The mayor’s trip to Aruba last week is the surest sign hat the mayor’s need to satisfy himself goes way beyond his desire to do his job and to stand side by side with his constituents during a difficult time.
Anyway, one wishes to look at it, leaving for a trip on an airplane during the height of a pandemic and returning as though he went to the corner store is not a preferred thing to do for the mayor of a besieged city of almost 60,000 people.
In addition, the mayor’s futile effort to make believe he didn’t go to Aruba fooled more than a handful of people, including some of his closest allies.
Going to Aruba when the city is in the grips of a health catastrophe that also impacts business interests and the city’s finances, is par for the course for the mayor.
Covering up the trip as though it didn’t happen is also par for the course for this mayor.
No sooner had the Governor and Lt. Governor sent e-mails to all the citizens of Massachusetts urging them not to travel during the holiday, the mayor was boarding the plane for his trip to Aruba.
Doesn’t matter, you say. Who cares?
At some point, the mayor’s cavalier attitude about his position and responsibility to do the right thing will collide with how the people think to themselves about his unprecedented need to vacation during the pandemic.
We would all like to vacation.
Now is not the time, especially if you are the mayor of Everett.
He should know better – but he doesn’t.
He doesn’t care about what the people think.
At times like these, the city of Everett needs leadership from its mayor. The city needs someone honest and strong during emergencies, not someone who runs away.
It is time for a real leader. True leaders show themselves during times like these.