Jackson Free Press

As a newspaperman and an American, I don't think there's anything more exciting and fulfilling than having a front-row seat to a no-holds-barred, tough, vigorous political race. The Jackson mayoral race is shaping up to be one of the most exciting local races I've ever witnessed. May the best man win.

Just as in sports, the ultimate winner will be the one who did the most work behind the scenes, the one who stayed late working on his shots, tying up the loose ends and making the one last phone call or going to that one last neighborhood meeting.

Incumbent Harvey Johnson has a lot going for him. During his administration, crime has dropped dramatically and he has marshalled support for several significant downtown development projects. Despite overseeing 1,000 employees, there have been no major scandals in his administration during a time when two city councilmen went to jail. He has represented Jackson well during a challenging transition.

Johnson has worked hard and spoken at hundreds of venues. He has built a loyal and widespread power base. He cuts an impressive path: he is smooth, polished and articulate. He has dramatically rebuilt the police force and has accepted the nearly overwhelming task of rebuilding our water system, unflinchingly facing the political heat for doubling water rates. Johnson is steady, conservative and predictable. He is the ultimate city planner.

Frank Melton almost seems too good to be true. He's a self-made multi-multimillionaire who has spent the last 15 or so years working his entire summers running the downtown YMCA. Melton was born a man of modest means and pursued social work as his career. Through luck and skill, he parlayed his natural charisma and photogenic personality into a media empire.
There is no telling how many thousands of young men Melton has influenced for the better over the years as he toiled selflessly in the toughest parts of Jackson. How can anyone possibly question his Jackson roots given his history of service?

Melton is a Democrat who can get Republicans to cross over and vote for him. That's quite a trick. What turns the Republicans on is Melton's stand on personal responsibility. Melton doesn't make excuses for his young men. Instead, he demands that they meet the highest expectations in achievement, dress, manners and responsibility. Melton is a Democrat who understands the importance of the cultural issues that led to Bush's November victory. Republicans also respect Melton's personal success in the business world.

What a contrast! If you could merge the two men, you'd have the perfect mayor. Where Johnson is plodding, Melton shoots from the hip. Where Johnson rewards his supporters and shores his base, Melton reaches out to everybody and tells everybody what they want to hear. Where Johnson labors over the 10 year plan, Melton is ready to spring into action tomorrow.

I recently joined Melton on his 'Reality Ride' through some of the toughest parts of Jackson. As I walked onto the bus, Melton saw me, put his hand on my shoulder and said, "Thanks for coming. You have a good heart."

He started to walk away, then stopped and turned around, looked me in the eye and said, "You know you get that from your father."

Okay, I admit I'm easy, but for the next several days I was under his spell. A great politician can do that. Let's face it, Melton oozes charisma. And he is just so darn smart. Smart is good. As a businessman I am somewhat in awe of his amazing success story. You just can't achieve what he has achieved without being immensely gifted.

Melton has some significant liabilities. He has shown he is willing to run roughshod over personal liberties in order to achieve his goals. He can go off half-cocked. If he is to be an effective mayor, he will have to tone it down.

I predict Melton will win with 54 percent in the Democratic primary. Johnson's last opponent got nearly 40 percent of the vote, even though he was a young, inexperienced Republican.

Melton's running as a Democrat. He's got a ton of money. He's a natural politician. He's earned his stripes running the downtown Y for years. He's a household name and, most importantly, he can get Republicans to vote for him. All those combined should easily get the extra 10 percent he needs to win. The only legitimate poll I've seen confirms this.

Melton's a 'big picture' guy who gets tripped up over some pretty big details -- like voting and residency. Melton's failure to vote is a significant negative and his explanation just made matters worse. It's a good body blow by Johnson, but voters will vote big picture over details all day long.
Johnson is pulling out all stops, claiming that he's running against the "privileged and powerful." That's the oldest political trick in the book. It just so happens the people he's knocking are the very ones who can make or break Jackson. If Jackson is to be saved, it needs those people. Melton understands that. Johnson does not.

Wyatt Emmerich
President, Emmerich Newspapers
601-977-0470
[e-mail missing]

[Reprinted with permission.]

Previous Comments

ID

137414

Comment

What do y'all think of Wyatt's column this week? It certainly doesn't seem as glowing as his last non-endorsement. Thoughts?

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-04-14T12:23:06-06:00

ID

137415

Comment

It is a really strange editorial! He points out the Mayor's good points. Points, I must add, you don't see in many other cities, ie: lack of corruption. And he gives a glowing endorsement for Melton's qualifications. On my first reading I see where he starts to contradict himself in a couple of areas. "Melton reaches out to everybody and tells everybody what they want to hear." So, does he want a "Yes Man" to be Mayor? Not what I look for in a leader. Telling everyone what they want to hear is a point the Republicans used against Kerry since he to had a nack for doing the same. ;-) "Heís got a ton of money." Then why the mailer yesterday asking for $50,000 in 96 hours so he can make a media buy? And, someone correct me if I'm wrong; but, I thought Melton had bragged in the past that he would finance his own campaign? Several people have told me they heard or read the same thing. "Meltonís a ëbig pictureí guy..." The way he describes the Mayor in the beginning the "big picture guy" is Harvey himself.

