Inquirer editorial: Democrat donkey deal smacks of nepotism

The biggest hits of the Democratic National Convention - besides the Clintons, the Obamas, Cory Booker, and Gold Star father Khizr Khan - might have been the 57 colorful Donkeys Around Town.

The fiberglass figures, each representing a state, U.S. territory, or Democrats living abroad, attracted both conventioneers and area residents. Coupled with a scavenger hunt app that had 2,213 participants combing the city Pokémon GO-style, the donkeys dressed up and showed off Philly, drawing thousands to shops, restaurants, museums, and public squares that visitors otherwise might have missed.

The donkey program was the brainchild of former Gov. Ed Rendell, chairman of the DNC's host committee, and it would have been a home run if the man dubbed "Fast Eddie" didn't take his son, Jesse, around the bases with him. Maybe there was no collusion. But Jesse Rendell, co-owner of Scavify, the Fishtown company that produced and supplied the scavenger hunt app, acknowledged that his father "was aware of our business." He said Angela Val, deputy executive director of the host committee, may also have played a role in picking Scavify.

Call it nepotism, patronage, or expediency; it leaves a pasty taste in your mouth - like the papier-mâché poop that anti-fracking activists placed beneath the donkeys. Giving the boss' son a contract and declining to divulge its worth is as disappointing as the host committee's refusal to reveal who helped pony up $60 million for last month's four-day extravaganza until 60 days after the convention.

The committee argued successfully in Common Pleas Court that the 60-day deadline in federal election law supersedes Pennsylvania's Right-to-Know Law. The case was heard by a judge who was a "key member" of Rendell's gubernatorial campaign and transition team. The ruling seemed to ignore that the committee had agreed to provide quarterly fund-raising reports as part of a deal to obtain a $15 million line of credit from a city agency.

The Scavify contract is a tiny piece of that puzzle, but the way it was handled is symptomatic of the who-do-you-know way that business is too often handled in Philadelphia. What about transparency and giving everyone an equal shot?

Leslie Bari, who with her husband, Jon, owns and operates The Constitutional, a walking-tour company, said she had not known about the donkeys or the app until they sprung up. Like Scavify, the Baris develop and provide scavenger hunts for school groups and corporate educational tours. Bari said "it would have been fair" for the Democrats to open the process to any business that could have met or surpassed the committee's expectations. She's right.

The donkeys were an unbridled success on many levels - tourism, public art, and social and technological interaction. "The power of public art is to engage the community," said Joan Reilly, self-proclaimed "mother of the donkeys" and chief operating officer of the Mural Arts program. "The donkeys really engaged the public."

The iconic Democratic Party emblems also provided "input and recognition" to the 28 artists who painted and decorated the four-legged figures, she said. But it was for relatively meager compensation because the program didn't have a corporate sponsor.

The donkeys - some of which will be around for a while - gave the city and the DNC a buzz. Too bad their display wasn't handled more democratically.