DISCUSSION: IS MAYOR HEALY A CANTONIAN "THROUGH AND THROUGH?"

He brags about his New York education (the NYU Stern School of Business), he brings quite of number of out-of-towners into his administration and he accepts large numbers of out-of-town contributions; all of this raises a question with the STARK COUNTY POLITICAL REPORT (The Report).

Is Mayor William J. Healy, II really committed to Canton, Ohio?

How much listening is there in the Healy administration to the voices of day-in, day-out Cantonians when one considers how suffused with the "out-of-town" factor?

Yesterday, The Report went to the Stark County Board of Elections to do a check of Healy's campaign contributions. In the ensuing days, The Report will be writing about whom and how much out-of-towners have contributed to his campaign. All of which raises the question of how much Cantonians are heeded by this administration.

The Report was surprised to learn how relatively little of Healy's big contributors were from Canton or even Stark County. Although Canton City Council President Allen Schulman made a $500 contribution on June 11, 2007 (The Report didn't pick up on any other Schulman contributions), and to most of us $500 is huge; for Allen Schulman this is "chump change," and in light of the huge out-of-town contributions $500 is indeed "chump change."

Normally Allen Schulman is a huge voice in Canton, Stark County, Ohio and significant voice in Washington political circles because of his record of being a prolific and generous campaign contributor. But in his hometown? Not with the Healy administration. Why he wasn't even told that his good friend Tom Bernabei was about to be fired. Allen Schulman on the outside looking in? Wow!

Follow The Report over the next number of days as we detail some the "persons of interest" who have contributed to the "TeamHealy" mayoralty campaign.