Author

tortoise

Date

2005-04-14T14:28:24-06:00

ID

137416

Comment

Wyatt gave the mayor his due by saying crime is decreasing. That is a big concession for him and the north Jackson folks. As for the accolades he gives Melton, they're a little eerie. Shooting from the hip on anyone else would not be a good thing. Telling folks what they want to hear is why everyone hates professional politicians (which Melton is supposed to be the alnterative to). A Democrat that can get Republican votes? Actually, I believe melton said he was only running AS a Democrat (different from saying he IS a Democrat)to get black votes which is pandering at an entirely different more distrubing level. But then hero worship does tend to turn liabilities into assets...

Author

GDIModerate

Date

2005-04-14T15:04:21-06:00

ID

137417

Comment

I don't think Wyatt necessarily meant the thing about Melton telling folks what they want to hear as a compliment, and I'm not sure he was knocking Johnson's ten-year plans, either--ten-year plans are how you improve city infrastructure. Pardon the cliche, but you can't cross a river in two jumps; it all boils down to committing to long, plodding initiatives that have a positive outcome. Yeah, that means a 30 year old will be 40 and a 40 year old will be 50 and a 50 year old will be 60 before it's all done--but that's a cruel fact of life. The biggest flaw with Wyatt's article, though, is that he looks at Melton's chances in the general election--which he almost unquestionably would win by a landslide, if he got the nomination--and applies them to the Democratic primary. Republican voters don't usually vote in the Democratic primary, so Melton's popularity with Republicans won't completely come into play until June. The primary will be full of Johnson loyalists. If Melton hopes to win, he will have to energize people who don't usually vote in the primaries--heck, maybe some Republican voters--to show up and vote for him. The Frank Melton I saw on TV ten years ago could do that in his sleep, but I don't think the Frank Melton I see running for mayor right now can pull it off. That said, I never questioned Melton's commitment to Jackson or its youth. I have two basic problems with Melton's campaign: (a) Lots of rhetoric, few specific ideas. His goals are laudable and dramatic and impressive and all that, but he doesn't show how he's actually going to get from point A to point B, and talk is cheap. (b) He suffers from a bad case of Kirk Fordice Syndrome: Melton, once known as the most articulate man in Jackson, is putting his foot in his mouth with gusto. Whether it's talking about "notwithstanding the fact that I'm African-American" in a field of all-black candidates or bragging about his wealth in a city with epidemic poverty, whether his supporters are waving around ridiculous banners or bragging about a "triple-digit lead," the Frank Melton mayoral campaign sucks. That's all there is to it: It sucks. Frank Melton might be the greatest mayor we've ever had, but you'd never know it from his campaign. I would also argue that one reason why Melton attracts so much Republican support may be that intelligent Republicans know that a member of their party is not likely to win the mayoral election in this city. The best option, if they want to elect a candidate who shares their values, is to pick their favorite viable Democrat and support him. Neely was a fantastic candidate, but 40 percent is a landslide defeat--and four more years of white flight probably haven't helped the Republican Party's chances. The question is whether Melton's Republican supporters are willing to show up to the Democratic primary and vote for him. If they do, and if he wins the primary, he will probably be our next mayor. If they don't, then Johnson will probably get a third term. That's basically what it boils down to. This time, the May election matters more than the June election. Cheers, TH

Author

Tom Head

Date

2005-04-14T15:59:20-06:00

ID

137418

Comment

Agreed, Tom. Two things though: 1) The May election is always more important that the June election in Jackson. There really has never been a time when the general municipal election has had much tension to it. The closest was 4 years ago with Darryl Neely but even that wasn't as close as everyone hoped. 2) I think you may very well see a sizeable number of usually Republican voters show up for the Democratic primary in Jackson. Think about it from a politically rational perspective. The northeast Jackson Republicans really don't have any reason to NOT vote in the Democratic primary. There are no competitive races in the Republican ticket, so any sort of "coronation" vote would really be a wasted exercise. The G O Pers and G O Pettes will be at the Democratic polls thanks to the twin wonders of Republican solidarity and lack of party registration. The question really comes down to will they be enough?

Author

GDIModerate

Date

2005-04-15T07:46:12-06:00

ID

137419

Comment

GDI: My guess is there will not be enough. There haven't been enough in many years. Very few candidates who run in the City of Jackson against Democrats have gotten over 16000 votes from Republicans/others - in any cycle of the election. There is a huge "blue" streak running down the Delta, through Jackson, and on into AL and Montgomery. And that is the bottom line!

Author

tortoise

Date

2005-04-15T08:12:18-06:00