Friday, April 24, 2009
All Oldies All The Time
Cohen, Herenton: more of the same? And where are the young?
Posted by John Branston on Fri, Apr 24, 2009 at 10:13 AM
A lot can be said about a theoretical political match-up of Steve Cohen and Willie Herenton, but three days after the mayor's surprise announcement, what's striking about Cohen-Herenton is not how different they are but how much alike they are.
The differences are as obvious as black and white and tall and short.
But the similarities stand out, too.
When the 2010 congressional election rolls around, both will be over 60. Both have been eligible for AARP membership since 2000 or earlier (disclosure: me too), and by 2011, Cohen, like Herenton, can start drawing Social Security.
Both are Democrats.
Both are male and single.
Both are career public officials who got their first public jobs in Memphis in the 1970s -- Herenton as school superintendent and Cohen as a member of the Shelby County Commission.
Both held on to an elected job -- Cohen in the state senate and Herenton in the mayor's office -- so long that burnout and fatigue and ineffectiveness became issues.
Both won key elections with less than a majority of the vote – Herenton the 2007 mayor’s race (42 percent) and Cohen the 2006 Democratic primary (32 percent).
Both have been household names in Memphis for years. Google "Steve Cohen" and Memphis and you get 45,400 entries. Google "Willie Herenton" and Memphis and you get 34,700 entries. Google "Fred Smith" and Memphis and you get a mere 19,900 entries.
Both formed their fundamental philosophies in the 1960s and 1970s, when the big issues were the war in Vietnam, desegregation, busing, and Watergate.
Both have childhood memories of teeter-totters instead of Twitters.
Both were around when Stax and Elvis and disco were alive and well.
Both remember Willie Mays, Jackie Robinson, Bill Russell, and Jim Brown.
Both are three times as old as Derrick Rose and old enough to be Josh Pastner's father.
Both are tied to the old guard of the Democratic Party, which makes them formidable candidates. They're both "80 percenters" -- politicians who can win the all-important 80 percent or more in multiple precincts in an election.
Both have aspired to hold other political jobs -- county mayor for Cohen, city school superintendent redux for Herenton.
Both have long associations with Republican senator Lamar Alexander and Democrat A C Wharton, who are also in the over-60 club.
Being young and bright is no guarantee of success in politics. Witness the disgraced former mayor of Detroit, Kwame Kilpatrick, and Cohen’s vanquished opponent Nikki Tinker. But if I'm active in New Path or Mpact Memphis or Memphis Tomorrow or Young Democrats or Young Republicans or campus politics -- especially if I'm a woman -- I'm all over this one.
There are three big-time political jobs in Memphis -- county mayor, city mayor, and Ninth District congressman, especially with all that stimulus money flowing.
Where are the young?
Comments (10)
Showing 1-10 of 10
like
dislike
Good question - there are many young Democrats who should be considering runs for both mayor and the 9th congressional but seem to be caught up in the "wait your turn" philosophy. Sadly, Cohen and Herenton become the beneficiaries and the city of Memphis loses.
So what's wrong with the teeter-totter generation, Branson? The reason we don't see any of "the young" trying to challenge Cohen is that they're not in his league and they know it. Herenton is, of course, in a league of his own (nicest way to put it). The bigger question is where are the serious public servants who will follow after this generation? Who is grooming them? Who's in Memphis' Top 40 Under 40 in the public sector?
Of course the young are leaving Memphis...they know that they have bright futures and wish to thrive in a city where productivity and progress are actual, daily realizations, not dead-panned promises on the back burner.
The oldies here have made it nearly impossible for positive turnaround at this point. It will be years upon years before the school system, police force, rampant ignorance and poverty are straightened-out; and those youngsters in their prime who are starting to think of marriage and family know this and want better. But the majority of citizens, for God-knows-why, cling to the harmful candidates while EVERYBODY drowns (I guess they always think "well, things will be different, this time).
We want our children to be well educated. We want to be able to walk down our streets at any time of day without fear. We want to know that our tax dollars are going to improve the lives of our brothers and sisters. We want true Greening and progress. We want intellectual opportunity. I'm not sure any of the current politicians understand this, or what all of these means. There are numerous young and thriving candidates that have seen this around the nation and are making it happen...in other cities, where change is actually possible because their citizens actually demand it.
Let's be honest, Cohen and Herenton are huge local legacy candidates (brand name for voters, and hard to displace from the political scene). With local term limits, you'll see the churning of leadership - which is a great thing.
I don't care about the age of the office holder, I am more interested whether he or she can make progress on issues of crime, poor schools, and getting the trains to run on time.
In politics, the three most important facts about "the young" are:
1. They do what's cool.
2. They do what they're told.
3. They do what they're told is cool.
Just ask Barry.
I beg to differ with your implication that Cohen's State Senate term, in its later years, was plagued by burnout, fatigue, and ineffectiveness. Cohen has repeatedly been considered one of the most effective state legislators, and he never slacked off in his efforts, unlike Herenton who disappears from time to time. Moreover, Cohen was one of the young when he first got involved in politics, and his positions and his interests still resonate with those who are young in years today. Nothing wrong with supporting someone who's older if you agree with their positions. It would be nice if we could all get past the racial, sexual, and age stereotypes and just support people who are good public servants and with whom we agree on most issues. The rest is just wasting breath and effort.
THIS WEEK'S ISSUE
SPECIAL ISSUES
