August 29, 2017

Author:  Tim Becker

Concerned Citizens:

Yesterday was a new low point in the politics of our City.  Two City Council members took it upon themselves to viciously attack a sitting Council member (and a citizen in the audience . . . me).  Following are a number of video clips from that meeting.  They will shock and disgust any reasonable citizen.  And they epitomize the issues of good governance that we have been discussing at this blog.

However, the worst attack came before the meeting.  Matt Kunz was so out-of-control that the police had to be called.  I arrived at the meeting early and was in the lobby.  A number of staff were disturbed by Council Member Matt Kunz’s confrontation of his fellow Council Member Longoria in Council Chambers.  Kunz was yelling at the top of his lungs and flailing about.  Staff stated that the confrontation had been going on for 10 minutes and that it had been escalating.  Staff had called security.  I myself observed Mr. Kunz’s confrontation and I can tell you that he was clearly out-of-control and there was a potential for violence–e.g., he might take a swing at Longoria.

Mr. Kunz’s confrontation continued even after the 2 separated and were seated in anticipation of the Council Meeting.

(Note:  a police officer did sit in the meeting for its entirety.)

Although more “calm” for the meeting, Mr. Kunz went on 2 rambling, yelling tirades in the meeting.  And rather than calm down his confederate, Council Member Bill Lusk added fuel to the fire and went on his own rambling tirade against Longoria (and again against me).

So what was the issue that so agitated Mr. Kunz to the point that security was called?  It was a simple mistake that Mr. Longoria made:  he missed the time to qualify for his Council seat by 4 minutes on Friday.  He got wrong the deadline for filing, thinking it was 5:30 pm, instead of 4:30 pm.  Because no one had qualified for the District 3 post, qualification had to be re-opened.  So this was Longoria’s grand offense.  Based on this honest and innocent mistake, Kunz (with an assist from Mr. Lusk) savaged Mr. Longoria–first in private, and then on the Council dais.  Mr. Longoria could not even speak as he was recused from the discussion . . . talk about kicking somebody when they are down.  (I similarly had to sit in silence as I was attacked.)  According to Mr. Kunz, the missed qualification deadline shows that Longoria is lazy, uncommitted, lacks passion, feels entitled to his seat, etc.  It was a stunning over-reaction from Lusk and Kunz.  Furthermore, it demonstrated a shocking disrespect for a fellow Council Member.  Citizens, we need to rally around and support Mr. Longoria in this matter.

Based on what I and others witnessed, you have to question not only Mr. Kunz’s fitness for office, but more fundamentally whether Mr. Kunz should be allowed to continue to interact with staff or citizens in an official capacity.  I am quite sure that a citizen who confronted a Council Member in such a fashion would likely be banned from City Hall and interacting with city staff.  And remember, as an elected official, Mr. Kunz should be held to a (much) higher standard than a citizen.  And for Mr. Lusk to aid and abet this sort of behavior is unconscionable.

So here goes with the video clips, in chronological order.

First is a video clip from the beginning of the meeting.  The City Attorney clearly states that Council should follow state law and “best practice” and extend qualification for 2 days.  He views the approval as perfunctory.  On FIVE different occasions during the meeting, the City Attorney advises, based on the law, that Council extend the qualification period, providing myriad reasons for doing so.  Kunz and Lusk do not seem to understand or care about state law; they have a different agenda that does not involve following state law.

Following is a bizarre and rambling tirade from Kunz.  It is provided in its entirety.  It shows a Council Member who is clearly out-of-control.

Immediately after Kunz’s meltdown, Council Member Lusk continues the tirade.  Instead of pulling his closest political ally off the ledge, he gets on the ledge with him . . . doubling down on the vitriol.  Notice that Lusk refers to the recent redistricting scandal as “perfectly legal and transparent.”  Remember that not a single citizen knew about the redistricting . . . NOT one.  That is Mr. Lusk’s definition of transparency . . . unbelievable.  Note also Mr. Lusk’s hyperbolic and incendiary language, including use of the word “lynch.”  Mr. Lusk has moved far beyond incivility in his remarks.  Lastly, Mr. Lusk asserts that Council is bending and breaking the rules to extend the qualifying period . . . this despite the City Attorney clearly stating that the extension is essentially mandated by state law.

