Press release from Democratic mayoral candidate Ellen Zoppo:
Endorsed Democrat for Mayor Ellen Zoppo stated today that she extended another offer to Art Ward today on the need to engage in forums. “I am disappointed by his refusal to participate in an issues forum prior to the primary. A primary is not an "internal Democratic thing," as he simplistically called it, but the tried and true process for all 13,000 Democrats in Bristol to make a decision on who will best represent the Party on the November ballot,” Zoppo said.
Therefore, I offered the following suggestions to him via an e-mail sent this afternoon:
1. that Nutmeg TV be asked to sponsor an in-studio discussion. That would limit the opportunity for an in-studio audience, but it would allow for it to be broadcast for interested Democrats to watch at various times before September 11. I am willing to give him sole discretion over who the moderator is, length of the forum, and topics/questions to be covered.
2. that Ward work with Karen Pio, president of the GBPOA, to design a forum that meets his needs. Again, I am willing to participate with him having sole discretion over sponsor, location, who the moderator is, length of the forum, and topics/questions to be covered - in short, everything. The GBPOA is neutral due to their longevity in the community and the integrity they have displayed while lobbying City Hall for landlord issues. They were also extremely active in voicing concerns about the revamping the Housing and Property Maintenance Code ordinance change that I encouraged, so they would hardly qualify as a group that would be inclined to show favoritism toward me. They asked hard questions and pushed for many changes in the ordinance and I know I respect them for their stance.
3. that if Ward is uncomfortable with the GBPOA or the Federal Hill Association, (both of which has run forums for the last 3 or 4 elections that he has participated in), then he ask a group that he feels comfortable with such as the Veterans Council or another group to sponsor the forum, and Senior Center, or any other space that he can find and pick the date and time for a forum or Q&A session. Again, I am willing to participate and to give him sole discretion over sponsor, location, who the moderator is, length of the forum, and topics/questions to be covered. In short, anytime, anywhere, anyhow.
“I wholeheartedly disagree with him that people are not interested in hearing our positions on the issues. In going door-to-door I have been asked a wide range of questions from people of all ages who are clearly watching what is happening at City Hall. They want to know how the next two years are going to go. What kind of message is Art Ward sending if he cannot find the time to discuss the issues in public now? What chance does the public have for open government if he is elected mayor? Many of the projects on the table are going to require buy-in from the public to avoid the problems that the Council faced 2 years ago with the Couture plan for downtown,” stated Zoppo.
“He claims that my call for a forum before the primary is just "a basis for her to try to create favoritism for her tax-and-spend tactics of the last two years" was uncalled for. I am not afraid to defend my record on the City Council for the last 6 years. Apart from broad-brush allegations, he has no facts to support such comments and is unable to say them to an audience. He has never in the past refused an opportunity to present his opinion so why is he so afraid of a debate now?” Zoppo concluded.
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Copyright 2007. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
15 comments:
Ellen, how many times does he have to say NO to you before you get it? He doesn't want to debate until the November election when it matters to most to the ENTIRE VOTING POPULATION. Asking him repeatedly isn't going to change his mind.
How hard is that for you to understand?
Once again you are showing your immaturity by having a hissy fit because someone doesn't want to play in your sandbox.
I'm sure if Mr. Ward feels the necessity to debate Mrs Zoppo his campaign staff will go along with it. Mr. Ward has been involved in politics for over 14 years and, for all I know, maybe even longer. Mr. Ward, along with Mr. Nicastro, have been consistently the largest vote getters at the polls in every recent election. I'm sure Mrs Zoppo is well aware of the numbers in the past elections. Mr. Ward is extremely well-liked and very strong city-wide. I believe he knows what he has to do to get elected and apparently it does not involve a debate before the primary. Both candidates control their own destiny and what they believe works for them, works for them. They both have their own strategies. Again, Art knows how to win elections!
ellen is disappointed that ward did this, disappointed that ward did that, disappointed that ward won't do this; think that if I had to experience all of that disappointment in such a short period of time, I'd have to consider my time in politics to be a grave disappointment.
