Unitary Government/Dictatorship vs. Separation of Powers

The fact that DC is located in the same place where the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the federal government are located ought to provide opportunities for analysis and observation about the abuse of power when checks and balances aren't present.

The Washington Post is justly proud for its role in bringing down a president, Richard Nixon, whose abuse of executive power was unprecedented.

Yet the lesson of Richard Nixon or even more recent examples under President Bush and co-president Richard Cheney seems to go unheeded locally, at least by the Washington Post editorial board, when it comes to the Executive and Legislative branches of our local municipal government in Washington, DC.

The Post, as I have written before, is depressed because despite all that they publish about abuse of power and bad government at the municipal level, particularly in DC (but also in other jurisdictions like Prince George's County Maryland) and nothing changes--the scoundrels stay in office.

Therefore, judging by the paper's editorials, they have come to believe that if there is a benevolent and able dictator in place then things will be better than with messy and corrupt democracy.

The problem with this belief I suppose is that the Post believes that Adrian Fenty is, if not benevolent, extremely knowledgeable and infused with all the right ideas and vision to carry the city forward.

Alas, that isn't the case. Plus for the most part the DC Council acts like toadies, and hasn't developed an independent capacity and desire for excellence. From time to time the Council manages to challenge the Mayor.

Most recently this was over the appointment of Ximena Hartsock as Director of the Department of Parks and Recreation. See "Fenty's Pick to Lead Parks Agency Rejected: Council Vote, Coming After Accusations of Bias, Aggravates Relations With Mayor" and this editorial, "Grudge Voting: D.C. Council members are peeved. The city pays a price" from the Post.

They aren't happy. And neither is Peter Nickles, who like how Vice President Cheney was more like a Co-President, as Attorney General somehow feels it's his business to be concerned about how the City Council chooses to affirm or deny appointments.

If that doesn't communicate to us the absolute necessity of making the DC Attorney General a separately elected position in order that the officeholder best meet sometimes conflicting duties of representing the government and representing "the people" who through their sanctioned fealty empower government, I don't know what is.

But the reality is that you need checks and balances. And Jonetta Rose Barras, in "FENTY RESPONSIBLE FOR REJECTION OF NOMINEE," discusses the real problems that are going on with the DC Dept. of Parks and Recreation and the lack of background in the field on the part of Ms. Hartsock--and therefore why she wasn't a good choic. Regardless of her ethnicity, and the buffoonery of some of the councilmembers or those testifying, this is about the direction of the department.

WRT parks and recreation issues for example, the State of Maryland requires that each county in the state must create a Land Preservation, Parks and Recreation Plan, which must be updated on a 6 year cycle and submitted to the state. Typically, at the County level, this plan acts as the master plan for the local department of recreation and parks.

So on most any county website in the State of Maryland you can find the county's park and recreation master plan. Try doing that for DC, or finding a document that is as well defined. (Arlington County, VA of course also has its master plan for parks and recreation on its website.)

-- the Planning section from the DC Department of Parks and Recreation website has no links to an overall master plan although it does have capital improvement plans

-- although there is a separate initiative of DPR, the DC Office of Planning, the National Park Service, and the National Capital Planning Commission, called Capital Space, on an overall plan, but no draft plans have been released as of yet)

-- Arlington County's Dept. of Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources has three master plans on Public Spaces, Urban Forests, and Public Art, plus master plans for individual park facilities

-- and from the Montgomery County Maryland Parks and Recreation Department, there is the Park, Recreation, and Open Space Master Plan: A Local Land Preservation and Recreation Plan and this "old" document which still guides the agenda, "Parks for Tomorrow": A Visionary Supplement to the 1998 Park, Recreation, and Open Space Master Plan

Gary Imhoff, in his introduction to the current issue of themail, discusses the absolute power-dictatorial firings of staffers by Ximena Hartsock, and by Chancellor Rhee.

You'd think the Post would be up in arms about the lack of due process, the need for careful review, etc.

I wrote on an education email list last week this question:

With student enrollments roughly constant, and student-teacher ratios generally favorable, and an attrition rate of maybe 300 teachers per year, what was the justification for hiring 900 teachers?

Frankly, Rhee is the one who should be getting canned, not receiving accolades about her great efforts. Especially given the fact that the school system's budget for this fiscal year is higher than the budget for last year.