I asked Councilman Tom Phillips this morning if he was still confident that Mitch Johnson did the right thing and David Wray needed to go.
"Oh, yeah," he said.
"If you believe David Wray that he knew nothing about what was going on, then he deserved to go for being incompetent. If he knew about it -- and many believe he was a micromanager -- then he deserved to go."
On the lockout: "I wouldn't have given that guy the weekend. Mitch was trying to be a nice guy. No good deed goes unpunished."
On what the Council will decide to release tomorrow: "I'd imagine not a whole lot."
It's not a matter of the City taking sides in the court case, he says, but of letting the legal system work. "The Duke situation changed a whole lot -- Mike Barber wanted to put everything out there, but we don't want to have these guys tried in the media."
"we don't want to have these guys tried in the media." -- Council Person Tom Phillips
That might carry some weight if it had been the defendants saying that release of information might harm them instead of the AG saying that release of information might help the defendants, but to my knowledge the defendants haven't expressed objections to the release, have they?
Posted by: Roch101 | Sep 20, 2007 at 09:50 AM
Tom's insurance payment speaks volumes about his character. It will be good when he is gone!
Posted by: Ben Holder | Sep 20, 2007 at 10:09 AM
They will release David Wray's interview with RMA.
Posted by: Ben Holder | Sep 20, 2007 at 10:12 AM
"If you believe David Wray that he knew nothing about what was going on, then he deserved to go for being incompetent."
Not a very bright statement from Phillips.
Does Tim Bellamy "deserve to go" because he knew nothing about David Moore's alleged embezzlement?
Posted by: Tony Wilkins | Sep 20, 2007 at 10:16 AM
"these guys" aren't David Wray.
Posted by: The CA | Sep 20, 2007 at 10:23 AM
The more they talk, the worse they look.
Posted by: Jeffrey Sykes | Sep 20, 2007 at 10:37 AM
What about whether Wray's predecessor's deserved to go for being deliberately blind or willful accomplices?
Posted by: The CA | Sep 20, 2007 at 10:40 AM
Funny how that works.
Hinson claims he did not know that Elton Turnbull was a big time crack dealer. Hinson did not know fat Sean was a big time crack dealer. Fulmore did not know that his employee had a lengthy criminal history and carried a crack pipe. That is what excused them. They did not know.
Posted by: Ben Holder | Sep 20, 2007 at 11:45 AM
Phillips needs to come clean with his personal feelings about Wray. He hated Wray from day one before any of this happened Phillips hated Wray. I imagine he will deny that. However, he knows it is true. He hated Wray from the start.
Posted by: Ben Holder | Sep 20, 2007 at 11:47 AM
Phillips excuse doesn't hold water. The Duke students were able to be "tried" in the media precisely because information was kept secret, not because everything was made public.
Posted by: Roch101 | Sep 20, 2007 at 02:38 PM
"If you believe David Wray that he knew nothing about what was going on, then he deserved to go for being incompetent."
Not a very bright statement from Phillips.
Does Tim Bellamy "deserve to go" because he knew nothing about David Moore's alleged embezzlement?
Or maybe our city council for the Project Homestead fiasco?
Posted by: StoneSetter | Sep 20, 2007 at 04:05 PM
"Phillips needs to come clean with his personal feelings about Wray. He hated Wray from day one before any of this happened Phillips hated Wray. I imagine he will deny that. However, he knows it is true. He hated Wray from the start."
Thankfully, like Keith Holliday, Tom Phillips will NOT be on city council in the future. We need to make sure his tag team partner, Robbie Perkins, doesn't get elected either.
There are several others who need to
Posted by: Bubba | Sep 20, 2007 at 04:33 PM
Bubba,
You and I agree-- that's scary in itself.
Posted by: Billy The Blogging Poet | Sep 20, 2007 at 05:10 PM
...go.
Posted by: Bubba | Sep 20, 2007 at 05:27 PM
Open Letter To Tom Phillips:
Dear Tom,
I used to have respect for you and your service to the community. Your unfortunate comments to Ed Cone have changed all of that. How sad. It's called " sticking to your story "... " If you know what we knew " . Tom.. BS. I now know what you knew then and David Wray appears to be the rightous victim. Do you really want to go down in history as being a part of this cabal ?
"This above all: to thine own self be true, and it must follow as night the day, Thou canst not be false to any man. Farwell; my blessing season this in thee "
Character is who you are when nobody is looking. Staying true to your civic duty or self interest--ah, as Shakspeare said " And there is the rub "
Posted by: Fred Gregory | Sep 20, 2007 at 09:41 PM
Fred,
As usual, you've proven yourself to be a self-righteous ass. Why not wait a while before you pass judgment? Besides, Shakespeare doesn't wear well on you.
Posted by: waiting for answers | Sep 20, 2007 at 11:20 PM
Um, at least he has the guts to put his name on what he believes.
Posted by: Shameful anonymity | Sep 20, 2007 at 11:43 PM
"Shakespeare doesn't wear well on you"
Translation Fred: Conservatives shouldn't quote Shakespeare because they aren't supposed to be smart enough.
Fred isn't the one making an ass out of himself.
Posted by: The CA | Sep 21, 2007 at 08:51 AM
"Why not wait a while before you pass judgment?"
Oh, you mean like the anti Wray crowd and the News and Record did at the time of Wray's firing?
Look for today's nes conference to more of the same old crap from those vested in making sure Wray stays the Bad Guy in this deal.
It's too late for them. The public is wise to their agenda now.
Posted by: Bubba | Sep 21, 2007 at 09:02 AM
Fred's comment glosses over the fact that we don't yet know everything the Council knows, or claims to know -- that's why people are clamoring for more information.
This has been a long, frustrating process, and the professional media has no patent on rushing to judgment. Blogs and blog commenters are pretty good at it, too.
Nine elected officials have stood behind Johnson all the way. The question of what, exactly, Wray told Johnson prior to the lockout meeting, and the relationship of those statements to known facts, remains open.
Time to clue in the public.
Posted by: Ed Cone | Sep 21, 2007 at 09:12 AM
Ed, we know that there are some bad cops still in uniform but Mitch and council refuse to do anything. We know what was in the RMA report. We know the FBI and the SBI found nothing on Wray. We know the that Mitch and Holliday painted Wray as a rascist and that was a big lie. We know a hell of a lot. Whatever it is that Phillips and Holliday know that we dont know, it is certainly not enough evidence to be indicted.
So whatever it is, I doubt it will be to the level that anyone will be shocked if they ever reveal it.
Posted by: jc | Sep 21, 2007 at 09:40 AM