The Democratic primary for Philadelphia mayor is less than a week away and there’s still no clear frontrunner. KYW’s City Hall bureau chief Pat Loeb has talked to all the leading candidates for our podcast Who’s Running for Philly Mayor. In the new episode she talks to the men who once held the job.
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PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Earlier this week, seconds after Mayor Jim Kenney announced he had voted for Cherelle Parker to succeed him, he proceeded to ridicule former mayors for making endorsements.
“I don’t think it’s right for any old mayor to be endorsing anybody to tell you the truth,” he said.
It seemed ungracious, especially when considering what former Gov. and Mayor Ed Rendell has to say about Kenney.
“I think Jim Kenney is a good man, and I think he works hard,” Rendell said. “And his frustration with not being able to solve all of our problems is what makes him so unhappy at times.”
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Former Mayor Bill Green said he had a laugh when he heard Kenney take this shot at him: “Bill Green endorsed Allan Domb. I don’t know how many people were alive when Bill Green was mayor.”
Spoiler: Kenney was alive, and he was working in Philadelphia Democratic politics at the time. And Kenney might have benefitted from a consultation with the former mayor, who was considered a big success, even though he left after one term.
The truth is Green, Rendell and the other “old mayors” have a lot of wisdom to share about the job.
“One of the problems with public life today is too many people stay too long,” Green said. “And I didn’t do that.”
The sole ex-mayor not touched by Kenney’s gibe is Wilson Goode, who does not endorse. But he does have advice for the candidates.
“They all should be thinking now, ‘Who can I find who can help solve the problem of violence in the city?’ ‘Where are they now?’ And they should be — even before the primary, they should be searching the country getting lists of names.”
Rendell says he has true sympathy for Kenney and, by extension, the next mayor, because he knows how hard the job is.
“And you try, and you win some victories and you lose some important fights — and you have to pick yourself up and go on,” Rendell said.
More from 'Who's Running for Philly Mayor?'
There’s much more in the new episode of Who’s Running for Philly Mayor — on the Audacy app or wherever you get your podcasts.
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