Time to boot Wilkerson? It’s up to you, voters

The Boston Herald ^ | 08/20/2006 | Peter Gelzinis

[Panerai]

It is said we get the government we deserve. But do the people of the 2nd Suffolk District really deserve Sen. Dianne Wilkerson?

For the nearly 14 years she’s been in the state Senate, the star-crossed “Lady D,” as some affectionately call her, has seldom been willing, or able, to get out of her own way.

And the sad reality is, it’s never seemed to matter. But now, the question is: Should it?

She’s been a fixture on Beacon Hill since 1993 and she still can’t manage to scrounge up 300 legit signatures to have her name officially placed on the ballot. That’s the political equivalent of getting dressed and forgetting to put on your shoes.

Sure, it’s pathetic. But beyond that, it’s also insulting to the people she purports to represent. In effect, Wilkerson is saying, “I can’t be bothered spending a little time asking for your signature.”

Not to worry, however, Lady D says she intends to wage “a vigorous sticker campaign.”

Which would make September an awfully busy month for Wilkerson. In addition to running around polling places in Chinatown, Jamaica Plain, parts of Beacon Hill, the South End, Roxbury and Mattapan with a fistful of stickers, Wilkerson will be trying to stay one step ahead of both the attorney general and the Suffolk DA.

Attorney General Tom Reilly’s office has been eyeballing Lady D for nearly $80,000 in shady reimbursements and expenditures regarding her campaign account. Among the curious transactions: $20,264 that somehow made a lateral move out of Dianne’s campaign account and into her personal account. Then there’s the $15,550 in “consulting fees” doled out to her two grown sons, Cornell and Kendall Mills.

[Panerai]

[nothingnew]

Time to boot Wilkerson?

"Otay!"

FMCDH(BITS)