I got my first taste of actually being involved with politics. A report that I worked on is part of a larger development. That development was turned down by the City about a month ago. The developers have appealed the decision, asking the City Council to refer it another 120 days. All that is standard government. Here's where the politics come in.
The alder of the district where the development is occurring left a message on the developer's voice-mail, strong-arming the project to require more guarenteed union labor. Problem is, he's the president of the labor union that would benefit. Now, more developers are coming forward saying he's used these tactics before. A bit of a conflict of interest, no? All that was danced around as the council discussed the vote of the 120 day referral. The vote came back narrowly against the referral of 120 days. Someone quickly called a 10 minute recess, and we nervously prepared our rebuttal presentations. Upon reconveining, a motion was made to revote, and low and behold, the referral carried without us saying a word. Now, that's politics.