We've already seen this with Mayor Parker and HER Ordinance. From attempting to stamp out opposition through confiscatory subpoenas to illegally overriding the City's procedures for voter referendum certification (to a point that the Texas Supreme Court issued not only a stay, but also a directive to either repeal or put the issue to vote) we've seen the mean, petty side of Parker on display over this act.
In what is sure to not be the last act of a desperate woman, we now see the all to familiar attempt to make yes equal no and no equal yes.....
Ballot language Questioned in Equal Rights Ordinance. Doug Miller, KHOU.com
Here's the ballot language as it appears on the city council agenda:
"Shall the City of Houston repeal the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance, Ord. No. 2014-530, which prohibits discrimination in city employment and city services, city contracts, public accommodations, private employment, and housing based on an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, familial status, marital status, military status, religion, disability, sexual orientation, genetic information, gender identity, or pregnancy?"
There is a legal question as to whether or not this election is a repeal election, or whether Parker here is complying with the ruling of the court which states:
The Relators assert that under the Houston Charter, after the City Secretary certifies thepetition’s sufficiency, the City Council has a ministerial duty to immediately reconsider the ordinance and, if it does not repeal it, put it on the November 2015 ballot.
(...)
We agree with the Relators that the City Secretary certified their petition and thereby invoked the City Council’s ministerial duty to reconsider and repeal the ordinance or submit it to popular vote.
The language within the City Charter is fairly clear, at least it seems clear enough when common sense is applied. However, Houston government is currently not operating under the established rules of common sense, but under the drive of a Mayor who's more interested in her personal political priorities (and future political candidacies) than she is in fulfilling her duties as Mayor for all Houstonians.
Think about this: There are Federal laws which cover every minority group within HER Ordinance except one, and it's the one with which Parker happens to identify. In contrast, there are NO Federal laws covering Houston's financial mess, the growing infrastructure decline or the lack of financial oversight on almost all areas of Houston's governance. That Parker is throwing all of her support behind the former, while all but ignoring the latter, speaks volumes about whether she's governing, or trying to create a personal legacy as a launch pad for future, personal, political gain.
If anything, Houston's elected leaders should submit a straight-forward Her Ordinance proposal to the voters, asking them to either approve the ordinance or reject it, and turn their focus to more pressing problems than who uses what potty and whether or not city buildings have gardens on the roofs or are LEED certified.
Parker has stated that pension reform and the City budget are going to be items for "the next Mayor to deal with". I would argue the counter. What Parker should do is focus on the larger items at hand, push to repeal the poorly-crafted HER Ordinance and let a Mayor who has less skin in the game give it another go. This would not preclude Parker from being an advocate for the New ERO as a private citizen. As a matter of fact, I would hope she would still choose to do so.
Maybe with a little bit more measured thought and a little less "this is very personal to me" anger we can end up with something better than the Grand Urinal Bargain of 2014.
I realize, of course, that this is a pipe dream.
