Political scare tactics abound in Greenwich
Did you know that Greenwich was one of 10 nationwide communities recently recognized as a Center for Election Excellence by the U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence? An organization whose primary purpose is to help already wellrun towns share best practices and continue to build smarter, stronger election infrastructures? It’s hardly a Nobel Prize but in terms of an independent, bipartisan organization acknowledging that we’re doing something right, well, it’s nice to be selected, and kudos to our Registrars of Voters Fred DeCaro and Mary Hegarty.
While you might not have known about the recognition, you might have heard that one perk of being selected was an offer of a monetary grant of $500,000 from one of the alliance’s partners. This grant is designed to help support the technological, physical and human components of elections, and “… is to be used exclusively for the public purpose of planning and operationalizing safe and secure election administration infrastructure …”
And if the story stopped there, with a Town Hall media event and a big check being handed to Fred, Mary and whichever politicians wanted to take credit, we probably wouldn’t be discussing this today. But circumstances have changed because this is 2023 and Greenwich is no longer immune from the unnecessary, partisan stupidity infecting pretty much the entire country. Let’s take a look at the story so far.
Like all monetary offers from private entities, our Representative Town Meeting had to approve this grants acceptance. Almost immediately, battle lines were drawn with one side supporting the grant as a way to help strengthen our election infrastructure without raising taxes, and another side seeing the grant as a nefarious incursion into our Freedom! Letters were written, online shouting was rampant, all while our bipartisan registrars agreed that there was no nefariousness and that this really was a good thing.
Amidst the shouting it came to light that recent election losers Kim Fiorello and Leora Levy, in what must be an attempt to remain relevant, were cahooting with Republican National Committee operatives to provide other local Republicans with Politburo-approved talking points to be shared with like-minded RTM members.
Hey wait, you say. Isn’t the Greenwich RTM supposed to be nonpartisan? Why are the RNC, Levy, Fiorello and others getting involved to beat our local Patriot/Freedom Republicans into a Soros/Zuckerberg conspiracy lather? Maybe it’s because this grant might help increase voter turnout, and in certain local country clubs and social clubs, getting more of “those people” to vote is a no-no, but it sure is cute you think the RTM is nonpartisan.
So, having been sufficiently whipped into a frenzy with visions of progressive boogeymen coming to steal your elections, the RTM debated and voted on the grant with the measure to accept passing by a thin margin. But it’s 2023, so of course the losers claimed fraud, chicanery, and demanded a do-over. Except there was no fraud or chicanery, so no do-over was given. But then, our first selectman poked his head out of the ground to announce he wouldn’t accept the legally approved grant because he has an election coming up and boy does he have a painful fence to straddle. So here we are.
Greenwichites, the circus has come to town and it’s planning to stay. We are River City, and the Music Man wants to sell us 76 trombones, except this isn’t the cutesy pie shenanigans of a huckster looking to make a quick buck. Greenwich is our home and community, and we’re inching closer every day to being held hostage to a growing cadre of ideologues who believe I’m right, screw you and the only way I can lose is because you cheated.
Meanwhile, a good man, Fred DeCaro, has become an online target of hate for his something, something, traitor to the party, just for doing his job. Petulant and resentful RTM members who aren’t getting their way claim fraud. Or they were too confused by the process, or whatever. Our first selectman is trapped in an ideological vice he either can’t or won’t escape from. Conspiracy theories and scare tactics are concocted and peddled as real. Greenwich, we’ve got trouble with a capital “T,” so what are we going to do about it?