Thursday, September 21, 2006
Posted by The Dean of Cincinnati
 During a debate last night at Temple Shalom (full video should be forthcoming), Phil Heimlich characterized himself as a compassionate leader. However, when asked a simple yes-or-no question, Heimlich resorted to petty personal insults and attacks. What does Heimlich’s behavior betray about the true nature of his character? What should we make of his inability to answer a straightforward question? Does Phil Heimlich have something he wants to keep secret?
The Question’s Background
A few weeks ago, Don Veinot, president of a regional apologetics ministry, issued an open letter to the International Association of Character Cities (IACC), asking whether Phil Heimlich had ever received commissions. (Read more about that story here.) Mr. Veinot is still waiting on a response from the IACC concerning his records request.
However, the IACC has a history of lining the pockets of politicians. Out in Arizona, State Treasurer David Petersen was found taking commissions while using political office to promote the Character First! agenda (source).
The story has stayed alive, and just a few days ago this appeared in Oklahoma (online article requires web registration—try http://www.bugmenot.com ). Here is an excerpt:
Government officials, including Lt. Gov. Mary Fallin, Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel and Oklahoma County District Attorney Wes Lane, have spoken at Character First! events.
They were not paid for speaking, Fahrenbruck said.
Fallin asked after her mother died last year that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Character First!
“Lieutenant Governor Fallin believes addressing character development is more important than ever and that Character First! has delivered the message effectively,” her chief of staff, Nate Webb, said.
Lane said he took vacation time in 1999 — while an assistant district attorney — to travel to Romania for Character First! to speak to police officials there about incorporating character at their agencies. “We weren’t getting paid anything to do it,” Lane said. “It was spoken out of conviction. My wife didn’t get to go or anything.” Lane said of the nonprofit organization, “I think they’re a wonderful group of people.”
People are starting to ask questions about the monetary relationship between elected leaders and the Character Cities. Why not ask Phil Heimlich directly? The questions are not at all unique to Cincinnati and to The Cincinnati Beacon.
The Question
Below, watch for yourself this video footage of Phil Heimlich behaving badly. Instead of answering a perfectly simple and timely question, he decides to insult me! And this is right after he characterized himself as compassionate during the forum at the temple!
Here is a quick link to the 49 “Character Qualities” advanced by the IACC and it’s affiliated programs. In the video footage, I think Heimlich has violated all of the following: Benevolence, Compassion, Discretion, Forgiveness, Generosity, Gentleness, Honor, Hospitality, Humility, Meekness, Responsibility, Self-Control, Tolerance, Truthfulness, Virtue, and Wisdom.
Cronyism
Phil Heimlich’s behavior strikes me as strangely similar to a recent email exchange I had with Kimball Perry. I have always thought there is a fishy relationship between Heimlich and Perry, and now the connection seems even more likely.
I wrote the following letter to Perry on August 4th:
From: The Dean of Cincinnati
Sent: Friday, August 04, 2006 8:40 AM
To: Perry, Kimball
Subject: DeWine Jail Tax
Just read your article today about DeWine perhaps supporting a sales tax for building a jail.
Are you really unaware of Portune’s jail proposal? You write like it does not exist.
That is unfair to the citizens of Hamilton County. You have failed us, again.
The Dean
Here is the off-topic email I received as a response, just a few minutes later:
From:
Subject: RE: DeWine Jail Tax
Date: August 4, 2006 8:43:49 AM EDT
To:
Did your house get to the Sheriff’s sale?
Kimball Perry
The Cincinnati Enquirer
There are many reasons as to why a family may experience financial hardship. However, without getting into the details of my personal life (and please notice, I have not gotten into the details of Phil Heimlich’s personal life—asking questions about Rebecca, or little Henry, for example), suffice it to say that my house was not foreclosed. I experienced a personal financial situation (utterly unrelated to my status as either employed or unemployed), and it has since been resolved.
The Auditor’s web page is confusing in regards to whether I have paid my property taxes or not. I know that I issued a full payment about one week late this summer. When I called the County, I was given an amount that was less than the amount my mortgage company issued through escrow. A few weeks later, however, the County site showed that I owed one penny. Then, a few weeks after that, the amount changed again. (The site does come with a disclaimer that the information displayed may be inaccurate, and I am working to get paper documentation from the County.)
I mention these things because comments will bring them up anyway. However, what bearing it has on whether Phil Heimlich has accepted commissions from the IACC or its affiliates is beyond comprehension.
Conclusion
The IACC story has stayed alive for months, and people are starting to ask questions around the country about whether politicians have received commissions or not. Therefore, I decided to ask Phil Heimlich directly. Instead of saying either “yes” or “no”—getting in front of the truthfulness of the situation—he resorted to petty personal attacks.
Is this the character of someone who deserves to be in office?
UPDATE, 2/22/07: For whatever reason, this strand has been targeted by malicious spambots. Comments are now closed, as they have been inactive anyway.
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