DeStefano Florida Bound?

It’s important when you are the Democratic mayor of a large city in Connecticut to have an immovable rug under your feet so that political opponents may not pull it out from under you, sending you sprawling into anonymity. The tradition power structures in cities ain’t what they used to be.

In New Haven, while Mayor John DeStefano was tending to more important things – inviting school unions to partner with him in forming educational policy for the city, rolling out the red carpet for illegal aliens or, if one prefers, undocumented workers, community policing – a slate backed by Yale’s unions seized control of the party last year.

Connecticut is poised on the edge of a fiscal cliff that, scuttlebutt has it, will result in fewer transfer payments from the state to municipalities, mostly because state government for years has been unable to control its spending proclivities.

An announcement that he will decline to run for mayor is expected from Mr. DeStefano sometime today.

It’s a good time to go and, considering Connecticut’s economic downslide, a better time to pull up stakes and go.

Within the past few years, Mr. DeStefano has “sold an investment property in town and bought a second home in Florida,” according to the New Haven Independent, which has aroused suspicion that the Mayor of New haven may be Florida bound.

Here is a farewell interview with Paul Bass:

And Mr. DeStefano’s coy announcement is here:

“Please join me and me and my family for an early ‘State of the City’ briefing and reception tomorrow at 5 PM, January 29th at The Russian Lady, 144 Temple Street (formerly The Playwright).

“Our college graduation rates are up 10% in the last year. Promise scholarship students are sticking in college at encouraging rates. Community policing is driving crime down and there is more to come.

 

“Me (sic), Kathy and our boys look forward to seeing you tomorrow for this very important event.

“Very truly yours,

“John”