Whether or not we want to admit it, nearly all of us value action over words from our politicians. It’s why the first 100 days of a presidential administration are considered the most important: it’s a gauge of an elected official’s ability to DO after a year or so of talking about what they would do. We elect people for action, not words, so it does make a lot of sense.
But this current administration is showing the pitfalls of acting first and asking questions later, and the Scottsdale City Council has followed that path to their own detriment. Let me explain…
At the federal level, most of us would agree that the federal government spends too much money and that cuts should be made. But if you know anyone who works with the federal government, you have properly heard how incredibly haphazard the cuts, led by Elon Musk’s “DOGE” department, have been. It wasn’t led by the desire for increased efficiency or need, it has been a top-down dictate to cut every department by 20%. It has circumvented laws to the point where it is now getting embarrassed in the courts of law leading to massive reversals. It’s single-minded focus on eliminating “woke” has led to often silly cuts. Acting first, asking questions later.
Scottsdale’s leadership took the exact same approach, making their first few weeks very eventful ones, taking almost direct cues from the federal level. They undid the city’s sustainability plan only to call for a task force to…explore sustainability. Yes, they acted…and gave themselves additional work in the process. They jumped on a hamster wheel and lauded themselves for their productivity.
But perhaps the better example is the push to eliminate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion efforts (also known as DEI). The Trump administration led the way, eliminating anything that vaguely resembled DEI, and while some efforts were overdue, some were simply a solution chasing a problem. It built its own unnecessary excesses, such as verbiage about Navajo Code Talkers, an integral component of our winning WWII campaign, being erased from official history.
Scottsdale dutifully followed suit, eliminating its very small Diversity department, one that has been operating without issue for three decades. The result? Relative chaos.
Is acknowledging women’s history ok now? Black history? Hispanic history month? No one seems to know in council. Can any tax dollars be used to as much as acknowledge anyone that isn’t in the minority? Council could have slowed down and worked out the details first, but moving fast and breaking things was far more important than doing the right thing.
Our city isn’t a tech start-up. Do it right the first time, even if it takes a little more time. You were elected to four year terms, no need to rush. Besides, your first few weeks in office won’t be remembered when it’s time for re-election anyway.