Following is an immediate and clear rebuttal by the City Attorney of Mr. Lusk’s assertion that Milton would be breaking the rules with the qualification extension.  Mr. Lusk and Kunz would be told no less than 5 times that the extension would be following, not breaking, state law.

Following is my favorite video.  For months, the City has been roiling in debate over transparency.  The State of Georgia has an Open Meetings Law.  I would contend that these sorts of private conversations are a clear and public violation of that law.

This is a really good video.  Mayor Lockwood makes it very clear that he is not going to let Mr. Lusk throw him and the rest of Council under the bus, with Lusk’s assertion that all of Council was complicit in the redistricting.  Lockwood very clearly and convincingly rejects all comparisons between the redistricting scandal and yesterday’s perfunctory extension of the qualifying period, required under state law.

This video clip shows Lusk trying to exclude Council Member Mohrig from voting.  Once Lusk realizes that Mohrig will likely vote for an extension, he tries to exclude Mohrig from the vote.  Mohrig has none of it and clearly demonstrates (not included in the video clip) that he understands what is occurring even though he was calling into the meeting on his phone.  Longoria’s expression at the tail end of the video is priceless, as he realizes how Lusk is attempting to manipulate the vote.

Matt Kunz is not done ranting and raving.  Here is the coda to his earlier performance.  Kunz’s stance that he is standing on principle is a frequent Kunz refrain.  It is ironic in that he is perhaps the most unprincipled member of Council.

It is interesting that. after two bizarre rants, when asked the question about what the City should do, Kunz has no real solution.

Finally a vote!  Note that Bill Lusk does not have the courage to vote his convictions on this matter.  He ultimately chooses not to cast the deciding vote against the extension.  He barely raises his hand to signal his approval of the extension.

Longoria delivered a long and heartfelt apology.

Yesterday was an embarrassing moment in our City’s history.  Two Council Members viciously attacked a fellow Council Member, who was not able to even defend himself because of his recusal.  (Of course, I was in the same position in the audience . . . attacked with no opportunity to defend myself.)  Over the last 22 months, I have come to know Joe Longoria.   While I do not always agree with him on the issues, I respect his intellect, his willingness to honestly debate issues, his probing questions, and his defense of citizens’ rights to speak.  Joe Longoria is a decent man and did not deserve this savagery from Kunz and Lusk.

Perhaps the greatest of college football coaches, Lou Holtz, once stated “If you burn your neighbor’s house down, it doesn’t make your house look any better.”  Mr. Kunz and Mr. Lusk would be wise to follow this advice in the future.

You can watch the full meeting by clicking the following link:  Special Called Council Meeting To Discuss Extending Qualification For District 3

Advocating For Citizens,

Tim Becker

August 20, 2017

Certain politicians in Milton are lightning rods for controversy.  Yesterday, we exposed one of those politicians, Council Member Matt Kunz, who has positioned himself as an unapologetic champion for developers in Milton.  Such advocacy is bound to elicit the ire of ordinary citizens.

On the other hand, certain elected officials largely escape controversy.  Burt Hewitt is one of those politicians.  Mr. Hewitt’s life is pretty simple.  Why?  Because Mr. Hewitt purposely stays out of the spotlight.  He is deferential to citizens, even a small minority that largely (and often noisily) disagrees with him.  And he is not constantly skulking around in the shadows, promoting the agenda of Milton’s Special Interests.  Most importantly, you know where Mr. Hewitt stands . . . and that is squarely on the side of citizens.  Based on my observations, he applies a simple set of principles to his voting:

1. Hewitt will never vote for any ordinance, rezoning, etc. that will (or even might) increase density. Accordingly, he is against those things that enable higher density, such as community septic, sewer extension, and complex re-zonings.
2. Hewitt likes to keep things simple and clear. He understands that complexity and ambiguity provide opportunities for manipulation, particularly by Special Interests.
3. Hewitt does not like delay. He does not like “kicking the can down the road.”  He understands that dithering (like complexity) also provides opportunities for manipulation.

Applying these three principles, you can predict with 90% accuracy how Mr. Hewitt will vote on a particular matter before Council.  That is a good thing . . . we need to know what principles guide our Council Members and be assured they will consistently hew to these principles.  But more importantly, we need to know that Council Members are advocating for the prerogatives of citizens, not Special Interests.  Burt Hewitt is proof that life can be pretty darn simple for an elected official . . . that sides with citizens.

Advocating For Good Governance,

Tim Becker