One of the worst parts about getting involved, I mean really involved on

[WCGreen]

the local political level is that you get to know the people who are running the show up close and personal.

Take for instance what has been going on here in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. It's where Cleveland is.

http://www.cleveland.com/countyincrisis/

My time in the public eye started in 1992 when I ran for congress and surprised the hell out of the political insiders by earning good reviews from everyone concerned and actually was endorsed by Ohio's largest newspaper, The Cleveland Plain Dealer. I lost to Mary Rose Oakar in the democratic primary who eventually lost to Martin Hoke, one of the republicans recruited by Newt.

Anyway, I got involved with the local party and people liked me, thought I had some good ideas, saw that I was honest and an outsider. The new chairman of the party, Jimmy Dimora, in Cuyahoga saw that I was an accountant and invited me to be the treasurer for the Party.

So from 1994 all the way through to 2002, I served as the treasurer for the party and as well as several other local candidates.

I was a volunteer, did it because I believed in the Democratic Party and also thought it would be a good way to win the support of people when I planned to run again in 1996 and 2000. I saw how important it was to be a part of the behind the scene process because I saw up close and personal how important that was.

Anyway, I left because I had gotten far too entwined with all the petty bickering, the people who were only out for it themselves and the cynical power struggles that would have made a Medici Family member blush.

Turns out at least 20 and perhaps many more of the people I knew and worked with for all those years are now in the clink, under indictment or have retired from the "business" to pursue other interests.

That corruption happened right under my nose and I didn't see even a hint of what was going on. I knew there was that scratch my back and I'll scratch yours yada yada but I saw that in the private sector so I understood that was how people interact.

But the pay offs and the bribes. Didn't see it.

Why do I bring this up?

Well, I got to see up front and personal the good the bad and the very ugly when it comes to the people who choose to get involved in the political process at the local level. Remembering, they all start out at the local level. The people who run, at least in here Cuyahoga County, seemed to be more concerned about pensions and political positioning instead of doing the public business.

But there is a reason for that. So much of what these elected officials do is to just ratify the decisions made by appointed boards, civil service people and hired managers.

Of course most of the people who serve on City Councils, School Boards, Sewer Boards and all sorts of other off the radar offices are people motivated by a powerful sense of service.

While the people I saw that rose to the higher profile offices in the County may have at one time been motivated a sense of duty to the community, many of these good intentioned folks, after serving for years, morphed into jaded people looking out for only the best interest of themselves.

That's why I may appear to be a tad cynical at times, a tad leery of all politicians and a tad leery of people who come out of nowhere to take the public by storm. I thought that about president Obama, after all, Chicago is just a larger version of Cleveland, which is why I was late to come to the table for him. Of course I eventually got swept up in all that hope and change theme and still think he is above a lot of that back room bull shit.

I learned to take a good look at the people surrounding the candidate to get a real idea of how that candidate will perform once in office.

Just something to toss out there now that a lot of people have soured on the president.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. It's good to hear from someone who has actually been there.

You came by your insight the hard way...

Thanks for sharing.