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A SPECIAL SECTION: Haiti, Since the January 12, 2010 Fierce Earthquak

Posted May 11, 2010

Mayor-Select Marie?

Some think that Tom Menino is anointing Marie St. Fleur

as his successor, but he might just be serving himself

By DAVID BERNSTEIN

TOM Menino, just a few months into an unprecedented fifth term as Boston's mayor, has raised eyebrows by hiring State Representative Marie St. Fleur of Dorchester to the newly created, $120,000-a-year position of chief of advocacy and strategic investment.

SHREWD MOVE will Marie St. Fleur's new City Hall job position her as an heir to Tom Menino, or a key ally come election time?

The salary is one point of criticism, given the city's dire financial position - and coming on the heels of two other new, similarly high-paying gigs, created for Judith Kurland and Justin Holmes.

City Hall observers are also curious about the vague and seemingly all-encompassing job description. St. Fleur is replacing Menino's intergovernment-affairs chief, Michael Contompasis - who was not taking a salary along with his pension, to avoid accusations of "double dipping” - and she's taking on additional duties ranging from education and economic development to immigration and poverty.

It sounds to some like the "deputy mayor" role that Michael Flaherty promised for his unofficial running-mate, Sam Yoon, in last year's mayoral election. And that has some close followers of Boston politics - including some potential mayoral candidates - interpreting the move as, possibly, Menino's attempt to anoint St. Fleur as his successor.

"Every mayor tries to leave his print in some fashion on the selection of his successor," says City Councilor John Tobin, who is considered a likely 2013 mayoral candidate. "Perhaps this is a sign that this is who he'd like to succeed him."

Another elected official - noting Menino's emphasis on diversity in his inaugural speech this January - suggests that he may want part of his legacy to include the championing of the city's first black, and first female, mayor.

Of course, Menino may simply have been taking advantage of an opportunity to hire one of his closest Beacon Hill allies. A 47-year-old mother of three, St. Fleur was making only a little more than $60,000 as a state representative. And some say she had grown bored with the job â€” particularly since new House Speaker Robert DeLeo, whom she did not support to succeed Sal DiMasi, demoted her from a leadership position.

Still, the same elected official - who suspects Menino ultimately will run again - says that the presumption that this is the mayor's final term is widespread in City Hall, 'including people around him." The St. Fleur hire has fed into that lame-duck theorizing.

Slowing down?

Menino's press secretary Dorothy Joyce dismisses the speculation, chalking it up to the wishful thinking of 2013 mayoral wannabes. "I think you're seeing a lot of premature posturing," says Joyce.

She also denies that Menino has greatly reduced his public schedule - or rather, has not returned to his usual pace since recovering from knee surgery this past November, which some are pointing to as evidence that Menino is no longer concerned with winning the next election.

In addition, as one close follower of Boston politics puts it, Menino's policy decisions and chosen battles "seem to be less tied to the electoral whims, and more to his legacy."

The St. Fleur appointment, with its wide-ranging portfolio, serves as more fodder to those reading the tea leaves. Notorious for his inability to delegate, Menino's hiring of a virtual deputy mayor, they say, must indicate plans to transition out of the city's operation.

Of course, some find the notion of Menino retiring laughable. "People said the same thing about Charlotte [Golar Richie] - that he was grooming her," says a former City Hall staffer. That was back in 1999, when Golar Richie left her House seat to work for Menino - and was replaced by St. Fleur.

But there does seem to be a newfound willingness to stand up to Menino, spurred at least in part by a belief that he is in his final years of power.

Most notably, a majority of the city's state legislators are defying Menino on his plans to close four library branches. They have pushed through a budget amendment to withhold funding if he follows through with the plan.

"To have state reps standing up like that," says Tobin, "it's really unprecedented."

Still others have become more outspoken with their criticism, as well - like frustrated developer Don Chiofaro (International Place), who is publicly grumbling about pushback for his proposed Greenway tower. Even the usually quiescent City Council seems willing to oppose Menino - a tension that councilors and staff say could lead to fireworks at hearings over the firefighters' new union contract.

Blessing or curse

If Menino is thinking of making this his last term, he may not be able to dictate his choice of successor any more than Kevin White or Raymond Flynn did before him. In fact, any favoritism he shows St. Fleur could bring out the long knives of rival mayoral contenders. One City Hall insider warns that, â€œif [Menino] gives her a platform to raise her profile for a 2013 run, he gives all the others a reason to target her.â€

Menino has, in fact, hurt St. Fleur before by trying to help her. He was instrumental in Tom Reilly's ultimately disastrous attempt to select her as his gubernatorial running mate in 2006, according to several people close to the process. That plan collapsed when St. Fleur admitted having delinquent tax debts and student loans.

Those well-publicized failings figure to make another run at high office difficult - but a few years of executive experience in City Hall could help erase that memory, says Sheila Capone-Wulsin, former executive director of the Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus. "It will enhance her already fantastic reputation from the legislature."

More important, St. Fleur will be able to use the job to "plug into a pretty powerful network" of city employees and those who depend upon City Hall, says one local officeholder. "The appointment will certainly give her the option were [Menino] to leave, and makes her an instant top-tier contender."

If St. Fleur is indeed thinking of running for mayor, getting that top-tier image early could help her chances, by dissuading others from running. Says one veteran political observer: "In the next mayoral election, it comes down to who is competing with whom for votes."

That means St. Fleur has a better chance if there are no other women running, or no other minority candidates. And those potential rivals might stay on the sidelines if they believe St. Fleur has Menino's machine behind her. Or, just as important, if campaign contributors believe she does.

Other way around

It's possible that all this speculation has it backward. St. Fleur may be intended to help Menino win in 2013, rather than the other way around, by protecting his popularity with black and Hispanic voters.

Menino pummeled Flaherty in minority-heavy precincts in November, more than making up for Flaherty's strong showing in predominately white neighborhoods. But for the first time in years, the 2009 campaign evoked some significant backlash among minorities, over issues of violence, jobs, and development. A challenger better able to capitalize on that might have won.

Hiring such a high-profile black woman presumably helps Menino's image in minority communities. It also co-opts one of the strongest potential candidates who could beat Menino in 2013. While the gossipers convince themselves that Menino is heading for the exit, he might actually be securing his position for another four years.

To read the "Talking Politics" blog, go to thePhoenix.com/talkingpolitics. David S. Bernstein can be reached at dbernstein@phx.com.

Copyright Â© 2010 The Phoenix Media/Communications Group

Reprinted from The Boston's Phoenix of May 7, 2010.

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