In the weeks leading up to Mayor Jay Williams' announcement of his cabinet, the word on the street was that Bob Bush, the police chief and law director in the McKelvey administration, would have a place in the new city government.

Indeed, Bush had been interviewed for the police chief's job, but it was said that even if he was not retained as Youngstown's top cop he would end up in the law department.

But when Williams made public his list of appointees, Bush was no where to be found.

What happened? He's not talking and the mayor keeps insisting that his decision not to retain anyone from the previous administration should not be viewed negatively.

But seeing as how Bush has been one of the most prominent black public officials in Mahoning County, why wouldn't a black mayor hold on to him, especially given his knowledge of the black community and its crime epidemic?

One law enforcement wag suggests that Bush's goose was cooked when he refused to enthusiastically endorse Capt. Jimmy Hughes as his successor. Hughes has long eyed the police chief's job and has some well known black politicos in his support group.

The wag reveals that when Bush was being interviewed by Williams and his chief of staff, Jason Whitehead, most of the time was spent discussing Hughes' fitness to be chief. The former top cop obviously didn't say the right things.

And that raises the question: Who dissed Bush? (The mayor insists that the selection of his cabinet was conducted in an objective manner with qualifications and experience as the main criteria.)