Examiner Editorial: Why Fenty deserves — and D.C. needs — four more years

As a result, there is a disconnect between what Fenty has done and how he is perceived. But on matters of substance, which will determine whether Washington becomes a truly livable place for residents of all races and in all wards, Fenty has a decidedly positive track record. Under Mayor Fenty, Washington suddenly has a palpable sense that the city’s major institutions and neighborhoods are finally moving in the right direction. People haven’t felt this way for decades.

Unfortunately, a troubling number of Washingtonians have come to view all change – even constructive change – as some kind of threat. But we all benefit when our schools improve and our children receive the kind of education they need to prosper as adults. When crime goes down, we all feel safer — in our neighborhoods, our parks and our downtown.

So it’s time to look at the candidates with clear eyes, putting aside the false, rumor-driven notion that one black candidate is friendlier to African-Americans than the other black candidate, and that progress is something that benefits only a few wards in the District. All residents benefit from a safe and well-run city.

We believe that Adrian Fenty deserves re-election based on his record in five main areas:

• Schools: Education is by far the most important issue in this election, and also the issue in which the difference between the candidates is most stark. The simple question is this: Should D.C. schools be places where children learn, or places where incompetent teachers and administrators enjoy guaranteed lifetime employment? Our public schools have long been the worst in the country, despite astronomical per-pupil expenditures. Fenty appointed Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee to apply common sense solutions such as merit pay and the firing of bad teachers, both of which the corrupt Washington Teachers’ Union has resisted for decades. We believe this is the chief reason Fenty has a target on his head in this election.

  Under Rhee’s leadership, the proficiency rate of D.C. public elementary students in reading has increased by 18 percent since 2007; in math, the increase was 47 percent. Today, we have 45 percent more secondary school students showing proficiency in reading and 61 percent more in math. In all categories, the percentage of students performing “below basic” has declined. The percentage demonstrating “advanced” proficiency has increased.

  Even after these astounding gains, less than 45 percent of our public school students are proficient in either category – which shows just how bad our schools were before Rhee took over, and how much more work she has to do. But her record inspires confidence, and she has admirably pledged to stay for a second Fenty term.

  Our concerns about Gray on the issue of education extend beyond his ambivalence about Rhee. We were also disturbed to hear him suggest to the Examiner editorial board– as he has in other venues – that the process by which teachers are being evaluated for competence is somehow unfair. That is a talking point of the teachers’ union, which has endorsed Gray. To us, it sounds a lot like an excuse to roll back needed reforms and re-hire teachers who do not serve the needs of students.

• Crime: Mayor Fenty inherited a city already much safer than it had been at the beginning of his predecessor’s term, and his administration has made it safer still. Since his appointment of Chief Cathy Lanier in 2007, homicides have declined dramatically. After a 23 percent drop last year, murders are on pace to fall by 15 percent this year. The Metropolitan Police Department is now closing three of every four cases, exceeding the national average and the city’s historical rate.
• City services: Remember the days of queuing for hours to endure lengthy, unnecessary car-safety inspections? Remember spending all afternoon at the DMV just to take care of a simple change of address? Those days are gone, and you can credit Mayor Fenty for this. District residents’ dealings with city government have become far less painful, thanks to automation and a noticeable change of culture among city employees.

• Finances: Despite various debates about which funds have gone to which programs, Mayor Fenty has amassed a fiscal record that most state governors would envy. As of the current fiscal year, the District government’s annual gross expenditures are up only 11 percent since he took office in 2007. This is despite considerable increases in education spending.

  Unfortunately, the economic downturn has meant that city revenues have not kept pace, and as a result, the District’s rainy day fund has reached a dangerously low level. But we believe the mayor has already demonstrated that he is up to the challenge of keeping government growth in check. He has shown a willingness to cut spending even when it costs him politically – the chief example being his cuts of 2,500 jobs from the city payroll. He has also avoided tax increases that would drive away jobs and taxpayers who pay the bills. This responsible course of action has cost him endorsements from city workers’ unions.

• Economic development: Important neighborhood development projects have been started and successfully completed, bringing marked improvements to the Southwest Waterfront, Columbia Heights, Deanwood, and other sections of Washington. New projects are coming to Brentwood, Brookland and Petworth. Businesses are migrating to D.C. instead of leaving it. For the first time in decades, there are full-service, sit-down restaurants and chain supermarkets in Ward 8.

As a result of all this progress, the District is finally growing in population, attracting successful newcomers who add to our community and to our tax base. Sadly, this very progress provides the unfortunate subtext that has turned a contest between two African-American candidates into an election about race rather than issues. Chairman Gray fosters the impression that Mayor Fenty is chiefly benefiting white Washington; that he has poured the city’s resources into its white neighborhoods at the expense of its black neighborhoods; that he is unconcerned that thousands of poorer black residents could be forced out of the city through gentrification.

This claim does not withstand scrutiny. The budget numbers do not support it, nor do all the new libraries and recreational centers in mostly-black neighborhoods, nor does the explosion in construction of mixed-income housing – Fenty has created 11,000 new “affordable” units. Nor does the fact that 79 percent of the students benefiting from public school reform are black, while only 7 percent are white. But the ugly racial claims are out there, and Gray is taking advantage of the fact that so many believe them.

When he met with the Examiner editorial board, Gray raised the specter of a city that builds “dog parks” for yuppies at the expense of playgrounds for black children. He offered this explanation for Fenty supposedly favoring the white parts of town: “Politically, I think he sees his base as over there, and he wants to maintain his base.” He added, “That is not to suggest anyone’s a racist,” which struck us as a good way of putting that image into people’s minds. Gray dismissed the ongoing development and progress in the east of town by noting that “all that stuff was in the pipeline when he started” — as though Fenty should increase construction even more in Wards 7 and 8 just because he wasn’t the one to think up the already-substantial city investments going there. 

Despite his stated belief that Washington’s gentrification is inevitable, Gray has capitalized on many District residents’ fear of the unknown. He has won their support with unrealistic promises and hints that he will arrest gentrification, such as his recent statement to the Washington Post that he will “use every tool that’s available to city government to be able to maintain a diverse population.” But Gray knows that Washington will remain diverse no matter who wins. He also knows that gentrification will continue, no matter who wins.

Vincent Gray is a capable public servant, and we do not fear disaster if he wins. But we are aware of no compelling reason to elect him. Moreover, there is no reason to fix what is not broken in the areas of crime, fiscal management, city services and economic development. Most importantly, in education, there is no need to break what is finally being fixed after all these years.

For these reasons, we urge Washingtonians to re-elect Adrian Fenty in next Tuesday’s Democratic primary.