The FOP and the election

The Fraternal Order of Police is an integral part of this election.

This is not to say that my previous opinions regarding the FOP and the other unions endorsing Taylor were incorrect. It was this vast amount of union support which first made me suspicious of Taylor, because I know a snowjob when I see it. The first issue that I had against Taylor was that a union hatchet man should never be Sheriff because you would have union on both sides of the negotiation table, and the taxpayer would foot the bill.

I will always be suspicious of any union, but I have reevaluated some of my views regarding the relationship between Sheriff Beseler and the FOP. I have read some of the FOP online documents regarding their dispute with the Sheriff, but those just tell their side. What I am doing in this post is asking for help in understanding that nature and seriousness of this dispute. I will also be addressing some comments by other bloggers, mainly Observer and Oldtimer.

I’m not going to try and be cute, and pretend that I need information to decide my vote. At this point everyone who reads the blogs knows that I am supporting Gary Newman. I want Mr. Newman to win the election. I know that some of you are rolling your eyes reading this, but I say that no one has won or lost until the last vote is cast. From current events I believe that Taylor is done for, and that now the Sheriff is the man to beat. What I am trying to establish in this blog is that the conflict between the Sheriff and the FOP is very serious and must be affecting morale, and that low morale must affect the operations of the Sheriff’s office. I am basing this on the statements made by the Sheriff and Taylor and the Ridgeview forum in which both stated that CCSO was divided. Both blamed this division on their opponent, and Gary Newman was the only one who spoke of "healing" CCSO. What I wish to show is that this division is so serious that it is an issue the electorate should consider in their vote, that there is too much bad blood between the Sheriff and the FOP for the matter to ever be resolved, and that Gary Newman is the only candidate who can establish an equitable environment in which there are effective working relationships. Beseler has had his four years, he is not going to change.

I would like to prove all these things, but I can’t. I do not work in law enforcement, and I am too suspicious of union statements to unconditionally accept the FOP side of the story. I need input from people knowledgeable of this issue to either prove my case or disprove it. Just be aware that if I disagree with you I will question your position, and if I think you are trying to pull a fast one I will argue you into the dirt.

Disclaimer

I have heard that Clay County is not friendly to unions, and I am aware that Sheriff Beseler has many supporters on MCS. What I am writing here are my own opinions. If you read something here that you haven’t heard from Gary Newman, then what you are reading is my opinion. If you read something here that you have heard from Mr. Newman, then it is still my opinion, we just happen to be in agreement on that particular point.

I personally have never heard Mr. Newman speak about the FOP, but I am not surprised. In comparison to the 128 votes they gave Taylor, I consider the 2 votes for Newman to be gravely insulting.

Also know that I have never heard Mr. Newman say anything negative about Sheriff Beseler, other than he would make a better Sheriff.

Now for the replies.

Observer, you are a supporter of Sheriff Beseler, you seem to be a member of CCSO, and you have taken issue with my comments regarding Mr. Newmans advocacy of Community Oriented Policing. You have stated, and I paraphrase, that while I might know a few things about COPS, it is only the tip of the iceberg. You have stated that COPS practices are already in use by CCSO, and that there is a difference between Mr. Newman talking about COPS and Sheriff Beseler’s day-to-day involvement with COPS. Your line of argument seems to be that if I like Newman for COPS then I should like Beseler better, and it seems that you are trying to raise the technical level of the discourse.

Observer, there is no way I am going to engage in a technical argument about law enforcement with a law enforcement officer. There is no amount of googling that could raise me to your level of knowledge, and in argument you would just jargon me to death. Since we are both advocates for our respective candidates, readers of the blogs might think that because you know more that I do about law enforcement that Sheriff Beseler knows more than Mr. Newman. That is something for the candidates to prove.

While I can’t beat you in a technical argument, I feel that your posts have proved my COPS argument for me. If COPS is a good program under Beseler, it would be a good program under Newman. Newman has made COPS the central issue of his campaign, if it is a good issue for Beseler it is a good issue for Newman. Moreover, since Newman has put greater emphasis upon COPS than Beseler has, it follows that Newman would work more COPS programs into the operations of the CCSO. The seven man squad you described does not sound like a very large team to devote to COPS practices. As for Mr. Newman not being involved in the day-to-day operations of the CCSO, of course he isn’t, he isn’t the Sheriff yet. The same was true of Beseler before he took office.

Oldtimer, I believe you stated that Mr. Newman’s law enforcement experience was specialized and would not translate well into the Sheriff’s office. Give me a break. Both Mr. Newman and Sheriff Beseler were deputies in Clay County. While Mr. Newman has had a diverse career in policing and security, Sheriff Beseler came to us from the prosecutors office. While this might technically be law enforcement, I guess, it is not policing. I say that even after Beselers four years as Sheriff, Newman still has more experience in real, keeping the peace law enforcement.

Oldtimer, the tone of your post’s annoy me. Your initial blog described a theoretical sheriff office in which people wanted change but then found that change didn’t bring them happiness. It reminded me of a Sunday school story. A little later you came out and openly announced your support of Sheriff Beseler, and stated (I paraphrase) that while you considered Mr. Newman to be a good man and a good lawman, you would be voting for Beseler.

Such praise for someone who is not getting your vote.

Your grand-fatherly reminds me of a commercial from years ago in South Carolina. Strom Thurmond was running for office for about the 50th time, and the opposition was running a commercial of retired people telling Strom that he had done enough and it was time for him to come on home.

We love you but we will vote against you. With friends like that who needs enemies?

While we might argue about who is the better candidate, it does seem that both the Newman people and the Beseler people find the other’s candidate to be acceptable. Opposition need not become animosity.

Oldtimer, you have stated (again, paraphrase) that even Mr. Newman admits that Sheriff Beseler has more supporters than him. He may well have said this, though I have never personally heard it from him. The evidence does appear to support this belief, but I am always suspicious of appearances. What I do know is that Beseler and Taylor have definitely beaten Newman in the sign war.

I don’t think that the number of signs indicates anything at all about a candidate, and tells little about how much support he really has.

I was driving around the lake the other day, and noted that there were some yards with Beseler signs. It is safe to assume that the people with signs in their yards are supporters of the Sheriff, and by seeing those signs you would think that old Lake Asbury is Beseler country. However, there were a whole lot more yards without signs, and you don’t know how those people are going to vote. Many people do not themselves yet know how they are going to vote, and there is still a ways to election day.

I think what will happen is that Taylor will sink like a stone, and perhaps drop out of the race. It will then become a contest between Beseler and Newman, and it will be a much tighter race than you think.