Mayor Dellums Should Open His Calendar
Posted by novometro on September 8, 2007
As A Better Oakland has noted, Mayor Ron Dellums has done little to deliver on his promise to bring transparency to City Hall, or even make much of an effort to communicate directly with Oaklanders.
Now, Mayor Dellums is shaking up his staff nine months after taking office. The fresh start would be a good time for the mayor to introduce some daylight on his office. He can start by looking south to San Jose. Chuck Reed, the new mayor of that city posts his calendar online. The people paying his salary can see who he meets with, when he meets with them, and for how long.
The cynical, cheap shot response would be to say that Dellums’ nonexistent online calendar is probably an accurate reflection of his daily doings. Rather than hiding from the public a daily schedule of back room dealing, he is concealing long afternoon naps and occasional speech making in other cities.
If Mayor Dellums put his calendar online, it would serve as an example for our other elected officials. The mayor and the City Council should at least have to say why they won’t publish their calendars in real time when their colleagues in San Jose provide that service to their constituents.
NovoMetro 
Adeline said
You probably recall that Jerry Brown’s calendar was allegedly available; but for months and months, there was nothing on it.
It amazes me the degree to which the press is “after” Ron Dellums all the time, yet they never challenged Jerry Brown at all.
And, I believe that Ron Dellums has already called more press conferences that Jerry Brown called during his entire 8 years in office.
I’m not saying any of this to excuse Mayor Dellums. I’m just saying that he seems to be held to a much higher standard than his predecessor.
dto510 said
I doubt Dellums has called more press conferences than Jerry Brown. Dellums ran on a platform of transparency and open government; Brown ran on getting certain things accomplished. Therefore, it is more than fair to criticize Dellums for not living up to his standards. Also, Sanjiv Handa, who criticized Brown, is also very critical of Dellums.
I see Jerry Brown around all the time; I’ve never seen Mayor Dellums outside of an official context. Oakland’s problems require a hands-on mayor with a plan.
Adeline said
Actually, no, Dellums didn’t campaign on a platform of transparency. Go back & check the publicity during his campaign if you don’t believe me.
And, if you don’t believe he has already had more press conferences than Jerry Brown, then ask Sanjiv Handa.
The point, however, isn’t whether or not either of them campaigned on the issue of transparency. The point is that there is a certain level of transparency which is necessary and appropriate for local government. And, on that issue, while I believe there is much to criticize in regards to Dellum, I still an amazed at the degree to which Jerry Brown was given a free pass.
V Smoothe said
A very perfunctory ProQuest search demonstrated that Dellums has held fewer press conferences in his first nine months than Jerry Brown did over a period of six months a few years ago. If I cared enough, I would map it all out, but the claim is so preposterous to anyone who has paid a modicum of attention to city government for any period of time that I won’t bother. The facts are there and easy enough for anyone truly interested to find.
But to the other point, that “Dellums didn’t campaign on a platform of transparency. Go back & check the publicity during his campaign if you don’t believe me.”, I feel I must provide a response.
From Dellums’s mayoral campaign web page, the first link, called “What I will do as Mayor,” featured three bullet points. One of them read:
I will quote in entirety another section of Dellums’s mayoral campaign web page, one of only three prominently placed promises (the others are about crime and education), entitled “Inclusive and Transparent City Government: The Ron Dellums Approach to Governance”:
There’s much more, but again, I’ll leave it to people who actually care about the truth to go get it. It’s easy to find.
I would like to point out that absolutely zero of the things he promised here in his campaign materials have happened. Dellums refuses to meet with citizens or engage them in policy discussions in any manner. There has been not even been lip service to a community wide “planning process.” Nothing that he promised. Say what you will about Jerry Brown, he always was available to listen to citizens at Oakland restaurants, coffee shops, wherever. The only times I ever see Dellums, he’s surrounded by bodyguards.
Parker S. Waterman said
The calendar should be posted online. There are clear benefits for the overall goal of transparency in government. In addition, the fact that the calendar is posted might lead, in some subtle way, to a more careful consideration of how the mayor spends his time.
Alex Gronke said
The mayor’s calendar has nothing to do with what the previous mayor did or did not do, nor does it have to do with Mayor Dellums’ platform as a candidate. The mayor’s calendar is public record. If he thinks we should have to file a public record records request and wait two weeks to see it, he should at least have to explain why he thinks so.
A Better Oakland » Sunshine Ordinance should be modernized said
[…] Alex Gronke thinks that the Mayor and City Council should post their calendars online for public viewing. I’d settle for being able to read the legislation they’re considering on Tuesday. […]
V.E.G. said
Ronald Dellums is a direct descendant of a Swedish man Fortson. Had not changed the name he would have been Ronald Fortson.
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Juan said
This is a topic which is close to my heart… Take care!
Where are your contact details though?