Tim Stewart: New Britain's 9-5 Mayor

by: spazeboy

Thu Oct 25, 2007 at 07:00:00 AM EDT

New Britain's Mayor is shocked -- shocked -- that anyone would be offended at his use of the word "bitch" to describe a constituent.  He's not sorry he said it, however, and his excuse is that it was late and he was woken up in the middle of the night by a frustrated constituent.  Is that really an excuse?  If you're mayor and there's a crisis (in this case, a flood), people will call you at all hours.  These people who call you will be upset, and they'll be looking to you for help.  These people want you to be a calm, confident and reassuring leader.  A good mayor can be that -- whether he's being cursed out or not.

Is calling the mayor at home in the middle of the night going to be more productive than waiting 'til morning?  Probably not.  Is it rude?  Possibly.  Is it grounds for being described as "crazy people" or to be called a "bitch"?  I don't think so. 

Then again, I don't run this city:

Assuming that he isn't so naive as to believe that his conversation with a dispatcher wasn't being recorded, isn't it fair to raise questions as to what kinds of things that Mayor Stewart might be saying when he isn't being recorded? Isn't it fair to wonder whether Mayor Stewart is really cut out for this job, with all of its ups and downs?

Even though the constituent calls he complains about were coming in at 3am, that's hardly justification for his remarks. If only being Mayor of New Britain were but a nine-to-five job. I imagine that running a city or town is tough work, and mostly thankless, yet there are still many people willing to do the job.

Mayor Tim Stewart, as revealed by his own actions, is not one of them.

And he's said himself that he is tired of the troubles that come with being mayor. 

If you watch that video above, he doesn't apologize.  Mark Davis says that the Mayor described it as a "normal reaction to a profanity-laced call in the middle of the night."  Well, if the mayor's normal reaction to constituent complaints in a crisis is to call up a dispatcher to complain about the constituents using colorful language...just imagine what his idea of an abnormal reaction might be.

Does no one feel sorry for poor Mayor Stewart?  He was sleeping!  And some meanie exposed his poor constituent relations before an election!  Doesn't that make him the real victim here? 

I also think it's kind of funny how Mayor Stewart complains about an "asshole on the fire department."  I am not sure that I've actually met any New Britain Firefighters, but I happen to know that they get calls for help at all hours of the night.  One difference between the firefighters and Mayor Stewart is that the firefighters care about the city and its residents--no matter when they call.  That, in my opinion, makes the New Britain firefighters not assholes.  Just sayin'.

On the flip:  The original video of Mayor Stewart's controversial remarks and Colin McEnroe explains Mayor Stewart's behavior.

McEnroe's analysis:

Mayor Tim Stewart leads his city through a crisis !!

Actually, Mayor Stewart is simply echoing the centuries-old counsel of Sun-Tzu.

In time of crisis, you must

-- Get as much sleep as possible

-- Threaten your underlings with death if they disturb you.

-- Refer to complaining females as "bitches."