Reid Confronts McWilliams Over Perceived Slight

Someone today reminded me of a blog topic I meant to write about but forgot with all the incursions of workers into my apartment this week to check on a big leak.

Very late in Monday’s City Council meeting (May 3), Councilman William Reid began a diatribe against City Council President Annie McWilliams over a perceived slight at the April 12 regular City Council meeting. Reid claimed McWilliams excluded him while passing out a last-minute resolution on a proposed $16,000 increase in spending for a “visioning study” on future city development.

“I figure that you bypassed me because you know that I ask questions,” Reid said, adding he was “astounded at the very large disrespect” of the perceived omission.

“You’re learning fast, tricks to get stuff past us,” Reid said, insisting that McWilliams “never, ever do it again.”

Councilwoman Linda Carter recalled that the council went into a two-minute recess to discuss the item, which was received from the administration just that night, as McWilliams also attested. The measure passed after the recess. Reid made no mention April 12 of a slight.

But Reid again told McWilliams Monday, “Please don’t do that any more. If you are going to do that, call me and I will keep my butt home.”

None of the explanations offered mollified Reid. When McWilliams said his protestations made her appear to be unethical, Reid said, “It was unethical.”

As McWilliams asked to defend her action, Reid said, “You can’t defend it to me.”

As the discussion wore on, Reid insisted information was kept from him.

Councilman Cory Storch suggested that a face-to-face private talk would have been more in order than a public confrontation, but Reid was unappeased.

Reid is the First Ward representative. He came on first as an appointee in 2007 succeeding Rayland Van Blake, who left the council to become a Union County freeholder. He ran for the unexpired term in 2008 and has now filed to run for a full four-year term in the November general election. His Republican opponent in November will be Sean Alfred. Reid is also the campaign treasurer for Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs.

--Bernice Paglia