Reynolds Brown must step down
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Reynolds Brown must step down
John Featherman
Since 1999, Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown has been a staunch advocate for Philadelphia’s children. She was one of the city’s leading forces in the much needed merger of the parks and recreation departments. A former dancer/company member of Philadanco, Reynolds Brown has been an important voice for the city’s arts and cultural communities, and, to this day, she remains active as an ex-officio member of Philadanco’s board. Her menu-labeling legislation, requiring chain restaurants to post nutritional and calorie information, has helped to disqualify Philadelphia as one of the fattest cities in America.
That is the Blondell Reynolds Brown that has been a champion to Philadelphians.
But there is another Blondell Reynolds Brown. That is the one who is expected and required to complete accurate and thorough campaign finance reports, where she abides by the law. That Reynolds Brown is not looking so good right now. Only days ago considered to be a front runner in 2015 to become Philadelphia’s first female mayor (and its first African-American female mayor), Reynolds Brown is now in the fight of her political life.
This is not Reynolds Brown’s first brush with the Board of Ethics. In a candidates’ debate sponsored by WHYY in 2011, she admitted in this audio that there’s “simply no excuse – we have responsibility to read the documents that come before us. No matter how busy we are, we have to take the time to read before we sign and then to make sure that they are filed on time.”
Daily News columnist Christine Flowers shared with me on my open Facebook page thread: “Citing an 'error in judgment' will get you dispensation from a Catholic priest. It is insufficient to excuse what amounts to an ethical violation. Of course, in this city, ethics are optional.”
Former City Council candidate and 2015 GOP mayoral hopeful Joe McColgan sent me this in an email: “Mayor Nutter should call for her resignation from City Council entirely, and at the very least he should call on her to relinquish her leadership role on council. Frankly, the entire Council should be doing the same, Republican and Democrat alike. If they don’t, we can only assume all the conversation regarding ethics and transparency and reform over the past few years has been nothing more than a lie.”
That sounds pretty mayoral to me.
Too many surveys are telling us that the public doesn’t trust politicians and that the trust is at an all time low. We are tired of politicians who say, “Do what I say and not what I do.” People take notice when politicians exempt themselves from the laws they create.
When Richard Nixon was implicated in Watergate, he had a choice. He could have called in the military and had them protect him from being removed from office. But he didn’t do that because this is America – not a banana republic. Americans have a cultural norm of behaving a certain way. Rather than using the army or the police to shield one from physical removal of office, American politicians respect and employ the cultural norm of stepping down when it’s time to move on.
The people that contributed to Reynolds Brown’s campaign expected that money to be used for the purpose of her reelection. She has admitted that some wasn’t used that way. Average Philadelphians who read about this sad case may never again feel comfortable financing candidates’ elections. That’s unfortunate – because this is not the time, in Philadelphia or in Washington – when we can accept the public’s erosion of confidence in government.
Reynolds Brown: Please step down.
Num Nut Nutter's pal. Just another example of the trash that philly calls city council. All of them are toppers. there is no real work going on all you see are the headlines. If you look at what "Blondie" Really did for the children of philly you would find that all she did was go to a few free dinners that the taxpayers paid for and nothing else. Ask the kids of philly??? And we are paying these people "DROP" Money to retire??? The Black Citizens of philly will never get what is due them until they get rid of the black trash that call themselves politicans who want to help all of the citizens of the city.— rduexpress- Clearly, these disclosure forms had to be sent through the U.S. Mail, which should make it a federal crime.— TheGuyfromPhilly
- Political party is irrelevant; town has been "corrupt and contented" forever, under both parties. A more useful solution is to remove all discretionary funding, aka WAM, from Council; publish the budget in an understandable format so earmarks, aka political favors, can be clearly seen; reduce Council salaries to about $60K (another discussion topic) and assign each Councilperson a modest, equipped office and one administrative aide at a salary not to exceed $60K (sorry, Latrice). No vehicles.— servetus
- Please, stop calling Blondell Reynolds Brown a crook and a fraud. It insults bona-fide crooks and frauds. Calling her a Philly politician is enough. They are lower than crooks and frauds.— DonQ
- Blondell Reynolds Brown is the first recipient of the Milton Street Award, an award, given when circumstances arise, which recognizes mephitic civic service in Philadelphia and surrounding communities.— Cazptain Philadelphia
- I feel Blondell's pain. Since she's going to lose it, I was just wondering if her C.O.L.A. could be sent my way. I've had to tough it out for more than 5 years without a raise, and I don't get a free City Car. My family's barely eating above the Ethiopian/North Korean average here. An annual C.O.L.A. would be a nice touch right about now. Before I forget - Impeach Nutter.
— bad joe s - Time for her to go. Another politician who believes Rules are for "other people". Let's not forget that she previously got an "exemption" to drive her daughter to school OUTSIDE THE CITY in her city-paid car before she comes to work. Council members earn decent money. Why are we still paying their travel expenses to get to work?— dee99999
Comment removed.- GAC still has the best comment here. Sadly that is where this country is going. Whether Brown steps down or not, she should still be tried for fraud. She violated the law. While we're at it, go after every city politician-regardless of race. They all have something to hide, and quite honestly if you keep electing people like this, nothing will change.
Glad I don't live in the city. If I did, I'd be out of there faster than a rat on a sinking ship.— ena1977 - There is a petition on the White House petition page for term limit on Philadelphia city council members
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/put-term-limit-city-council-members-philadelphia-pennsylvania/FGCTWwRQ— aholmesy44 - Of course she should, but his is Philly, the land of graft corruption and money changing hands and union control.....No wonder our schools and our city government stinks....this is just another day in Philly by the sleeze— nuggett
- When I read the headline I took it literally, my bad. Too bad. To the defenders commenting here, would it matter if she used $300,000 instead of $3000? It's not the amount of the fraud, it's THE FRAUD itself that makes it a crime. Yet if it was a $300,000 fraud she would not be in her office this morning and the DA's office needs to recognise this fact.— iodine
- Bad article, had to research what Brown is really accused of.
That said, she should resign immediately. No excuse for behavior.— woodin - Forget whose side she's on or what her race is. I know that's hard. She's a crook who took campaign contributions, didn't report stuff in and out, and used said funds to keep her own house from being foreclosed on. What am I missing? She isn't paid enough to pay her mortgage? How many months does one miss to be $30k in arrears? And what else is she behind in (aka has not paid that most people do)? She's a crook like everyone else and it does affect her ability to do her job. She should (and probably will be forced to) step down. And try paying her bills like the rest of us.— PhillySubsMac
- This has nothing to do with race and everything to do with someone who broke the law! She has done some good deeds but so did Nixon. She has violated the trust of Philadelphia.— Joschmo
