By Tyler S. Clark

(Editor's note: Don Hanni Jr's death has been the occasion of much praise and fond remembrance. The loss of loved ones is a sensitive time, and Hanni is being amply honored with full ceremony this weekend. He was also an outsized public figure with a controversial record, and his legacy deserves that the fullest picture of his accomplishments and challenges are given equal attention.

The following editorial by Robert D. Fitzer appeared in the April 2004 issue of Speed of Sound magazine, published by Holly J. Burnett and is being reprinted, with permission, in full. It was printed on the eve of the primaries that saw Hanni's ouster from the Democratic party chairmanship that had been his comfortable seat for sixteen years. More in-depth commentary will be posted in this blog later today to complement it.)

 

The End of the Hanni Machine: A Commentary by Robert Fitzer

When young mothers, who have so much to lose, throw their hats into the political ring, it means it's not just a battle, it's a war. But when young mothers throughout Mahoning County courageously stand up against Don Hanni's intimidating political "machine" by running for precinct committee person, it's not only a war, it's a revolution.

The following article is dedicated to the children of the brave women and men running against the Mahoning County Democratic Party machine, and to all the children of Mahoning County, who will inherit tomorrow the choices we make today.

 

For 16 years Don L. Hanni Jr. has been running the Mahoning County Democratic Party "like a dictator," according to U.S. Congressman James Traficant. In a county with a virtual one-party system of government, Hanni—as Democratic Party chairman—has had unquestionably more political power than any other public official (witness his 274-74 ass-kicking of the popular Traficant for the 1984 party chairmanship.)

But lately Hanni's noose-like stranglehold of power has been fraying and loosening to the point that his very credibility as a political force in the valley is being questioned.

Consider that in recent years many of the county's most influential Democrats have attained their seats by beating Hanni's machine candidates. The list of winners includes: Youngstown Mayor Patrick Ungaro, State Representative Bob Hagan, County Commissioners David Engler and Frank Lordi, Common Pleas Court Judge Peter Economous, and the late County Clerk of Courts, Anthony Vivo. A host of other Democratic office-holders have kept their distance from the 68-year-old Hanni, apparently fearful that in the 1990s, a Don Hanni/Democratic Party machine endorsement is more of a liability than an asset.

But even this weakening of his once-monolithic power pales in comparison to the spectre Hanni faces going into the primary elections on May 3, when his rusting regime may well be dealt a fatal blow. For on that spring day hundreds of citizens throughout the county—guided in equal measure by courage and outrage—will challenge the very bones of the political body—the 409 precinct committee persons who are responsible for electing the next party chairman.

These candidates, running under the banner of "Mahoning Democrats for Change," include retired mill workers and teachers, grandmothers, artists, business owners, students, and these young mothers.

They are led by Mike Morley, a 37-year-old attorney and developer who will square off against Hanni for the party chairmanship several weeks after the May primary. The Democrats for Change movement has the support of many prominent Democratic officials, with Hagan, Ungaro, and Lordi among those on its steering committee.

And although Hanni should have seen it coming, he has apparently been blindsided by the massive, well-organized Change effort (which has already garnered statewide recognition due to its large scope and historical context). But that's not all, for Hanni must also fight to retain his own precinct committee seat (Youngstown 1-A), facing a tough challenge from downtown resident Otis Conel Jr. (Hanni also claims to live downtown).

The combination of these battles and an illness he has reportedly been suffering from is obviously taking a toll on the razor-tongued Hanni, who normally exhibits a cocksure, take-no-prisoners attitude. Lately he's been tempering his signature name-calling, swearing and macho posturing with some uncharacteristic philosophical introspection.

And while Hanni's mouth garners the most press, it's his actions that cause the greatest consternation among serious critics, as his long tenure has been marked by many questions of impropriety: coziness with reputed mobsters and mob associates, blatant nepotism, unapologetic cronyism and patronage, and intimidation tactics that would make even the late Mayor Daley of Chicago nostalgic.

