Jason Williams

jwilliams@enquirer.com

Politics Extra is a weekly column looking inside local politics

Mayor John Cranley had a big opportunity to lead City Hall amid last week's revelation of the first major scandal during his administration.

He whiffed.

Cranley's testy and controlling behavior during and after the June 29 special meeting of City Council about the sewer district mess made the whole thing messier. That behavior has been the Democrat's biggest shortcoming during his 2½ years in office and has failed to fade away even as Cranley has found success fixing fiscal problems, adding thousands of new jobs and putting more cops and firefighters on the streets.

No evidence shows Cranley had anything to do with issues surrounding the questionable payment to Metropolitan Sewer District consultant Sam Malone. So, why didn't Cranley either lead the charge to get to the bottom of the allegations or just stay out of it?

Cranley considers himself a fighter, and he felt he had to defend his administration, especially since his adversaries called the meeting. But the mayor's allies and enemies alike say it's time he calms down and focuses on leading the city through the sewer scandal.

"It's a leadership flaw," said Ryan Messer, a community activist who's been at odds with Cranley over the streetcar. "He has not made the turn from politician to leader – and that’s his biggest opportunity going forward. He has to somehow break through."

The mayor's supporters have privately advised him numerous times to simmer down and stop fighting, particularly with council members and fellow Democrats Yvette Simpson, Chris Seelbach and Wendell Young. In one instance last winter, Cranley became annoyed with Seelbach's failure to know details about a city budget deficit, zapping the council member with a "Was that memo not in English?" This prompted Messer to complain on Facebook that Cranley is "abrasive" and "divisive."

But Cranley told Politics Extra he doesn't see his demeanor as an issue.

"I don't accept the caricature that I'm abrasive and take shots at people," he said. "I'm certainly very passionate, and I understand there are people who see my passion and have different reactions to it."

Is the uber-intense Cranley capable of calming down? Even if he is, keep this in mind: Simpson might challenge Cranley in next year's mayoral race, so more squabbles could be on the horizon inside City Hall and on the campaign trail.

"Sometimes he rubs feathers the wrong way, but that's also the way lots of leaders are," said Tim Burke, head of the Hamilton County Democratic Party. "It's the way John operates, and I don't see it changing. There are times I think he could accomplish more with a slightly softer approach. But objectively looking at what he's accomplished, it's a very impressive record."

Enquirer archives include plenty of examples of Cranley uniting City Hall when he was on council from 2000 to 2009. As budget committee chair, he rallied Republicans, Democrats and Charterites to support budgets in tougher economic times. But Cranley has been at odds with Simpson, Seelbach and Young since returning to City Hall in December 2013, when they were on opposing sides of the contentious do-or-die streetcar battle.

Cranley has made efforts this year to at least put a Band-Aid on those relationships by asking each to meet regularly. The head-butting is definitely a two-way street, but then Cranley seems to contradict those efforts to fix things by displaying the type of behavior he did last week.

It was Simpson, Seelbach and Young who called the special meeting to try to get answers on who in the administration called a law firm threatening future city contracts if it didn't immediately pay sewer district subcontractor Malone.

In the nearly 1½-hour session, Cranley interjected to answer questions Simpson and Young had directed to city administrators. Later, seemingly unprovoked and with his face noticeably turning red, Cranley said: "It's outrageous that you guys called a bunch of secret witnesses and didn't tell any of us in advance who you were calling or what you intended to ask them. And I hope this body will conduct itself more professionally in the future."

Immediately after the meeting, Cranley twice attempted to cut off an Enquirer reporter from asking questions of MSD official Gina Marsh, who had just given a statement to the media saying she made the call to the law firm.

"I don't like ticking people off," Cranley said this week. "I very much prefer to work together. I'm not saying it's OK to yell at people. Am I passionate? Yes, and there are times when that passion really comes through. It's not personal ... and I'm certainly not going to apologize for fighting against the status quo."

Cranley's behavior in council chambers has given his enemies fodder to use against him in 2017. But, do voters really care about whether Cranley is warm and fuzzy to those inside City Hall?

"You certainly see people in politics who survive despite their personality," said David Niven, a University of Cincinnati political science professor. "It just makes everything harder."

Niven added: "The key is either you do everything in your power to avoid scenarios where your weakness comes out or you focus strictly on what you're capable of doing well. In Cranley's case, it's keeping the lights on, the trash picked up and the potholes filled. That matters a lot more to people than the social graces of their mayor."

Niven pointed out Cranley has other skills that will make him a formidable opponent. He has expanded his donor base the past several months and is on track to meet his fundraising goals.

"Whoever runs against him is going to find out quickly they’re not in Kansas anymore," said former Mayor Charlie Luken, whom Cranley considers a mentor. "They’re going to find out that he is a prodigious fundraiser and a very good campaigner. He’s taken the city in a great direction, and I think he'll win handily.”

Follow Enquirer local politics reporter Jason Williams on Twitter @jwilliamscincy. Send tips, questions and comments to jwilliams@enquirer.com.