‘Nacho #19’
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’
Some more 2010 campaign news today, mayoral candidate Vincent Gray is expected to receive the endorsement of the District’s firefighter and police unions. This isn’t exactly shocking news, given the often contentious relationship between these unions, management and Mayor Adrian Fenty. Both DC Fire and EMS and the Metropolitan Police Department have seen their share of controversies during Fenty’s tenure. Kristopher Baumann, the head of the DC Fraternal Order of Police has been a vocal critic of MPD Chief Cathy Lanier.
What impact will this have on the campaign? Hard to say at this point. Fenty will surely be touting the recent decrease in homicides and violent crime, this move may work to muddle that message a bit. However, Fenty’s campaign will likely emphasize that it was the leadership from MPD brass that has led to the recent decreases, and that it’s unwise to change management at this point.
In any event, Gray will likely have a larger base of volunteers to call upon, but again it’s quite early and it’ll be a very long summer.
