Finch Calls On Blumenthal, Malloy For Closing Message

The Democratic primary is in two days. Historically the Democratic primary in Bridgeport has decided the mayoral election held two months later. This year’s primary is not going to be a bellwether event. There are too many names on the general ballot, for one thing. Neither of the two front-runners has an impressive resume.

Bill Finch was endorsed (for the primary, not the general election) by the editorial board of the Connecticut Post. Michael Daly, et al., cited the progress that has been made under Finch, from finally breaking ground at Steel Point to building new schools, etc. (Mr. Finch was also endorsed by Richard Blumenthal, Dannel Malloy, a couple of corrupt labor unions and the mayor of Providence, Rhode Island.) His flaws are just as well known; in some ways his character deficiencies outweigh his accomplishments.

As a man, Bill Finch has shown an appalling lack of self-control. His anger management issues are well known. His hostility toward the University of Bridgeport is a good example. The reason for this hostility most likely stems from the fact his employment there was terminated because he rarely showed up for work and when he did he didn’t do much work. An incident, noted by the Connecticut Post’s rather tepid endorsement, is also troubling: Mr. Finch, angered that a City Council vote did not produce the desired result, physically assaulted a Council member.

Mr. Finch has underfunded the Bridgeport public school system, rated the worst in the state of Connecticut. With a dropout rate of 48% it’s not difficult to see why. (The mayor himself has shown a lack of faith in Bridgeport’s public education system by enrolling his children in charter schools.)

For a chief executive who has boasted his administration is transparent, Mr. Finch has shown an appalling disregard for the people of the city of Bridgeport’s right to know what’s going on in their town. Withholding police reports, in violation of FOI and public records laws, is Bill Finch’s way of thumbing his nose at the news media.

His claims “Bridgeport is the safest it has been in 40 years” is just so much horseshit. The police department’s staffing levels have fallen so precipitously, public safety is being compromised. The gun buyback program, sold as an effective way to take firearms off the streets, has not had any effect on the level of gun violence. The fact of the matter is there have been eight reported shootings since the last round of weapons purchases, one of them fatal. Who is the mayor trying to kid?

The Finch administration’s antipathy toward the poor, the welfare class, and minorities is plain to see. The “boot and tow” program is a case in point. Intended to collect outstanding automobile taxes, the program reaps little if any revenue for the city’s coffers. Instead, poor, mostly black drivers are being punished for owing as little as $100, their vehicles booted, towed and sold at auction or for spare parts. When confronted about the inequities of this program, Mr. Finch responded “Those people should learn to pay their taxes.” (The only person to have benefited from the “boot and tow” program was Charles Valentino, a former state marshal who was arrested last June and charged with a total of 39 counts of forgery, fraud and criminal impersonation.)

This is the man endorsed–for the Democratic primary, not the general election–by the Connecticut Post.