, didn’t bother responding to the Gen Now coalition’s endorsement survey, knowing it was rigged for Moore.
Give Daniels credit for having a solid nose for BS.
Weeks prior, before the aforementioned endorsement, knowing Daniels could very well cut into Moore’s sagging base of support, Gen Now rolled out a concocted essay claiming Moore was number one in grassroots support based on her fundraising numbers even though Daniels, an unknown, had raised more campaign loot. In fact, Moore is last in fundraising among the four mayoral candidates as of the first quarter fundraising report.
That’s the thing about some specious community groups: let’s just make it up and maybe they will believe us. Sound familiar?
Beware of candidates and by extension controlling community groups preaching honesty, integrity and transparency. They simply want the power and glory of owning City Hall. Throw in incompetency and it’s just a matter of time before buyer’s remorse sets in.
Ganim’s strongest opponent is voter’s remorse.
As much respect as I have for Moore and Daniels, I have learned that we as voters can not want it more for them than they want it for themselves. Both of these campaigns have been flat. That’s just a fact. In 3 decades, the current mayor if finally deciding to lead “Bridgeport’s Revival”. I can argue he derailed our revival for a decade with his antics, and we still struggle to attract a diverse set of investors such as employers bullish on our job talent and marketing potential.
The mayor should be embarrassed with his past 7 year performance, yet he manages to cling on to anyone’s small business our investment success as if he had something to do with it. The truth, we are still touting projects that commenced under the Finch administration and the Amphitheater that he latches on to, cost us $12 Million, did not increase our tax base (city owned), and will not break even for about 30 years based on simple math of the current legal agreement with that property’s tenant.
Gomes is the only one that has made an actual attempt to compete against the current mayor. Love him or loathe him, don’t know him, or care to understand him, it is up to voters to want more for this city. What I do know is John Gomes has expressed a willingness to sit with anyone and discuss solutions. He also knows this administration’s shortcomings and was crucified for speaking up against it. That has value but it needs to be empowered and only voters can do that.