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| GORDON |
Now that Jim Gordon has stepped down as the Republican city
chairman, which occurred prior to him winning a seat on the Troy Council
representing District 1, the question remains who will take his place in what
is one of the most difficult and thankless jobs in the county.
Many people are pointing to Kevin McCashion, the staunch
Libertarian who unabashedly, and vigorously, promotes the party’s anti-big
government and pro-civil liberties at all cost platform on social media.
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| MCCASHION |
The thing about McCashion is his take no prisoners’ attitude
scares some in the GOP because he won’t take them prisoners either. He’d just
as soon as rip his own party as the Democrats if they are too passive, dull or
otherwise not running the campaign he thinks they should. Or at least that’s
what some in the GOP are scared of.
While some may have reservations about McCashion, I don’t
know who else the GOP has. Mark Wojcik? Maybe? He was vice chair and is
currently serving as interim chair but I don’t think he wants the commitment
being a successful chairman would require.
Regardless of who it is, the chairman has a catchy title but
really answers to the powers that be at the county level including Rich Crist,
liaison for the GOP county legislators, County Executive Kathy Jimino and
County Clerk Frank Merola. At least that’s how it’s been for more than 15 years
and is another reason McCashion might not get the nod – I don’t see him
deferring to anyone without good reason.
On the flip side of things, after Rodney Wiltshire won the
Council presidency, there is the annual chatter about the future of county
Chairman Tom Wade (pictured left). Wiltshire, and the likely president pro temp, Ken Zalewski,
are not Wade’s guys and there is a
divide already forming on the Council between those who are Wade’s guys and
those who aren’t.
Wiltshire (pictured right) got a bunch of support from the “Delusional Bunch,”
a group of disenfranchised Democrats who include former Councilmen Michael
LoPorto and Clement “Chappy” Campana, and former operative Robert Martiniano as
well as a group of Working Families Party people. (As an aside Wade coined them, not me.) That alone should be a
warning to Wade, but they took a shot at the last organizational meeting and
Wade beat their candidate, Robert “Rabbit” Riley, by a sizable margin. Wade is
a shrewd politician, is into the job, is good at the job and I don’t think he goes anywhere until he wants to.
The Dems city chair is Jack McCann but he answers to the
county chair. It will be interesting to see if McCann gets re-appointed to his
city marshal spot by Wiltshire and company. It’s already a given, since they
are Wade’s people, most of the current appointees to clerk, deputy clerk,
auditor, bingo inspector and city marshals will not have a job come Jan. 1.
But, if they go after McCann, consider it all-out war.