Ward is not afraid to debate you - HE DOES NOT TRUST YOU! For 2 years you sat on the council with Stortz playing back door games, scripting, stacking committees and you have the nerve to say your a disappointed in Ward? Get over your self! You are such a self-centered, condescending person.
Art, you can try and make this into an Ellen thing, but it's really about you. You're afraid to debate her. 'Nuff said.
interesting that zoppo now wants art ward INCLUDED in a debate, when just a very, very short while ago, she "scripted" actions to EXCLUDE" ward from participation. Hmm, wants it both ways, I guess.
Trust and credibility are the two most important factors if a debate is to garner any relevance and as of now, I don't believe, as a result of zoppo's "scripting" exclusion of ward, that either one of these factors can be attained.
Forget about it.
Hundreds of people watch political debates on Nutmeg TV and also attend forums to find out what the candidates have to offer the citizens. Give the people of Bristol some credit -- they want to be able to make educated decisions as who the best candidates are to run their City. The other two candidates are more than willing to debate. They have a platform and are willing to share it with whomever chooses to listen. They welcome questions from the audience, and will answer any questions to the best of their ability. All politicians owe that much to the taxpayers of their City. Mr. Ward has been on the City Council for many, many years. By refusing to debate, he is, in effect, telling the citizens of Bristol that he doesn't think they deserve to hear the answers to their questions on how he would run the City. What complete and total arrogance on his part.
maybe ward is making a statement that he has made the public aware of his positions throughout his 14 years as an elected official and he will not succumb to a person such as ellen, who has self-appointed herself to be a Demi-God for her own self-promotion.
Maybe if she were told the meaning of "NO" earlier in her young life, she would actually understand "NO" MEANS "NO".
As a democrat who will be voting in the primary, I would like to be 100% sure of my decision. Watching a debate on the issues at hand for Bristol will greatly aid in my decision. I am very skeptical of someone who won't partake in a public forum with predetermined questions, and or questions from the audience. This is the way that the voting public will get their best view of the candidates.
A debate is worthless. It's just a lot of show time to see who gets the biggest applaud and who brought the most supporters to wear their pins and t-shirts.
If you really want to be sure that you are voting for the right person just call the two candidate and have a conversation with them. Ask them questions and have a candid conversation with them. When there isn't an audience, you will get a much better idea of who the candidate is.
If debates are worthless, then why does everyone do them? It's because in addition to revealing the candidate's opinion on an issue, debates also show how well the candidate thinks on his feet; whether he can formulate a persuasive position; how articulate he is; etc. The voters have the right to know whether a candidate possesses these skills. Any politician who refuses to debate is cheating the voters.
Craig, pay attention to the posts - your question is answered in them.
Debates are useless because the majority of the voting population does not attend or tune in. They are shows that the candidates put on for their die hard supporters that show up. These are the people that already have their minds made up about who they intend to vote for, therefore, the debate is pointless because they don't reach the majority of the voting population.
You know as well as everyone else that no one attends a debate unless they are supporting one of the candidates. It's just another game to see which politician can get more applause from their camp.
We all know that Ellen is a very good public speaker and has a way of coming up with some very creative analogies which make her sound genuine and intelligent.
However the side of her that controls her actions, off camera words and actual personality is the side that does not come across in a structured debate. This, the real Ellen, is what the voting population needs to be made aware of if they are going to be expected to make an informed decision on who they will vote for.
She can't even be honest with us about why she was concerned about leaks and discretion. If it's such a small issue as she claims, then why can't she (or you or any other councilmember that participated) just answer that question?
We can't "just answer the question" because we've been told by the Town Attorney not to talk about this since it's in litigation. So all I can say is what I have been saying all along: we did nothing wrong, and certainly nothing illegal. We will have more to say about this self-serving, politically-motivated FOI complaint after it is dismissed by the FOIC.
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