Post Backs Orange for D.C. Council Chair
Paper calls him experienced and principled
Vincent Orange, candidate for DC City Council Chairman, made a strong event showing with Sean Metcalf.
The race for D.C. Council Chair features two colorful candidates with colorful names -- and now, the Washington Post has made its choice.
This morning, the Post endorsed Vincent Orange, a former Council member and Pepco exec, over current At-Large Council member Kwame Brown. The paper says Orange, with his "up-from-poverty background, experience as an attorney and certified public accountant, and accomplishments on the council" is a better choice than Brown, a "likable politician with an unquestioned commitment to the city" who, nonetheless, has not proven "that he has the maturity or judgment" to lead the council.
Brown seems to look at the chairmanship as the next stop on his rise to his ultimate ambition -- the mayor’s office. He has won the support of most of the current Council members by saying he would not shake things up too much, and he gives the impression he would be a caretaker, not a strong leader.
Orange, on the other hand, "was not afraid to take principled stands" during his time representing Ward 5, as the Post writes. He was a central player in bringing baseball back to D.C., and backed mayoral control of the struggling school system. As a cheerleader for development, Orange had hoped to win over fans of Mayor Anthony Williams in his own run for mayor four years ago. But most of them went with Linda Cropp, and Orange finished a distant fourth in the Democratic primary.
The Chair race has been overshadowed by the hot race for mayor, but the contest between Adrian Fenty and current chair Vincent Gray makes the Brown-Orange race all the more important. Fenty, who has followed Williams’ path in supporting development and business, had a foil on the Council in Gray, who says social services and the District’s poor should not be left behind.
With the increasing likelihood that Gray will be elected mayor, it would make sense to have a pro-business chair succeed him, to maintain that balance.
The Brown-Orange contest has so far been one of name recognition and personality. Brown is young, likeable and very visible, and he has won most straw polls and major endorsements. Orange has been struggling for attention, touting his detailed plans for the job and his desire to overhaul the Council’s byzantine committee structure.
Brown’s personal financial problems have gotten a bit of press, but otherwise, the contest has been largely ignored. If the race continues as it has, Brown will probably win next month. But both candidates deserve the voters to focus on their battle as well as the race for mayor, since the Council leadership will play an important part in the city’s next four years.
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