Gray Admin Mum on Tampa Trip
Did Mayor Vince Gray really go to Florida this weekend to tour the training facility of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers? If so, who paid for the trip?
It seems like those would be an easy enough questions to get answered, after The Washington Times published a column saying as much. The Times reports that Gray went with Councilmembers Jack Evans and Michael Brown, and the purpose of the trip was to get ideas for a possible training facility for the Redskins at Reservation 13, a plot of land near RFK Stadium.
But the Gray administration is being too cute by half and acting like these are state secrets. An email to Gray's spokeswoman Linda Wharton Boyd netted this response:
We all know that over the years, the city and the Redskins have always had conversations about opportunities to work more closely together. If we ever find a way to do so, we’ll be excited to share it. No city dollars have been expended on the mayor pursuing any of these conversations.
Hmmm, thanks for the non-answers. LL called Boyd, who said that's as much information as she's been able to get: "I don't know anything about it." The D.C. Council wasn't much more helpful. Asked to confirm whether he went to Tampa, Brown says he'd like to attach himself to the mayor's statement. Evans wasn't immediately available for comment.
Great.
Next up is the mayor's new chief of staff Chris Murphy, who responds with a familiar sounding refrain:
We all know that over the years, the city and the Redskins have always had conversations about opportunities to work more closely together. If we ever find a way to do so, we’ll be excited to share it.
Dear sweet Lord, why is this so hard!?
It's worth noting that former Mayor Adrian Fenty was rightly hammered for leaving town without telling anyone, and then being less than forthcoming about who paid for his trip. Granted, Fenty took his family on a tennis-watching vacation in Dubai, while Gray seems to have gone on a fact-finding mission to check out a football training facility just in case the District suddenly stumbles on a huge pot of gold that would make building such a complex for the Redskins feasible. But the basic bone of contention remains: The public should know when its mayor isn't in town. And it has a right to know if any outside interests are paying for him to take out-of-town trips. (Murphy says comparing the two is "crazy.")
Gray's been much better than Fenty about releasing his public schedule, but the alleged jaunt down to Florida wasn't published. In fact, his public schedule for Friday shows him doing "desk work" all day Friday and then attending Dunbar's homecoming game against Wilson. His weekend schedule was packed with events around town on both Saturday and Sunday.
Meanwhile, Redskins spokesman Tony Wyllie says his organization was not involved in any trip for public officials down to Tampa, and the Redskins "are exploring all our options" when it comes to a new training facility.
Update: Multiple sources at the Wilson Building confirm that the trio of elected officials went to Florida on Friday. A spokesman for Evans says the councilmember paid for his own expenses out-of-pocket.
Update No. 2: A spokeswoman for Brown says he paid out of pocket for the trip, too. Mr. Mayor, your turn.
Photo via Redskins.com
l know that over the years, the city and the Redskins have always had conversations about opportunities to work more closely together. If we ever find a way to do so, we’ll be excited to share it. No city dollars have been expended on the mayor pursuing any of these conversations.
2:24 pm
Just fire his p.r. office and replace it with a Ouija board - you'd get more honesty and accuracy.
2:43 pm
I wonder if they discussed lottery and the possibility for federal indictments? Just curious...
2:47 pm
Just like old people. I've gotta secret.
2:53 pm
Once again Vince proves he's a failure at all things, great and small. Poor guy can't get out of his own way long enough to take a trip without screwing up the messafing.
I see his communications staff hasn't gotten any better either...
3:09 pm
What was it Gray promised during his fake one city campaign? Oh yeah, transparency. Maybe he just doesn't recall if he left town.
3:11 pm
Alan, you don't think that reporting on this story making..well..makes this a story.
You are not w/o facts. Your reporting states that no tax dollars were used for this trip. You also say that the public has a right to know if he's taking trips funded by outside groups.
Is that the story are you simply creating another one here? Like, Brown, Gray and Evans were being flown around by an outside party interested in doing business with the city...all in violation of something?
You've cleared the nontaxpayer interest.
3:35 pm
Bunch of sick minded worthless jokers with nothing better to do than fabricate sh#t.
5:25 pm
I think that the issue, OneCitidiots, is that the mayor and his merry band continually fail to clearly and concisely state what Vince is/was up to. Alan's reported what he reported - it's Vince's staff falling on their faces. Again.
I can understand why that would make you upset, but time to look inward, methinks.
5:40 pm
Oh yes, Alan, continue to report what you may believe is improper since if one cannot shoot a straight answer to a quite simple question then, yes, something may be askew.
I don't know why people continue to support the shade of Gray and his staff. I'm beginning to think these are either family members, friends, and/or paid-for-Gray-bloggers. If the latter is the case, then that needs to be uncovered too. Ha ha ha....
5:41 pm
Why did he feel the need to hide it but lie about it, too? It'd be one thing if he just conveniently neglected to mention his trip: bad judgment for sure, but politicians have done worse. But lie about his schedule? That's fishy to me.
5:45 pm
Here are the bigger questions, as I see them:
1. Why wasn't the Chairman of the City Council (and chair of the Committee on Economic Development) - Kwame Brown - on the trip?
2. What role does the Committee on Housing and Workforce Development, chaired by Michael Brown, have to do with this potential "training facility" deal?
3. Were other council members, including Chairman Kwame Brown, aware of the trip or invited to participate?
4. If it (the Florida trip) had a legitimate governmental purpose, why have Michael Brown and Jack Evans been so quick to say that they paid for the trip out of their own pockets?
5. Are the Redskins aware of a potential training facility deal or was this just an excuse for Gray, Michael Brown and Evans to get together to talk in person, as opposed to in governmental buildings or on government phones?
6. What do these three have in common??? Their collective involvement in the lottery back room deals to steer the lottery contracts and secure intra-net gaming for D.C.
Just a few questions... Anyone got any answers or additional questions?
8:32 pm
Just curious An additional question is why wasn't the Councilmember (or at least future) for Reservation 13 on the trip. Man, oh, man...
10:57 pm
Gray is as corrupt as Fenty. He is a crook. One-Cityiots.
8:43 am
you idiots. if maryland or virginia found out about the trips, it could screw it all up. this was a private trip on personal $$$ - give me a break!
9:00 am
@Just Curious, some Answers for you...
1. Why wasn't the Chairman of the City Council (and chair of the Committee on Economic Development) - Kwame Brown - on the trip?
EVERYONE PAID THEIR OWN WAY. KWAME DOESN'T PAY HIS OWN WAY - EVER. JUST ASK HIS CREDITORS. STILL WAITING ON THE NAVIGATOR REIMBURSEMENT...
3. Were other council members, including Chairman Kwame Brown, aware of the trip or invited to participate?
SEE ANSWER ABOVE