Paul Giorgio: Ed Augustus is the City Manager
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
The City Manager search wasn’t as smooth as it should have been, and that is for a combination of reasons. The search pool wasn’t as large as it should be for the second largest city in New England. We only saw the three finalists interviewed. David Moore, the current City Solicitor was the steady choice; Oscar Rodriquez was the imaginative choice and Peter Graczykowski was a numbers guy.
What they all had in common was that the editorial writers at the Telegram & Gazette did a number on them for no apparent reason. Maybe they had a favorite, as is rumored, who did not make the cut. We will never know, since the deliberations at the T&G, make a Conclave of the College of Cardinals seem open.
Council Not Happy
After interviewing the finalists, the Council voted to have the Mayor reach out to Augustus. The vote on that was 10 to 1. The only one opposed was Councilor Konnie Lukes who has built her career, not on helping the city move forward, but by just saying no to anything that helps the city move forward. Why do some people take pleasure in being the odd man out? At some point in 30 years, you have to say yes to one thing. Konnie “Councilor No” Lukes, has not found that issue yet.
But she is the reason that Ed Augustus came to make his pledge not to be a candidate when he was first appointed. A pledge, I’m sure he recognizes, he should not have made.
At the end of the process, Ed Augustus kept his word and his integrity. That is a characteristic, I find important in politics.
Augustus is More Than Qualified
Ed Augustus is eminently qualified to be the City Manager, just as Mike O’Brien was. Let’s go through his resume briefly. He served on the Worcester School Committee for a number of years, where he learned about the school department and its budget. He was Chief of Staff to Congressman Jim McGovern, where he learned about the Federal Government. Later, he went to work during the Clinton Administration in the Department of Education for Secretary Richard Riley. Augustus also served for several years as a State Senator from Worcester. The state budget is over $30 billion, far larger than Worcester’s. He also has nonprofit experience having run the Children’s Defense Fund in California and working at the College of the Holy Cross as Director of Government and Community Affairs.
Worcester - or any city for that matter - does not need a numbers guy to lead; they need a leader. And that’s what you get with Ed Augustus. In the nine months that he has been serving as City Manager, he has brought a breath of fresh air into city hall; he has literally changed its complexion, opening opportunities to Worcester growing minority communities.
He is not afraid to engage the community in tough discussions and when he makes a mistake, he is not afraid to take ownership.
Nine city councilors under the leadership of Mayor Joe Petty made the right choice in selecting Ed Augustus.
I am reminded of the old adage about those who like both sausage and government; you should see neither being made.
Paul Giorgio is a longtime Democratic Party Activist who has worked on numerous campaigns. He was a Lead Advance Person for President Clinton & Vice President Gore. He was Deputy Director of Special Events for President Clinton’s first Inauguration. He has been elected a delegate to numerous Democratic National Conventions and recently served as one of President Obama’s representatives on the Platform Committee. In 2013 he was chosen as a Presidential Elector. He is the President of Pagio, Inc., publishers of Pulse Magazine, Vitality Magazine and Worcester Medicine.
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