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Traficanti, Ludt stand up to the Cafaros
On the eve of last Tuesday's primary election, Don L. Hanni Jr., whose involvement in Mahoning Valley politics harkens to horse-and-buggy days (a slight exaggeration, of course), called to chat about -- what else -- politics.
Hanni may have slowed down in his practice as a criminal lawyer, and may bear the scars from his many political battles, but what he has to say still provides food for thought. After ranting about the war in Iraq and other national and state issues, the conversation turned to local affairs.
The big news of the election was the push by Mahoning County commissioners to renew a half-percent sales tax permanently -- not only because it had far-reaching implications with regard to the criminal justice system, but because the owners of the Cafaro Co. had insinuated themselves in the campaign.
Anthony and J.J. Cafaro, sons of the late William Cafaro, founder of the Cafaro Co., had launched a very public attack on commissioners Anthony Traficanti and David Ludt in the weeks leading up the election.
The Cafaro brothers are attempting to block the relocation of the county's Job and Family Services agency from Garland Plaza, which the Cafaro Co. owns, to Oakhill Renaissance Place, which the county owns. Oakhill Renaissance is the former South Side Medical Center complex. The Cafaros have filed a lawsuit against the county and have used videotaped depositions of Traficanti and Ludt to bolster their claim that the commissioners have bought a pig in a poke.
Videotaped depositions
They paid to air edited versions of the depositions on two local television stations. The half-hour infomercial ran Sunday, April 29, and last Sunday.
Nonetheless, the Cafaros insisted that it was not their intention to undermine the campaign for the sales tax renewal. And the timing of the infomercial's airing? Just showing the taxpayers how tax dollars are being spent.
Hanni, who was a friend and political ally of William Cafaro, was asked this question in the context of the battle being waged by the Cafaro Co.:
"Would Bill Cafaro have taken on this fight?"
The former chairman of the Mahoning County Democratic Party answered without hesitation: "No."
Hanni did not elaborate, but his silence spoke volumes.
In politics, you don't take on a fight you cannot win.
The Cafaro brothers miscalculated the political power of their family name. To be sure, when William Cafaro was alive, a visit to his office on Belmont Avenue by national, state and local politicians was a requirement -- for securing a campaign contribution. But it was always done quietly and there was never any flaunting of his political connections. Thus, when he sold the former Sears (and later Treasure Island) building on Market Street to Mahoning County, there wasn't any controversy. And, when the commissioners in the 1980s chose to move the Welfare Department from downtown Youngstown to Garland Plaza, opposition was muted, at best.
Public battle
But, Anthony and J.J. Cafaro have chosen to make their battle with commissioners Traficanti and Ludt public -- and thus far have been on the losing end.
Their attempt to portray their campaign to derail the JFS relocation in altruistic terms has fallen flat. For one thing, if the agency moves, the Cafaro Co. will lose 480,000 a year in rent, and will not easily find a replacement tenant. The residents of the county aren't blind to the fact that the Cafaros stand to lose more than just the rent. Under the terms of the lease, the county is responsible for all maintenance and operational costs associated with JFS occupying space in Garland Plaza. In all, it costs the county more than 1 million a year.
Then, there is J.J. Cafaro's insistence, as a spokesman for the company, that all he is trying to do is ensure the proper expenditure of tax dollars. However, his felony conviction in federal court for bribing former Congressman James A. Traficant Jr. (Cafaro was attempting to secure a federal contract) makes his arguments less credible.
Tuesday's overwhelming vote in favor of the sales tax renewal was a clear victory for all three commissioners, Traficanti, Ludt and John McNally, but it was sweet revenge for Traficanti and Ludt, who were on the receiving end of the Cafaros' assault.
While the lawsuit is still working its way through the courts, the Cafaro campaign to win the hearts and minds of the taxpayers has backfired.