MJM: Not too embarrassed

Alanna

From today’s edition of the Potomac News/Manassas Journal Messenger:

OUR OPINION
Published: July 24, 2008

As noted in a recent editorial in a nearby national newspaper, it’s been a year since the Board of Supervisors in Prince William County “launched its drive to hound, harass and humiliate illegal immigrants.” The editorial cites what it calls the toxic effects of the board’s resolution against illegal immigration and claims that “across the nation,” our county has become known as an intolerant community.

We have said before that the resolution doesn’t accomplish anything valuable and the machinations necessary to pursue the policy set by that resolution — like all the hoops through which the county police must jump — have certainly put an unnecessary strain the pocketbooks of taxpayers.

But your local paper agrees with the national newspaper that the board’s action is embarrassing for most of us who live here.

It’s not necessarily this newspaper’s job to practice boosterism and, certainly, part of our job is to point out some of the blemishes we see when the community looks in the mirror, but a year after the board’s regrettable move, we thought it might be appropriate to remind ourselves of the county’s attributes of which we can be proud.

So we turned to the Prince William Regional Chamber of Commerce for some assessments that are far from embarrassing:

1. Our location: We are close the capital of the free world and home to many federal government employees. We have access to good housing and affordable office space.

2. Transportation: Yes, we have issues, but we also have access to three major airports and two smaller ones and a county government that, in the past, has stepped up to build needed some road improvements like the Prince William Parkway and the extended Va. 234.

3. Education: The county is home to a university research and development facility at George Mason and a huge public school system, where teachers work hard to foster success among 72,000 students. (That’s more people than a small city.)

4. Quality of life: We have a couple of symphony orchestras, several community choral groups a thriving theater community, national parks, local parks and — despite the impression left by the
resolution — a diverse population that brings much to any table. We also have a huge heart, demonstrated by ACTS and SERVE and many smaller groups that focus on taking care of those in need.

Yes, that 1-year-old resolution is an ugly zit, but the overall reflection from our mirror shows us a pretty good place to live, work and play.

Profile of Chief Deane in Post

Elena

Since the “crackdown” on illegal immigration began a year ago, our respected and beloved Chief Charlie Deane has been placed on the frontline of an ugly political battle. He is a good soldier and has tried to carry out this ill-conceived order with as much integrity and intelligence as possible. Without Chief Deane at the helm of the police department, I’m certain that the morale of the department would have slumped during the turmoil and the county would have experienced real disorder. I have been very grateful to him for not quitting the job even when he was attacked by Chairman Corey Stewart and nativist blogger Greg Letiecq for the stupid charge of committing “treason” for attending an information session about the immigration policy organized by the Mexican consulate. He tried his best to warn the Board just before the first vote on the Immigration Resolution on July 10th that the Resolution would lead to “unintended consequences.” In his brief speech, he pretty much predicted what’s happened to our county in the past year since Corey Stewart and John Stirrup decided to use illegal immigration to get themselves reelected.

Kristen Mack has written an extensive profile of Chief Deane published on the front page of the Washington Post Metro section today. It’s full of good personal details about the Chief, but there are enormous holes in the story. It fails to address the crux of the matter. Chief Deane is in the “uneasy position” that he is in because of Stewart’s leadership tactics: grandstanding, lying, and bullying. The Chairman, bless his heart, has no real regard for the wisdom and expertise of professional public servants in the government such as Chief Deane or County Executive Craig Gerhart. As long as Stewart engages in governing according to the Rovean principle of a “permanent campaign,” many good people in our government will be in “uneasy positions” and will consider leaving. We must find a way of containing the damage done by Stewart’s failure in leadership so that great public servants like Chief Deane can thrive in his job instead of being stymied by having to spend their time ducking and dodging Corey’s crap and Greg’s army.