Donovan Plays to His Base

After yesterday’s thermonuclear attack on fellow alderman Michael McGee, Jr. (a.k.a. Michael Jackson), Ald. Robert Donovan watched the television news accounts with supporters at the Little Schlitz Pub, 2501 W. Greenfield Ave.

If you’re going to “play to the base” with your appearance before the cameras, you might as well enjoy a bit of adulation from the voters, which to Donovan is as headily intoxicating as a cold beer and as refreshing as a menthol cigarette.

The gathering occurred a few blocks from the OASIS senior center, 2414 W. Mitchell St., where Donovan had called a 1:30 p.m. press conference on 15 minutes notice. His press release for the event, held at the location of his district office, said that the Miller Park cruising area, “championed by Ald. Mike Mc Gee, Jr.,” “crosses the line” and “ties up police resources for ‘babysitting’ of cruisers.”

Nowhere in the press release did Donovan indicate that a withering attack on a fellow alderman would be forthcoming. Nobody could have foreseen that Donovan, once the subject of prosecution by U. S. Attorney Steven M. Biskupic, would beseech the Great Prosecutor to investigate whether Ald. Jackson-McGee might be using two Social Security numbers. Donovan also called on District Attorney E. Michael McCann to investigate McGee for perjury regarding claims he made in court about a sexual relation he had denied, and then admitted; for the State Elections Board to determine if he was on the ballot under an assumed name; for Council President Willie Hines to kick McGee off of the Public Safety Committee, which Donovan heads; and for the mayor and Hines to issue a public rebuke to McGee.

Who wouldn’t need a stiff drink after that scorcher!

A former Milwaukeean, now living in Kansas City, happened to be in the historic tavern at the time, and at first didn’t quite know what to make of the news accounts on the television.

“I was watching the television about this debate about cruising — I didn’t understand it, and I’m still not sure what it is about — but I saw this guy on the television, and he looked all shiny like a minister, and I said out loud, ‘what’s this preacher guy all worked up about?’

“I got a funny look from the crowd, and I looked over and I saw the preacher guy sitting right next to me, and I realized he’s the guy on TV, and he’s not a preacher, he’s the alderman, and these were all his supporters.

“They said he should be governor.”

City Targets “Nuisance Vehilcles”

City of Milwaukee mailboxes will soon contain a mailing including a refrigerator magnet announcing the city’s new “286-CITY” telephone number. “Finding the right number for city services just got easier,” according to the mailing.

The red, white and blue document tells us the city has “8,800 Employees, 100s of Services 21 Departments … 1 Number.”

Unfortunately, the magnet is marred by a misspelling — nuisance “vehilcles” is listed as a responsibility of the Department of Neighborhood Services. “Vehilcles,” however is not a word. A call to 286-CITY (actually 1 414 286-2489) produced the information that the mailing was “probably” developed by the Department of Public Works. We asked the operator to connect us with somebody there to discuss the misspelling, but she couldn’t get us in touch with the right person. (July 6th,, 2006)