As someone who has spent most of my life in Watertown, I have noticed that our beautiful city has a very different feel to it these days. Others have said this to me, so I know I’m not the only one noticing the outright hatred being expressed around us is something Watertown has never experienced before.
The overwhelming amount of anger being expressed throughout Watertown—during City Council meetings, numerous times daily on the City of Watertown Meme (Mean) Page, and on billboards, Radio and TV —is giving our community a divisive, unfavorable, and embarrassing new reputation.
If Syracuse Schools’ accusations are credible and this hatred was on display at a recent Watertown High School football game, then this contagious negative mindset has also infiltrated some Watertown teens and their families. I’ve also noticed Mayor Smith’s wife Milly, who is on the Watertown City School Board, has participated in the Meme Page with her negative comments and she certainly is not being a good role model for today’s youth.
For the last several months, I’ve been wondering why some people in Watertown feel empowered to anonymously express their negative thoughts, assumptions, and accusations out loud and online—with no regard for truth—focused only on the attack.
This unprofessional and negative behavior did not previously exist on the Watertown City
Council but began only since Mayor Smith commenced his term in 2020. Disagreements prior to Mayor Smith were dealt with professionally. Prior to Mayor Smith, the focus was on the City residents, whereas the focus these last four years has often been on Mayor Smith using his position to create and fight his personal and political battles.
Over the course of Mayor Smith’s tenure, the emotional climate of City Council and of Watertown has spiraled downward. The amount of hatred and anger being displayed by the mayor is far greater than I have ever before witnessed by any other Watertown Mayor and unfortunately, his expressions of hatred and anger have encouraged others in the community to do the same.
The Mayor’s duties are to provide leadership, promote teamwork among City Council and coordinate City Council activities. But Mayor Smith has not fulfilled his responsibilities to the City, and instead has abused his position for his own personal agenda. In the leadership role, a mayor sets the bar for others to follow. Unfortunately, Mayor Smith has set the bar considerably low. Mayor Smith’s behavior, which has been on display as a model for the community to emulate falls far short of what Watertown deserves.
A Mayor who states on public radio and in text messages that he knows who is behind an anonymous Facebook page that for months has been lying, bullying, and harassing people in the community is NOT on the side of Watertown. By admitting more than once that he knows who is behind a page that spews false information multiple times each day, Mayor Smith is telling the people of Watertown that his own personal agenda takes priority over the City’s agenda. He most recently admitted his knowledge of the participants on the Hotline with former Mayor Jeff Graham last Thursday but again refused to name who is involved.
Watertown has a mayor who risks damage to the careers of at least four prominent attorneys, three who have represented the City of Watertown, so that he could exploit an unsigned document to undermine my campaign. His behavior is telling the people of Watertown that winning his personal and political battles at all costs is what matters most to him.
The Mayor immediately ran to the Glenn Curry Radio Show and to other media outlets after revealing a confidential draft agreement so he can falsely accuse me of wrongdoing, and tell voters several times throughout the broadcast that they have an opportunity to express their dismay in the upcoming election is trying to manipulate the community so he can get what he wants—which is revenge, and to remain in City Government as an advisor to my opponent.
To call the City Council meetings “unprofessional” would be an overstatement. Most City Council meetings are filled with his false accusations, shouting, interruptions, and unresolved issues. People are now watching the meetings for entertainment purposes, and most couldn’t care less about the topics being discussed. In my opinion, an effective leader should exemplify high moral and ethical standards, differing opinions should be valued, and people—all people—should be respected.
The incompetent, unprofessional and unethical leadership of Mayor Smith has no doubt caused great embarrassment to our City and is leaving us in serious need of new leadership that must not be associated with him in any manner.
The people, especially children, of Watertown deserve to have higher standards set by their role models. They deserve to witness more ethical behavior coming from their leader. They deserve a mayor who is focused on moving WATERTOWN forward—certainly not someone who has been mentored and endorsed by Mayor Smith for his own selfish reasons.
In this year alone, my opponent has voted with the mayor more than 95% of the time. She stated at a meeting that the meme (mean) page is in fact bullying, yet she allows her friends to continue using the page to attack me and others. How revealing that the page also promotes her and Mayor Smith together as a team—a guaranteed statement that should my opponent be elected Mayor, Mayor Smith will continue to strongly influence my opponent and City government.
Given the current state of hostility around us, I think Watertown has had enough of Mayor Smith, my opponent, their meme (mean) page attacker friends’ cyber bullying, and the deceptive anonymous insults aimed at whomever they please.
My opponent has NEVER declared that none of her friends, family members, associates, or former co-workers are NOT involved with the Meme Page. That conduct is especially telling of her character, in that she is putting her political desires before the well-being of the community.
My plan, if elected Watertown’s next Mayor, is to lead morally and with integrity. My goal and promises are to respect people and their opinions—and to keep my focus where it has always been, on helping the people and City of Watertown move forward.
There’s adversity to overcome and substantial work ahead. I am the person best suited and ready to lead!