Keiffer and his dad
All things considered -- he asked his father to be his campaign treasurer, and obviously trusted him, but dad turned around and spent $40,000 of campaign funds on personal needs -- Keiffer Mitchell is handling this screw-up pretty well. He disclosed his father's bad decisions, fired his dad as treasurer (but not as dad), and his father repaid the campaign. This was obviously humiliating for Mitchell -- and the last thing he needs as he tries to gain ground on Sheila "Vote For Me, We're Arresting Fewer People" Dixon. But his handling of the mess has been impressive. In Mitchell's favor: His political career has not been marked by ethical lapses, and this one appears to be fully on the father, not the son.
Here's the statement Mitchell issue to supporters: "
As you may have heard, I recently had to make some difficult decisions regarding my father and his role as my campaign treasurer. I want to thank you for the outpouring of support I have received.
I love my father very much. He spent countless hours tutoring me as a child, cheering me on in my endeavors, and reminding me always of the importance of serving your community. He set the example by giving numerous hours to the community as a doctor, often without remuneration. As you can imagine, my family and I are dealing with some very personal and difficult issues.
Upon learning of the problems at issue, I took immediate steps to correct matters and the campaign is moving forward.
Now it is time to focus on this campaign because we need to change Baltimore for the better. In the last 24 hours alone, this city has seen four murders. There have been 190 so far this year. Just this week we saw two uniformed officers shot while in their vehicle. Baltimore has seen enough of this violence and we need to address this crisis so we can build on all that is truly great about Baltimore.
Comments
When I heard this story this morning, my thoughts were pretty much like yours. Rather than dragging this whole thing out, he faced a difficult situation head on. I am not a citizen of Baltimore City, but I can say that this is the kind of action oriented person I would have to seriously consider voting for if I were.
Posted by: Regina | August 3, 2007 2:52 PM
That's gotta be tough to do. Good point Dan, I think hes handling it pretty well
Posted by: barth | August 3, 2007 3:13 PM
Dan --
I like the guy, but $14K will buy you 10 weeks at the Burkshire, and I imagine the hotel asks you to pay up at least weekly ... checks are going out all that time and Jr. doesn't notice? Hmmm. What is it newspaper editors used to say, "If your mother says she loves you, check it out"? Homicide's a big problem, but so are high taxes. It'd be good to know our future mayor will be a crime-fighter _and_ will have his eye on the till.
Posted by: Jamie Hunt | August 3, 2007 4:03 PM
Keiffer's a good man, and you're right, he's handling this situation correctly. I can't imagine how difficult it must be for him, and how hard it was to do the right thing and come out with this.
Creates a stark contrast to Dixon, who would have never come forward with this.
Posted by: Bobby Hill | August 3, 2007 4:18 PM
Keiffer Mitchell campaigns and suggests that we should vote for him, by invoking the names of famous relatives who were major positive influences (his grandfather and grandmother). Should we vote for him because of these relatives?
Or, should we vote against him because of some relatives that he has that have perhaps done things that were criminal (his uncle, Clarence Mitchell) or perhaps unethical (his father).
Maybe we should just judge him based on him, and maybe he should stop using relatives as a campaign tactic.
Posted by: irwin | August 3, 2007 4:26 PM
Putting your family in your campain ads and having a family member miss use your funds . Comming out a week before your finanical staement was due. I will think very hard before voting for this man.
Posted by: Lamont Thomas | August 3, 2007 10:08 PM
I agree with Irwin's logic, but not his conclusion. Mitchell constantly invokes his family's political legacy in his speeches and TV spots, which I believe makes it permissible to level criticism at him based on the actions of his father/treasurer. If he wasn't so immodest about his political ancestry, he wouldn't have to bear the brunt of Dad's actions. Not the case here, though. I'm anxiously awaiting to hear the reasons behind the theft, though.
Posted by: Dennis | August 4, 2007 12:14 AM
This is a true shame. I really feel bad for Keiffer. This is a major set back for him just when he was making strong ground on Sheila. However, I still very much support him. He is still by far the strongest candidate. I hate to say this, but Sheila has no vision for Baltimore. Keiffer is a strong leader.
Posted by: Kyle Bates | August 4, 2007 3:25 AM
I am not a fan of Sheila Dixon. This city needs a strong hand and she doesn't seem to have it. I also was not thrilled to have a mayor who as Council President exhibited poor judgement when it came to ethics/conflict of interest in contracting. I was hoping that Mr. Mitchell might make a better candidate. You have to ask yourself though, why he decided to hire his father as Treasurer for his campaign. It seems like it would have been more appropriate not to hire family for such an important role, especially when his father does not have a financial background (CPA, audit, etc.). You also have to question Mr. Mitchell's judgement regarding the competence of the people he surrounds himself with. Not spending campaign funds for personal use is pretty elemental. It amazes me that he entrusted someone who seemed to have such poor judgement. I don't question his handling of the issue, I question his judgement in hiring his father in the first place. Baltimore is not a good training ground for a politician not ready to govern. Heaven help us if these are our two strongest candidates.
Posted by: J Calvo | August 6, 2007 9:01 AM