City Council fight is another indication that the Funky Bunch is out of control!!!

Instead of writing some rant regarding Bill Skaggs suing Kansas City, I figured it would be more productive simply to outline a few main points:

Funkhouser is behind the lawsuit. Arguing to the contrary is just insulting and it's something THAT NO ONE BELIEVES . . . On a personal note, I'm sad to see that - at such an advanced age, scumbag councilman Bill Skaggs is still taking marching orders from a guy who might be one of the most unpopular Kansas City Mayors in a generation.

Skaggs is alienating the Northland. I know these suburban folk are always somewhat out of sync with the rest of Kansas City but the move to back an unpopular Mayor will inevitably backfire on the entire community. Example: Cleaver used the place as a trash dump because the perception was that the Northland didn't have much in common with the rest of KC or the interests of anyone else at heart. Coincidentally, anyone who knows a bit about the Northland realizes that they're facing the same big city problems as the rest of KC proper . . . Meth, gangs and increased crime plague the neighborhood. This isn't the early 90's anymore and the Northland population boom is history. Like it or not, the demographics that Funkhouser and Skaggs are exploiting are quickly changing and Great White Northland isn't (completely) the enclave of support that Republicans and/or race-baiting Mayors can rely.

THE LAWSUIT IS A DESPERATE, DIVISIVE AND DUMB MOVE. NOW THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT FUNKHOUSER AND HIS SUPPORTERS ARE INCAPABLE OF COMPROMISE OR FORMING CONSENSUS!!!

Mayor Funkhouser doesn't keep his word. Folks wonder how the situation reached this pitch. Other Mayors have canned City Managers, without being outvoted, without half the City up in arms and without a lawsuit. The Star made a weak attempt to compare the current Cauthen controversy to a previous City Manager crisis faced by Charles Wheeler. They failed to mention that Wheeler didn't have nearly every minority leader in Kansas City lined up against him. In fact, it's worth repeating that Wheeler was instrumental in garnering more access to City Hall on behalf of KC's Minority community. But more importantly, the fact that this thing has to be decided in court is just an indication that Funkhouser can't get along with anybody but his wife. Like every other politico Mayor Funky talks out of both sides of his mouth but the difference is that he actually seems to believe what he's saying. So far Mayor Funky has betrayed the Latino Community, Light Rail voters and now his own City Council . . . His inability to keep his word and honor the deals that he makes is what has pushed this situation to a legal battle. A more skilled politico could have moved to oust Cauthen under the table but Funky has proven time again that he can't be trusted to keep his end of any bargain and that's a big part of the reason why the vast majority of the Council has united against him.

This lawsuit and the Cauthen controversy is the last stand for Mayor Funky's supporters. The Mayor's advisers (or lack thereof) have backed the guy into a corner. Mayor Funky had a second opportunity to let this one slide but the transparent move on the part of Skaggs in support of his political daddy is a clear signal that Funkhouser would rather battle with opponents than work toward a settlement. It's a brave and stubborn move that's sure to elicit a lot of talk radio support . . . Too bad most of the listeners live in Johnson County and outlying suburbs. Additionally, my favorite part in all of this is that the Mayor's talk of transparency has amounted to another betrayal . . . Mayor Funky has learned to keep his mouth shut and he won't talk about any controversy. It's a good strategy but it's not at all close to what he promised KC voters who have grown increasingly antsy at the public lectures he tries to pass off as forums. Still, the Mayor and his people have went "all in" on this issue and if they lose, if the Council stays united, if The Black Community continues their support of Cauthen then Mayor Funkhouser has ultimately made himself a lame duck and can't really push bigger parts of his agenda like light rail or a mandatory requirement that all visitors to the Mayor's office must give Gloria Squitiro a foot massage.