(Disclaimer: The views stated in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Augusta Press)
If you missed the Super Bowl on Sunday night, you missed a treat. The game ended up going right down to the wire and the halftime show – for my generation – was outstanding. It probably was outstanding for some old schoolers, also.
However, the best part of that entire Super Bowl event was being able to see Augusta’s Own D’ante Smith suit up for the Bengals. Not only did we have an Augusta kid playing in the Super Bowl, but it is also his rookie season. That is quite an accomplishment, and let’s just say we are all super proud of our native son.
Now down to business – let’s address this comment that Moses Todd started on Facebook in reference to one of the candidates getting a super large donation. It’s interesting the things you can find out when reviewing campaign disclosure reports. If you haven’t seen the ones for local races, go to https://richmondcountyga.easyvotecampaignfinance.com/home/publicfilings
But one candidate for mayor has listed a $100,000 donation to her campaign from a national mobile provider. (T-Mobile to be exact) Hmmm…I don’t think the rules allow donations above around $3,000 this year from companies or individuals. Other candidates, again with lots of money, failed to follow the directions of moving the ending amounts over from the last report to the right area in this report. In fact, they didn’t enter them at all. Looks like on paper they have lots more than they probably have, due to that error or maybe it’s NOT an error at all. Imagine that budget blunder downtown. Still others just got the math plain wrong. Again, that kind of issue would be tragic for a government that is looking to improve, and it’s not in our best interest when leadership is not detail-oriented. If they haven’t amended or changed by now, go take a look. The takeaway from all of this is – details matter.
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Chief Burden is really making a difference at the Augusta Fire Department. After speaking to a few different firefighters on all levels; they have definitely seen a shift in morale in a positive way. The exodus that was happening in the past has seemed to have stopped and even some guys who had left are back. I must say – I may not have given Chief Burden a fair start, and he has so far proven to be a great find.
Speaking of positives – there was a packed house for the Tony Howard show on Saturday night at the Imperial. It was a who’s who of Augusta event for sure. From politicians to judges to just plain music lovers – people across all intersections of our community were jamming to every act. Tony Howard and the Motowners always sing my favorites, and my wife goes because she is a big Elvis Presley fan; the guy that does Elvis is great. If you have never had a chance to check the show out, please make sure to follow and find out when the next show will be. It’s a real treat and the show sells out pretty quick.
As we close this column down, I’m sure going to miss our former Administrator Odie Donald. I was speaking with one of our elected officials about what losing someone like Odie meant. He stated maybe now we will try to find people that are invested in our community to hold this position. I asked what was he hearing in reference to potential candidates, he stated that he was asked about the return of Fred Russell. However, even more interesting was the called he received from a former elected official asking about making Chris James the administrator. To which he replied, not after the way he worked behind the scenes to get Ms. Jackson out of there.
So, I believe at this time both of them are a no. We at least we know that one of them is a hard no. Then I reminded him of all the talent we have right in front of us. There was a person who held the position but was – here I go getting ahead of myself again.
Michael Meyers is a columnist for The Augusta Press. Reach him at Michael.meyers@theaugustapress.com
