The Blue Suit

— Eye on Everett —

Private Conversations between the mayor’s favorite blue suit and Leader Herald Editor Josh Resnek.

Let’s face it, The mayor is a powerful guy. In Everett, there is not a man or woman more powerful than the mayor. Since he got himself elected in 2007, he has consolidated his power, oiled his various platforms, and arrived at a place where he appears to be an untouchable.

Many people who are opposed to the mayor, who opposed his re-election effort last year, quite often wonder aloud, “How has he managed to survive the rough equivalent of a series of cyclone bombs and go on and on as the mayor of Everett?”

This is a great question.

Is he protected and if so, from what and by whom?

We don’t have sufficient answers to any of these questions. Regrettably, we have no answer other than anecdotal thoughts and beliefs that point to one thing or another, and without evidence, notes, videos, witnesses and on and on, whatever we might think cannot be proven.

Over the weekend, the Boston Globe published two pieces, both about the mayor, in one way or another.

What did he think about these pieces?

Did he read them?

Did he comment to friends about them?

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— Eye on Everett —

THE BLUE SUIT

Private Conversations between the mayor’s favorite blue suit and Josh Resnek, Leader Herald Editor.

Let’s face it, I don’t anyone, no one, who talks to a blue cloth suit. May I ask you, the reader: Do you know of anyone living or dead who talked with a blue cloth suit?

The author of this column, me, Josh Resnek, editor of the Leader Herald, claims the Blue Suit and I share a close relationship, much like best friends or comrades in arms or brothers and alter egos. The Blue Suit because of his very close relationship with the mayor, allegedly tells me many things about the mayor. The Blue Suit insists everything he tells me is true in the weekly column. Such an affirmative assertion of the truth from a cloth suit is as fantastic as me writing about the resurrection of a human being after they had died and then writing about speaking at length with the resurrected party.

The Blue Suit does not like when I talk about the possibility he is not real. The Blue Suit and I have shared many discussions – and some of them difficult – about his paternity – and who his mother and father were, where they came from, what launderette they were cleaned at and where the Blue Suit grew up and on and on.

Suffice to say, the mayor’s Blue Suit and I know one another very well. We discuss matters great and small about Everett’s politics and the mayor’s manifest city hall machinations as if such a thing were possible.

My claims are the same with each Blue Suit column.

We speak with one another.

We eat with one another.

We laugh together.

We argue.

We endlessly speculate about our favorite topic – the mayor.

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— Eye on Everett —

THE BLUE SUIT

Private Conversations between the mayor’s Blue Suit and Leader Herald editor Josh Resnek.

So the midterm elections have come and gone. The great red wave never materialized. The Democrats have held on to the senate. They have lost the House of Representatives, but by such a small margin that for all the hype before the midterm about the sweeping red wave, we are almost back to where we began.

That is, we are a hopelessly divided nation, so politically divided that it gives the word division a new meaning.

How does this relate to Everett, you might well ask yourselves – all of you out there reading this column?

Does it change anything for us?

I asked that exact question to the Blue Suit.

Here’s what he said:

“You know, Josh, national elections have meant nothing to me for years. Elections don’t matter to me. It’s what’s on the flat screen that matters. It’s what’s in the frigde that matters. It’s when I need a good cleaning that the mayor takes me to the cleaners, that matters.

“I guess I was interested in Joe McGonagle this last time around. He’s an interesting character. I have a history with him, that is, the mayor has a history with him. Nearly everyone has a history with him. He’s been up. He’s been down. He’s been all around.

“This last election between him and Mike Marchese came out as I expected, as the mayor expected. It came out as Anthony expected In fact, Mike never had a chance running as an independent. He never had a chance against Joe with the mayor and his forces supporting him. But that’s just the harsh reality about politics here. Everyone get’s to have their moment under the sun. Joe’s moment under the sun has come as a rep. And let’s not forget, as I can never forget, as the mayor can’t forget, as Mike will never forget, that because of Joe, Carlo is the mayor today. Carlo never could have become mayor without Joe.”

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— Eye on Everett —

THE BLUE SUIT

Conversations, observations, and wide ranging discussions about things great and small all having to do with Everett between the mayor’s Blue Suit and Leader Herald editor Josh Resnek.

“What did you think of that Zoning Board meeting last night?” I asked the Blue Suit. We were eating breakfast at the Sunrise on Main Street. Great food at the Sunrise – and nice people running the place. Always friendly. The food is fresh. It is a solid breakfast experience.

Of course, eating was made almost impossible by a line of early morning admirers all wanting to shake hands or to say hello to the Blue Suit.

He took it in stride.

“Good morning. Nice to see you. Thanks for coming over to say hello,” the Blue Suit said time and again. He got pats on the back, high fives and clenched fists butting one another.

At one point, a group of DPW employees came over to him and said they wanted to speak with him “Privately.”

“Josh. Do you mind. These guys need a minute of two with me,” the Blue Suit told me.

“Josh, that means I need to be alone at the table with these guys. Get moving!”

I know when I’m not wanted.

God knows what they talked about – that is – the Blue Suit and five DPW guys.

Finally, I got my seat back. I devoured my breakfast.

Again, I asked the Blue Suit: “What did you think about that planning board hearing last night?”

A developer’s attorney appeared at the meeting to tout his multi-unit property proposal for the corner of Abbott Avenue and Elm Street.

“It was a meeting for the ages,” the Blue Suit waxed eloquent.

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— Eye on Everett —

THE BLUE SUIT

Conversations between the mayor’s Blue Suit and Josh Resnek.

The Blue Suit and I met as usual Tuesday afternoon in Everett – this time – at an undisclosed location.

The location will remain undisclosed because both the Blue Suit and I felt that we were being watched.

This tends to be no big deal, as we have been watched here by a variety of people over the years.

Yesterday, however, the Blue Suit was complaining that he is tired of everything having to do with politics.

What a surprise – the Blue Suit tired of politics! I thought for sure he was kidding around.

“Who would be following us?” I asked the Blue Suit.

“The Everett police? Detectives? FBI? CIA? DEA? NSA? North Koreans? Iranians? Who would be following us?” I asked the Blue Suit.

“You never know, Josh,” he replied.

“People far less prominent than we are get followed,” he added. I thought about that for a moment.

“What the hell could anyone find out about us following us – where we eat? What we eat? What streets we drive down? I mean, its ridiculous. Anyone following us for whatever reason needs to have their head examined,” I said.

“Roger that, Josh,” the Blue Suit said.

No sooner had the Blue Suit said that, we ran into Joe McGonagle.

“Guys. I’d like to talk but I’m busy right now. Very busy,” Joe told us.

“What are you busy with?” I asked.

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