But unlike Chicago—long known as "the city that works"—Mahoning County has not worked well under the chokehold of Hanni's party machine. We've instead become a sort of national "poster child" for all types of social and economic ills: unemployment, poverty, population loss, crime (both organized and unorganized), property devaluation, infrastructure decay, and a less-than-healthy business climate.

Simply put, the Mahoning Valley is developmentally handicapped. And Don Hanni's philosophy of "to the victors go the spoils" is a major cause. For when the victors get the spoils, the victims get the crumbs, and in this needy county, there are too few spoils and too many victims.

Some, though, still give him credit for being a "brilliant" politician, but they are failing to see the bigger picture. For what benefit is derived from delivering political candidates or being a rhetorical charmer if you don't use that power to solve the most intractable problems a community faces? And in Mahoning County, the principal issue is economic development. Think about this: Of the 25 largest manufacturing employers in our five-county area (Mahoning, Trumbull, Columbiana, Mercer, and Lawrence), only one is located in the largest county—Mahoning. Only one! Now, if you were the long-time "dictator" of a virtual one-party county, would you feel "brilliant" with that record of political success?

Ironically, our economy has been improving recently, but seemingly in inverse proportion to Don Hanni's waning political clout. Thanks to the emerging generation of progressive, anti-Hanni public servants (as well as the pork-barrel "successes" of Congressman Traficant), we may finally be ready to put our economic house in order.

What takes much longer to repair, however, are the numbing effects of the autocratic system of control which Hanni has skillfully manipulated for nearly the past two decades. His divide-and-conquer strategies—fueling political and ethnic turf wars—both paralyze and polarize the community, sapping it of its strength and preventing it from working together to attract business and healthy development. All we're left with is an alarmingly high level of cynicism and apathy and a dangerously low civic self-esteem.

What makes matters even worse is the half-century of overt organized crime interference which Mahoning County is famous for, and with it our history of shamefully high public acquiescence. For his part, Hanni sounds like nothing more than an apologist for the mob. He blurs the distinctions between legitimate businesses and organized crime operations, implying they are the same. He once defended Traficant's taking of mob money by asking, "Is he [Traficant] any more guilty of wrongdoing than those candidates running for office who accept thousands of dollars from major utilities and big oil companies?"

Hanni also trivializes the insidious effects of the mob on the community by saying, "Organized crime is chiefly reflected in racketeers killing racketeers," ignoring the more profound economic ramifications of mob control. He takes it even a step further by impugning the integrity of all elected officials, claiming—as on CBS's 60 Minutes—"I know that everybody takes money from the mob." This mean-spirited generalization once again serves to confuse the public as to who the "good guys" are and who the "bad guys" are. Hanni also unwittingly indicts himself with this quote, for he, too, is a longtime elected official (current precinct committeeman and former municipal judge). And if he lives by his quote, then does Hanni—as Democratic Party chairman—advise candidates he's grooming for office to be like "everybody" else and "take money from the mob"? And since Hanni is also chairman of the Mahoning County Board of Elections, does his quote also imply that he is derelict in his duty as chairman for not forcing candidates to report their "mob money" to the board?

Interestingly, Hanni's loose lips, flamboyant style, and insistence on playing by his own rules (ditto for Traficant) has no doubt contributed to the demise of the party machine, which relies on a more bureaucratic model of management. And while he often boasts of "telling it like it is," sometimes it's not at all like he says.

Actually, the man called "Bull Moose" appears to be about 90% bull. For example, on January 25, 1994—during a discussion about nepotism on WKBN's Ron Verb Show—Hanni trumpeted, "If you go out and check the minutes of the Mahoning County Board of Elections, you'll find that I have never once voted to hire my son [Mark Hanni]. I've always abstained from voting." But Hanni did, indeed, vote—and he voted "aye"—on a motion to rehire his son in March 1982. And he voted "aye" again in July 1984, this time on a motion to promote the younger Hanni to deputy director, prompting Republican board member William Binning to call Don Hanni's vote "a blatant case of nepotism."

