Whatever the political future may hold for Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, it is not going to be dictated by — or even much influenced by — the Great Two-Inch Snowstorm of 2014. It’s a silly argument for a long list of reasons.
It is silly in part because the facts don’t justify it. After the initial burst of coverage, most of the blame for government’s slow reaction has fallen on state officials, not city officials, and that’s appropriate. Timelines compiled after the storm of who did what, and when, demonstrate that Atlanta officials responded more quickly than state officials did and also treated the storm more seriously.
All of the high-profile problems on the Perimeter, the Downtown Connector, Georgia 400 and other highways were state responsibilities. Streets within the city weren’t scraped clear by any means, but they weren’t major issues. The city itself comprises 8 percent of the metro region’s population and as measured by the Census, just 1.6 percent of its land mass. It was at best a small player, and if that wasn’t immediately obvious to national media, it certainly should become so.
The massive traffic disaster also highlighted the Atlanta region’s transportation shortcomings and its inability to think, govern or react on a regional basis; in a crisis, the state once again proved it is a poor substitute for that capability. If anything, events validated much of what Reed has attempted to accomplish as mayor, from his support for transportation options to his work as regional ambassador and spokesman.
Of course, appearances do matter, and in times like this, they can matter more than the facts. Tactically speaking, for that one little moment and in terms of his own personal image, Reed might have been better off joining the chorus of those pinning the blame on Gov. Nathan Deal, instead of standing at Deal’s side as the television cameras rolled and the harsh questions were fired.
But here’s the bottom line: If and when Reed decides to seek political office beyond the boundaries of Atlanta, this year’s storm won’t be anywhere on the list of obstacles that he’ll have to overcome. It’s just not going to matter.
It will matter that he’ll be the mayor of Atlanta reaching out for support to parts of Georgia where “Atlanta” epitomizes all that is sinful and urban, an attitude that existed long before “urban” became code for something else. It will matter that he is a big-city Democrat in a state that is majority rural and suburban Republican. Most of all, it will matter that he is a black politician hoping to build a career in a Southern state where race is unfortunately still an issue.
If he can overcome all that, the storm won’t matter. And the image of him at Deal’s side, taking the heat with the white Republican governor, may stand him in good stead in overcoming those problems.
With all that said, we all have shortcomings, and the recent storm and its aftermath did highlight one of the Atlanta mayor’s more glaring weaknesses as a politician: Under pressure, he can come across as thin-skinned, combative, defensive and at times petty.
And yes, a black man will be judged more harshly for that style than will a white person or even a black female. It ain’t right, but it’s real. Barack Obama came into the presidency as one of the less confrontational figures in national politics in a long time, and even then he was labeled “thug” or worse. So if there’s a storm that may limit Reed, it’s the one within.
