Doc Cheatham positions himself for house of delegates run with racially controversial words

October 13, 10:28 AMBaltimore Politics ExaminerAdam Meister

Previous Next

6 comments Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Baltimore Politics Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

This morning I have already received two emails from friends of mine about NAACP local president Doc Cheatham's comments about mayoral succession in Baltimore. The Sun and Investigative Voice ran stories about this, but ignored a very important aspect of this issue. Here is Cheatham's quote:

Here you have a predominantly African-American city. What if the governor appointed somebody white? ... Would he appoint someone Irish to be the mayor?

This story really is based around a non-issue. The City Council President is part of the Governor's team. O'Malley would never think about appointing anyone but her if he had a chance. It also appears that legally he might not have the power to appoint the next mayor if Dixon is convicted. This really is just a way to get Doc Cheatham into the news so that he can position himself to run for a house of delegates seat in the 44th district.  If he runs he will be facing three incumbents so in order to have a chance he will have to say newsworthy statements that may seem odd to people outside of the 44th district. In the 44th district statements like this show that you are not a fan of O'Malley, that you are a Dixon supporter, and that you stand up for black people (who make up an overwhelming majority of the 44th district).  Even though this is not a real issue he can make it seem like a real one that he is being proactive about while the three other delegates in the 44th do nothing.  Cheatham can use this non-issue as a talking point that will prop him up and belittle his opponents in the 44th and the Governor. 

Cheatham will probably try to market himself as a political outsider, but a move like this one clearly shows that he is all about traditional politics.  He is running with a non-issue that uninformed people can get behind and not attacking real issues that would make a huge difference in the lives of citizens of the 44th district. This is the sad blueprint for victory in Baltimore elections.