While Hanni is certainly a master of rhetoric—not to mention the reigning "filibuster king" on local talk radio—more often than not, his hollow lip service to women, minorities and labor unions ends up offending the very parties he's intending to stroke. Even his own Democratic "pedigree" and adherence to Democratic Party principles seems dubious. After all, Hanni was once a leader of the Young Republicans. Did he jump on the Democratic donkey years ago simply because it offered him a quicker ride to power than the Republican elephant? And in 1992 Hanni publicly courted billionaire tycoon and longtime Republican Ross Perot. Meanwhile, he consistently bad-mouths his own Democratic president, Bill Clinton.

And what about Hanni's belief in the very pillars of American democracy—the voters themselves? He once bragged on WKBN's Dan Ryan Show that he could get a "trained monkey" elected in Mahoning County. Ask yourself: When you think of Don Hanni, do you picture a public servant dedicated to making a better community? Or, do you see a politician committed to the continued empowerment of himself, his sons and his pals?

One may ask how it is that Don Hanni always seems to be in power but never seems to appear on a county-wide ballot? The answer: The party chairman is elected only by a majority of the 409 precinct committee persons, and not by the general public.

This is exactly why the current Mahoning Democrats for Change movement is altogether unlike previous attempts to wrest power away from Hanni. Whereas those efforts focused solely on the chairmanship race itself, this current grass-roots endeavor has secured hundreds of candidates for the precinct races, in addition to a strong candidate for party chairman.

What's the motivation of the Morley-led Change candidates? Most of them are political neophytes who simply, honestly, painfully want to see this valley flourish again for their children and grandchildren. They also believe the old adage that one person really can make a difference. These independent-thinking men and women are convinced they can replace good old boys with good new ideas.

At the very least, the Democrats for Change promise to bring about a long-overdue aeration of Mahoning County's constipated political soil.

At the very best, they will bring about a revolution in the way politics are handled in Mahoning County, paving the way for true economic growth and renewed hope.

A side benefit of the Change impetus is the window of opportunity it affords Republicans, who will be more easily able to cultivate their best and brightest. Who knows—it may even eventually lead to an authentic two-party system in Mahoning County, incorporating the checks and balances upon which democracy is built. Wouldn't that be special?

But this battle is by no means a done deal. And the Democrats for Change have much work ahead of them—most importantly, getting thousands of voters county-wide to identify the Change candidate in their own precincts on election day.

And don't count out the wily Hanni yet. He has a remarkable ability to find a tiny speck of wrong-doing in the eye of an opponent or critic and—like the clever trial lawyer he is—build it into a full-blown issue, thereby removing the spotlight from the log in his own eye.

Finally, it will be the responsibility of both the media and the voters to tenaciously focus on the bigger picture—Mahoning County's future—and not be distracted this time by Hanni's skillful soundbite sensationalism.

And if the Mahoning Democrats for Change are able to secure enough popular support, even ex-boxer Hanni's best shots may finally be rendered ineffective.

When the voters of Mahoning County close that curtain of democracy behind them on May 3, they might be casting the "biggest little vote" in local Democratic history. It may even result in what could be called "the end of an error" in Mahoning County politics.

 

Speed of Sound senior consultant Bob Fitzer is a lifelong Democrat. A Youngstown native, he is a professional clarinetist and saxophonist as well as teacher and band director. He has played with symphony orchestras throughout the world including Chicago, Rome, Mexico City, San Antonio and Graz, Austria. He has also performed on numerous film soundtracks in Hollywood (most recently Death Wish V), is a member of Youngstown's Easy Street Productions and sits on the board of the Greenville Symphony. Fitzer is vice president of the Citizens League of Greater Youngstown, and an independent consultant involved in the redevelopment of downtown Youngstown. He is a first-time candidate for precinct committeeman in Youngstown, running as a Mahoning Democrat for Change.