I was minding my own business, watching the Hallmark Channel, when I predicted the guy who you thought was going to be the world’s loneliest man ends up with the gal of his dreams. On Christmas Day, no less!
I know, I know. I said I wasn’t going to predict Hallmark Channel movies anymore. But I couldn’t help myself. Well, as long as I’m back to being a swami, I might as well update last Sunday’s predictions:
Rivers won’t do both
I predicted last week that state Sen. Ann Rivers would run for the newly created county council chair position.
Remember, the charter that just passed will change county government from three commissioners to five councilors. Four of those council positions will be elected by the voters in the districts where they live. One will be elected countywide — sort of like a county mayor — and that’s the one Rivers is going to run for.
Rivers made it official a few days after the prediction, but she also dropped a bit of a bombshell. Not only was she running for county council, but if she wins, she’s not giving up her state senator’s job.
What the …
“Rivers, who anticipates continuing as a state senator, sees no difficulty in handling both jobs.”
The idea that Rivers would do both wasn’t adding up to me. Sure, it’s legal; and sure, someone else in the state has been doing the exact same thing, but … really?
I mean, Rivers has blasted fellow state Sen. Don Benton for, well, being state senator and working for our county as the environmental services director. We all know by now his crony buddies — Commissioners David Madore and Tom Mielke — put Benton in that $100,000-a-year job even though Benton couldn’t tell the difference between fertilizer and Fritos.
So why would Rivers essentially do the same thing she criticized Benton for?
We quickly put up an unscientific online poll to see what readers thought of this two-elected-positions-for-one-person concept. It wasn’t pretty. More than 85 percent were saying no way.
So, is she really keeping both jobs? My prediction is no. What Rivers likely will do — if she is elected — is keep the Senate job only until the seat comes up for election in 2016.
Here’s why I think she will do it this way:
• If she left her Senate seat after winning the county council seat, someone would have to be appointed to the Senate seat. And that means Madore and Mielke (oh, those pesky M&M boys) would play a major role in who gets it.
The county would have a much better chance of getting someone halfway normal elected than what they would get if someone were appointed.
• Rivers has some business she wants to get finished up in Olympia, and when you’re officially a lame duck, the stick you swing isn’t quite as big. So it’s likely Rivers will wait a little while before making an official announcement on this.
Benton’s ouster
Last week, I predicted that Benton’s Department of Environmental Services is on its way out. Which means Benton is on his way out. Madore actually is in favor of this, because he realizes the wacky hiring of Benton is destroying him politically. But Mielke — who is pretty much clueless on pretty much everything — wants to pass an ordinance to try and protect Benton’s department and Benton.
Now, I’d be shocked if Mielke actually came up with this idea on his own. Mostly because I can’t remember the last time Mielke came up with any creative idea. No, I don’t count his idea to increase his auto allowance to $700 a month as creative. Take a guess who gave him the idea to save Boss Hogg Benton?
So, with one in favor and one against, the entire thing now rests with newly elected Commissioner Jeanne Stewart. It’s difficult to imagine she would want to go against the will of the people who voted the charter in to avoid this exact kind of power play, but time will tell.
OK, I’m exhausted. Back to the Hallmark Channel.
