When then-D.C. Council Chairman Vincent Gray announced his candidacy for mayor, he asserted residents deserved better than the incumbent. He promised responsible leadership, an end to cronyism, and the creation of jobs for “neglected” residents — he pledged an improved government. Are we there yet? We’re not even close.
That was clear to me after listening to testimony by current and former Gray administration officials appearing before the council’s Committee on Government Operations and the Environment. Headed by Ward 3’s Mary Cheh, the committee is investigating the mayor’s personnel practices.
The ethical failures disclosed during hearings have ramifications far beyond specific individuals who personally benefited. They stand to undermine the culture and quality of a government, which arguably was transforming into an organization where choices were being made based on merit. Through its actions, Gray’s administration has upended a decade of improvements while sending the message that decisions made based on friendships and political alliances are perfectly acceptable — even when local laws are violated.
Gray and his team have placed the city on a fast track to the past, most notably when Marion Barry was mayor and “corruption” was synonymous with the District government. Mayoral friends enriched their buddies and themselves. Ivanhoe Donaldson was caught embezzling public funds. Others, like Vernon Hawkins, were unqualified for positions they held, prompting court takeovers of multiple agencies. Meanwhile, vulnerable citizens were harmed and taxpayers fled the city in droves.
Not unlike Barry, Gray’s response to the recent scandals plaguing his administration has been to either ignore them or suggest their impact has been minimal. He has labeled them as “distractions,” refusing to acknowledge that public funds were misused in the hiring of political cronies.
He has not recognized the damage done by the fact that significant numbers of government workers, like those at the Department of Human Resources, under interim Director Judy Banks, were forced to participate in a conspiracy that resulted in the blatant violation of rules.
What happens in the future when employees use the techniques they learned from Banks to bring their friends into the government?
What’s the message sent about the value the city places on law enforcement when its deputy mayor for public safety, Paul Quander, engages in strong-armed tactics to force the firing of a worker who was allegedly a potential whistleblower?
How can citizens have confidence in an administration when its communications director, Linda Wharton Boyd, the woman responsible for disseminating information, seemed to deliberately camouflage facts about her own salary and the employment of her son?
Unfortunately, as the council continues its hearings, there will likely be more disclosures about maneuvers aimed at serving Gray’s friends and allies rather than District residents and more revelations about attempts to cover up such actions.
The damage to the city is palpable. Consider the fact that Congress was unwilling to engage local officials during the recent budget debate. No one listens when a government is viewed as corrupt. That was something else we experienced during Barry’s era.
Jonetta Rose Barras’ column appears on Monday and Wednesday. She can be reached at [email protected].
