The 'burbs

More fallout for Amherst supervisor

   There's no love lost between Amherst Town Supervisor Satish Mohan and the town's union leadership.

   But Mohan's personal involvement in contract negotiations with town highway and police union leaders has been described as a terrible experience by most everyone. Wheeling and dealing has never been a strength of Mohan's, who has stated his belief that unions should simply give up their perks and fringe benefits because it's the morally right thing to do.

   When Council Member Guy Marlette asked to be allowed to negotiate a contract settlement with the Amherst Police Club to try and avert an arbitration decision next month, Mohan said he believed Marlette might be able to take advantage of his goodwill with the Police Department to reach an agreement favorable to the town. Marlette had been endorsed by the police union when he ran for his seat last year.

   But when the negotiated contract came back with concessions that Mohan considered seriously Lacking, he went on the attack, publicly accusing Marlette - without evidence - of "corruption" and a conflict of interest.

   The police contract does include a number of cost-saving concessions, primarily affecting newer police officers, but it maintains major police benefits like fully covered health insurance for most officers and the ability to cash out 330 days of sick pay upon retirement.

   Was Mohan right to verbalize his personal suspicions in this case, or did he cross the line?

   -- Sandra Tan

It's his party and he'll change if he wants to

   Amherst Town Supervisor Satish Mohan presented himself as a proud, independent Republican when he ran for office two years ago. In one speech, he said, “The Republican Party stands for less government, less taxes, more business and more jobs. My agenda is all about these Republican values.”

   Well, Mohan may still believe in many of these same values, but he won’t be espousing them as a Republican anymore. He confirmed Tuesday that he intends to join the Democratic Party because the Democrats are more likely to represent the interests of the broader public. He also said his change of political stripes won’t change what he stands for, but he hopes it will enable him to finally accomplish the agenda he set out to achieve when he was elected to office.

   Whether this change will truly help him, or only hurt him, remains to be seen.

  --- Sandra Tan

Election dissection

  To sum up political season in the region's largest suburbs ...

   As of January, there will be no Republicans on the Tonawanda Town Board, completing a seismic power shift in what had been an historically Republican town.

   Democrats = Cheektowaga.

   Orchard Park voters liked Mary Travers Murphy enough to elect her supervisor two years ago, but not enough to give her even one supporter on the GOP-controlled Town Board.

   In Hamburg, Supervisor Steven Walters will have at least one ally to vote with him - and maybe two once the absentee ballots are countted - after voters put a non-Democrat on the Town Board for the first time in nearly 20 years.

  Amherst voters neither affirmed nor repudiated the always-interesting two-year tenure of Supervisor Satish Mohan. It's anybody's guess as to whether the reconfigured Town Board will back him. And also, given the chance to spend $15 million on open land and a golf course, the voters politely declined.

  --- Bruce Andriatch

Apathy reigns on election day

   We spend a lot of time around here getting the skinny on the men and women running for office in the 'burbs. The stories about who the candidates are and what they stand for in every elected job from town supervisor to assessor are a staple in the paper at this time of year.

   But when the polls close Tuesday night, we'll marvel at how few votes are actually cast for the people who will run town governments, the people who decide how to spend your money.

   In some cases, it's apathy. As has been well-documented, even presidential elections don't draw like they used to. In local races, the fact that many candidates have no opposition or only token opposition is certainly part of it.

   But there are some hotly contested campaigns being waged in the suburbs and the populace will greet most of them with a yawn. Why? If all politics is local, why don't more people vote when it comes to local politics?

   --- Bruce Andriatch

   

Gimme a P!

   

   At a Town Board meeting last week, Amherst Supervisor Satish Mohan launched an angry tirade about the nature of "dirty politics" in response to accusations by political opponents that he was adding patronage jobs to his 2008 budget.

   Mohan said in commentary edited below:

   "Has politics become so dirty that we can't think any honest or true things? I have read in Webster's dictionary that the definition of a politician is ... one who pursues personal or partisan gain, often through crafty or dishonest means.

   "A politician (should be) one who dedicates himself to public service, does it honestly, diligently and selflessly. I promise to everybody I am working for this definition and I will keep working for this definition."

   Curious about Mohan's statement, I opened up Webster's dictionary upon return to the newsroom and, indeed, Mohan quoted Webster's definition of "politician" with great accuracy.

   The word "politician" - and especially the phrase "career politician" - has picked up such negative connotations that it's usually found in campaign attack ads leading up to election day.

   Seasoned politicians refer to themselves by a different "P" word: public servant. It sounds more noble, honest, and trustworthy.

   Why the word games? Will "politician" forever remain a dirty word?

   --- Sandra Tan

Amherst voters not kind to Kindel

   In the Republican primary for Amherst, six-term incumbent Council Member Bill Kindel finished last among five candidates. The veteran lawmaker has apparently worn out his welcome among those who feel that new blood is needed to get results on the Town Board.

   The primary was a victory for the Amherst Republican Party, whose slate of endorsed candidates gained top votes.

   Mark Klyczek, a candidate supported by Supervisor Satish Mohan but subjected to a negative hit piece by the Republican Party, finished fourth. A vote for Klyczek may have been a vote for Mohan, or simply an indication of anti-incumbent fervor.

   Perhaps Kindel's public and well-publicized run-ins with Mohan during board meetings have not been overlooked by voters who have expressed an interest in supporting a board that exhibits more professionalism and respect.

   What do voters want in the makeup of the next Town Board? And what message did Republican
voters send by supporting Barry Weinstein, Roy Wixson and Guy Marlette for office?

     --- Sandra Tan

   

Chaos in Amherst

Even with a program, it's hard to tell the players in Amherst's tricky Town Board races  this year.

On the surface, party labels might suggest Democrats support Democrats and Republicans are working for their own.

But since the the arrival of Supervisor Satish Mohan two years ago, the political cross currents are running strong.

   Examples:

  * Council Member Bill Kindel, a veteran six-term Republican, is challenging his party in the primary election, saying his values "are in direct conflict" with [fellow Republican] Mohan. Kindel also talked about becoming a Democrat and courted  Democratic County Elections Commissioner and Amherst Town Democratic Chairman Dennis Ward, brother of Amherst Council Member Dan Ward.

The party switch didn't happen, but indications are that Kindel and the Democrats would be comfortable if he wins one of the three open seats on the board.

* Mohan, who complains that he needs a board that will help enact his agenda, backs two of the endorsed Republican candidates, but has decided to support a newcomer, nursing home
administrator Mark Klyczek instead of a third party candidate, Guy R. Marlette.

And, this week, Amherst Republicans released a letter to the press accusing Mohan of violating campaign financing rules.

What's going on?

According to Mohan, both Democrats and Republicans are now opposing him.

-- Thomas Dolan