The situation surrounding Bob Sosebee’s resignation from the Commerce City Council showed the bad and the good about city government.
Sosebee — perhaps pushed by personal financial difficulties — crossed the ethical boundaries by using his position to help a developer and builder with whom he has a business relationship. The scheme did not break the law at the city’s end — at the banks’ end that could be another issue — but, in essence, it involved the city’s name in a shady transaction. As officials have previously warned Sosebee about interference with city departments in regard to the same developer and builder, enough was enough.
Tough job for mayor in ethics matter
While his demise will be trumpeted with glee among those who do not like him, on balance Sosebee has done more for the city than all of the other councilmen who’ve served with him since 1982. He’s a tremendous repository of information about all manner of city business and what he does not know he can get from his myriad contacts around the state. Nobody was or is more passionate about city government than Bob Sosebee.
But that excuses nothing. Past performance does not vindicate ethical lapses.
As mad as people will be about Sosebee’s action, they ought to be grateful that Mayor Charles L. “Buzzie” Hardy had the courage to address it. The ethics ordinance comes into play when a citizen makes a complaint: Hardy was that citizen. It was his threat of launching the formal ethics process that led to Sosebee’s resignation.
It’s no easy manner to do that when the other party is a close friend. Hardy and his wife and Sosebee and his have been friends for a long time, and the mayor deserves credit for doing the right thing without being swayed by friendship. Not many elected officials would initiate that kind of action. Some would vote against long-time friends, but it takes uncommon integrity to look a friend in the eye and hold his feet to the fire. Don’t underestimate how uncomfortable that is.
That said, Sosebee’s removal leaves the city council with a leadership void. Whatever you say about Sosebee, he was the most knowledgeable, most interested, most capable council member at the table. Hopefully, some capable citizen will offer for office when the election to fill Sosebee’s term is called.
There is a lesson for every elected official. No matter your level of competence, how popular you are or how long you’ve held an office, you stand to be held accountable for lapses in character or judgment — or even the appearance of lapses. No elected official is of more importance than the office he or she holds, whether it’s a president or a city councilman.
Mark Beardsley is editor of The Commerce News. He lives in Commerce.
But that excuses nothing. Past performance does not vindicate ethical lapses.
As mad as people will be about Sosebee’s action, they ought to be grateful that Mayor Charles L. “Buzzie” Hardy had the courage to address it. The ethics ordinance comes into play when a citizen makes a complaint: Hardy was that citizen. It was his threat of launching the formal ethics process that led to Sosebee’s resignation.
It’s no easy manner to do that when the other party is a close friend. Hardy and his wife and Sosebee and his have been friends for a long time, and the mayor deserves credit for doing the right thing without being swayed by friendship. Not many elected officials would initiate that kind of action. Some would vote against long-time friends, but it takes uncommon integrity to look a friend in the eye and hold his feet to the fire. Don’t underestimate how uncomfortable that is.
That said, Sosebee’s removal leaves the city council with a leadership void. Whatever you say about Sosebee, he was the most knowledgeable, most interested, most capable council member at the table. Hopefully, some capable citizen will offer for office when the election to fill Sosebee’s term is called.
There is a lesson for every elected official. No matter your level of competence, how popular you are or how long you’ve held an office, you stand to be held accountable for lapses in character or judgment — or even the appearance of lapses. No elected official is of more importance than the office he or she holds, whether it’s a president or a city councilman.
Mark Beardsley is editor of The Commerce News. He lives in Commerce.
It is simple to hold your enemy's feet to the fire, but your friend's? Wow, no one gets this . . . if the good ole boy system were still active, we'd never had known about this at all. Thank you Mr. Mayor and your staff that reveal this to you.
Please pray for them. It is easy to sit on the sidelines and scream and holler at a player for not making a tackle, but get in the game yourself, and you probably won't make the tackle either. You might have done the very same thing, or maybe even worse.
We need to be thankful that he has resigned. To me that took lots of courage and yes some character.
To Bob, thank you for serving and just know that you have folks that are praying for you, not judging you.