The three leading 'inside' candidates are Eileen Donoghue, Kevin Murphy & George Ramirez.
- Eileen is half way in. Enough to hold her place, but not so much that she gets caught sweating it. And, frankly, she is not sweating. She has a breadth of options in front of her. She is, likely, the one with the most solid path to a majority; but she needs to be convinced to come home. Breathy pleas of desperation should probably take a back seat to logic and a sense of true stewardship. Cool heads should call her to local, hyper-focused service.
- Murphy is jonesin' for the corner office. He has enough support from the 'we hate Bernie' crowd on the Council to feel feisty. Thing is, there seems to be a pervasive dread of Murphy becoming the CM. The impression, I get, is that Murphy keeps score. And, some big scores are yet to be settled. Vindictive is an adjective, I hear, too often.
- Ramirez is passionately committed to continuing the course Lowell is on. He has the least support, but is not encumbered by currently holding elected office. That gives Ramirez some 'room to move' in his approach to securing the support.
The Council seems cut into thirds: Martin-Milinazzo-Samaras & Elliott-Belanger-Mercier, diametrically opposed. Leaving Kennedy-Leahy-Rourke in the grinder.
One odd twist, if Ramirez is in play; Leahy is probably out of the voting (They're Brother-in-laws), leaving an even 8. That would mean, Ramirez's path to 5 includes 6. Kennedy is sitting cozy in a role he is accustomed to. Some will remember, Ed Kennedy refused to support Joe Tully. So, in another life, Kennedy bent towards the 'reformers.' Which way will Rourke go? Hmmmm...
There, also, seems to be a lingering stench of a possible comeback from John Cox. As if the screwy template the GLTHS created, could be applied. Y'know, the Council deadlocks until they collapse in an exhausted heap. Presto! Cox becomes the solution, instead of the problem? Hey! Don't yell at me. That's out there in the Bubble. Didn't Bob McMahon just pitch for the LHA seat? #LessonIgnored
There is a scant chance a legit, MMA 'certified' pro will roll around in this shit show. But, do hold your breath. It's Lowell. Shady Lowell may dive, ripping a Triple Bernie with a half Johnson off the platform, just to scuttle their foes enterprises. It's always, "Lowellians First," until it's not YOUR Lowellians.
3 comments:
Will a set of "qualifications" emerge from the next city council meeting on the subject? That discussion, assuming it is in the open, may shed some light on where each of the players are going.
This is an utter pathetic state of affairs. I'd like a faction of people on the Council who says, "Let's wait to see who puts their resumes in because we could get another really great professional with education and experience in muni management, and that is so important to me."
Sigh.
I'd say, Kevin Murphy's insistence, coupled with the gutless on the Council, make that nearly impossible.
#FromLowellF&*kLowell
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