ERIE Mayor's top aide gains visibility

Some in the city have started calling Tina Mengine 'Madame Mayor.'
ERIE, Pa. (AP) -- When 43 city workers were laid off because of budget problems last month, Tina Mengine held the news conference. And when unions for those workers objected to the layoffs, Mengine negotiated with them.
Although Rick Filippi is still the mayor of Erie, Mengine, his spokeswoman and top aide, is shouldering much of the burden these days. Filippi lost in the May primary, so he would be a lame duck even if he weren't also awaiting trial on corruption charges.
"She's the point person," said Joe Walko, president of the firefighters' union. "She's not just the messenger."
Mengine, 46, acknowledges her increased role in recent weeks. Others in the city have noticed it, too, she says, using the nickname "Madame Mayor."
Filippi said that has occurred with his blessing since he's begun working part-time again as an attorney in the final months of his term.
But both say Filippi is still making final decisions on city policies.
"A lot of what the mayor did was initiatives," said Mengine.
"Now he's not creating anything new. So there's just the budget and the day-to-day operations to deal with. Those have always been my responsibility."
Mengine, a former advertising executive, said that while the roles might seem reversed, "it's less about being reversed and more about the fact that the focus has changed."
Council President Jim Thompson isn't buying that -- not with Filippi's office charged with cutting $7 million in city spending to balance next year's budget.
"I think it's horrible what he's doing," Thompson said. "What Tina has been doing is his job."
Tainted image
But Mengine said having her front the city government actually helps Filippi do his job, because perceptions of him have been clouded since the corruption charges.
The state Attorney General's Office has charged Filippi, his law partner and another close friend with using insider information to buy up land parcels near the former International Paper plant after the mayor determined that MTR Gaming of West Virginia wanted to build a horse racetrack and casino there.
The racetrack plans have fallen through and Aiko, the holding company in question, has since sold the properties.
Filippi contends he did nothing wrong, but prosecutors said he used inside information to make the land deals and then wrongly tried to hide his interest in the holding company.
The trial is expected to begin after he leaves office in January.