MASSILLON'S CLERK OF COURTS
TELLS YOU
HOW GREAT HE IS!
Regular readers of The Stark County Political Report know the history of SCPR blogs on Massillon's (or, should I say, Tuscarawas' Townships') Johnnie A. Maier, Jr.
Most politically involved Stark Countians are scared to death of Johnnie and therefore are generally loathe to cross him.
Johnnie became a political power in Stark County by good fortune from his perspective.
Every once in a while, a brave soul (LINK) will venture into those waters. But such is indeed rare. For there is likely a price to pay.
Accordingly, it has been up to yours truly to check the political power hungry Maier, Jr.
Of course, Johnnie, being the ultimate control person he is, keeps his distance from The Report and yours truly's probing questions.
Last night he was front and center in a rare in the public forum.
Usually he haunts the back rooms of political intrigue from which he can orchestrate getting persons in his thrall into Stark County elective office.
His political coup-d'-etat to date was getting his brother George T. Maier appointed and then elected Stark County sheriff in the unfortunate (for the Stark County public) circumstances of the well thought of elected in November, 2012 Mike McDonald being too ill to take office on January 7, 2013
Second, has been the election of Kathy Catazaro-Perry as mayor of Massillon over 24 years as mayor and political rival Francis H. Cicchinelli, Jr.
He has had some close calls on both of this huge successes.
George came very close to not getting the appointment over a political unsophisticated former Stark County captain Louis Darrow (Maier won 92 to 84) And George underwent a nearly two year ordeal of legal challenges before he eked out a narrow victory over Republican Larry Dordea.
It took a political goof on the part of Cicchinelli (good fortune for Maier in getting outraged Tuscarawas Township residents to go door-to-door for Maier's candidate) in attempting to annex real property on which Tuslaw High School sits to be in the opinion of the SCPR a critical factor in Kathy Catazaro-Perry's victory over Cicchinelli in the May, 2011 Democratic primary election.
And wouldn't you know it.
Cicchinelli made another "fortuitous for Maier" and his proxy as mayor (Catazaro-Perry) move in running for mayor as an "independent."
Catazaro-Perry almost lost the March, 2015 primary to neophyte political candidate J. David Ress. A truly amazing political spectacle, to wit:
With Cicchinelli in the general election race, Catazaro-Perry won with 40% of the vote for her as compared to 60% of the vote going to Republican Lee Brunckhart who, despite having run against Catazaro-Perry in the November, 2011 general election, proved even less politically sophisticated and able than either Louis Darrow (re: George T. Maier) or J. David Ress.
The way Maier, Jr. does math he was heard by yours' truly on election night by yours truly on terming Catazaro-Perry's 40% as compared to 60% against her as her doing a political ass kicking.
Wow!
An out-and-out goof by Maier, Jr was his support of Celeste DeHoff as a candidate for a similitude (i.e. a Republican indexed district in 2008; a Democratic indexed district in 1990 when Maier was elected) of his old Ohio House District from which he was term limited out of as of January 1, 2000.
DeHoff not only got pummeled in the 2008 election (LINK),
subsequent legal difficulties got her in some problems with the Ohio Supreme Court, to wit:
One has to wonder how reliable Maier, Jr's assessments of candidates/office holder is.
Not that long ago, his good friend and Massillon Municipal Court judge Eddie Elum got reprimanded by the Ohio Supreme Court for conduct unbecoming of a judge. (LINK to Ohio Supreme Court case). As part of the proceeding Maier, Jr. submitted a glowing testimonial in support of Elum.
Such was ironic to yours truly, given Elum's over-the-top reaction to the SCPR dealing with Massillon political matters (this blog is named The Stark County Political Report) in which Judge Elum embroiled himself (LINK).
The Report clearly has a apology coming from Elum. But knowing the judge, Hell would likely have to freeze over first.
Some folks are enamored with Johnnie A. Maier, Jr. and his take on political candidates and public officials, but the SCPR clearly is not.
The Report thinks that both his brother George as sheriff and his proxy Kathy as Massillon mayor are every bit as political as Johnnie is.
The Report recognizes that one does have to have a political side to get elected.
But to yours truly George and Kathy are way over the top on this score as is Johnnie A. Maier, Jr who is a former Stark County Democratic chairman who is chest deep in political machinations and intrigue in multiple Stark County political subdivisions.
Maier, Jr. is his own best public relations agent.
If the taxpayer supported website is an exercise in self-laudation ("The Honorable Johnnie A. Maier, Jr.), his appearance last night was an encore in-person self-promotion.
Even though the video (unedited) present below is about 41 minutes in length, it is a classic in self-promotion.
Maier goes back 16 years in comparing himself to his predecessor as a baseline of how much he has saved Massilon taxpayers.
In the time that the SCPR covered Massillon government and politics, it is apparent that some members of Massillon City Council chafe under the State of Ohio imposed via statute burden on Massillon taxpayers of paying from its general fund the bulk of support of both the clerk's office and for the courts themselves.
In one self-tribute, Maier, Jr. talks about benefiting Massillon taxpayers some $600,000 over 16 years and over $1M in another "how great I am" encomium.
Kind of like Canton soon-to-be ex-mayor William J. Healy, II blaming others (including former mayor Janet Creighton and the Ohio General Assembly) for Canton's financial difficulties going back 4, 5, 8 years and even decades (e.g. prior Republican mayors) in casting the blame of his failures on others.
And, of course, recently re-elected by 40% of 100% of the total Massillon vote Kathy Catazaro-Perry does the same especially in castigating Frank Cicchinelli.
One could take Maier's self-laudation as being a "look what I have done for you" in ameliorating the burden.
But The Report for one is not buying.
Yours truly sees such as circular thinking of self-justification.
Let The Report have at Maier, Jr. one-on-one and see how well his "closed-loop" thinking/support artifice goes.
The Report's experience in life is that when one shamelessly self-promotes as Maier does in the accompanying video such is a cover for what that person knows in his/her heart-of-hearts a lot of insecurity.
Undoubtedly, his steadfast supporters will see it differently.
There are other parts of the SCPR provided Maier, Jr. video that make it for interesting viewing.
What should Massillon government's relationship vis-a-vis the police be in terms of how arrests/citations are done?
Council should tread lightly on approaching the Ohio General Assembly in correcting what some city councilpersons have long thought to be an unfairness.
And, of course, there is the Maier, Jr. fawning over council.
Probably more than one councilperson had to see the bootlicking as being a case of "ingenuity in the face, no?
For "icing on the cake," Maier, Jr. towards the end of his presentation patted himself on the back for not having, over his 16 years as clerk, Massillon City Council to court for an order mandating that his budget number be accepted.
What a magnanimous guy, no!
Undoubtedly, Maier, Jr. co-incidentally has done some good for Massillon and Stark County as the political power broker that he has positioned himself to be in.
However, the SCPR thinks "on balance" (LINK) is has been a negative factor in terms of taking care of himself and his political friends in the sense that everyday, taxpaying Massillonians and Stark Countians bear the brunt of his arbitrarily dispensing political patronage.
As the SCPR always does even from those public officials who think they are immune from being critiqued: here is Maier speaking for himself; uncut, unedited!
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