McDonnell and Ewing make their cases in Mayoral campaign

The Omaha Mayor’s race is heating up, with 12-year incumbent Jean Stothert facing multiple challengers in her run for a fourth term. On Saturday morning, the Free Speech Society in Omaha hosted an event with two of those challengers, former fire chief and state senator Mike McDonnell and Douglas County Treasurer John Ewing.

Former fire chief taking heat from both sides

McDonnell has caught the ire of both Republicans and Democrats of late, the former for opposing “winner take all” in Nebraska and the latter for helping pass pro-life legislation while in the unicameral.

“At one point I thought I was going to be censured by two different political parties within six months,” McDonnell said. “It should have been a record.”

McDonnell has sparred with Mayor Stothert in the past, most recently over the issue of the streetcar project, which McDonnell called a “half billion dollar mistake” and “a streetcar named disaster.”

I asked him about comments made by city councilwoman Aimee Melton, who said the contracts had been signed and that the project couldn’t be scrapped without incurring lawsuits from developers at taxpayer expense.

“We should follow any legally-binding contract, but you can also negotiate on a legally-binding contract,” McDonnell said. “In that process, I believe that people should vote. I believe when Mayor Stothert in 2017 said that people will vote on the street car, not because it’s an ordinance, not because it’s a statute, but it’s the right thing to do, I’m going to help her keep that promise.”

John Ewing coming in on the left

John Ewing, with a background in law enforcement for nearly 25 years with the Omaha Police Department, has been serving as the Douglas County Treasurer in Omaha since 2007.

Ewing opened his stump speech addressing “nuts and bolts” issues like affordable housing, public transit, and economic development. He also clearly spoke the language of left-leaning members of the audience, referring to “unsheltered people” when referring to the homeless, and stating that “health care is a right.”

Stothert and police chief Todd Schmaderer have come under fire from conservatives for recent statements suggesting they would not be cooperative with federal authorities with regard to illegal immigration. “The federal government, local government — two different silos,” said Schmaderer at a joint press conference with Stothert. “So the federal government can’t come one day and give a directive to the Omaha Police chief, to the mayor, and say ‘this is what you’re gonna do,‘”

I asked Ewing about what his relationship with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other authorities would be like with regard to illegal immigration. I cited a recent post from the Douglas County Sheriff Office on working with ICE to help detain a man who had been convicted of felony sexual assault and third degree sexual assault of a child.

“I’m going to change the language a little bit, and I’m going to talk about people who are undocumented rather than people who are illegal,” Ewing said in response. “No offense, but I just would prefer to have a kinder dialogue.”

Ewing went on to say that as mayor, he would direct officers to alert ICE if they encountered a “violent, dangerous criminal” who was an illegal immigrant. Ewing’s campaign Facebook page, however, also shared a post last week with the image of a protester holding a sign that said, “Abolish ICE” and the comment, “I stand with you!”

The One to Beat?

A recent poll showed Mike McDonnell with a three-point lead over incumbent Jean Stothert. And while Stothert’s campaign dismissed the poll as a “push poll,” it seems clear that Mike McDonnell is considered the candidate to beat in the primary election.

Aside from a brief mention of the streetcar, Ewing did not mention incumbent Mayor Stothert or make a case for why she should be replaced. Instead, he focused primarily on McDonnell.

“Mike would make homelessness a crime,” Ewing said. “Mike has voted against women’s health issues, even though the majority of the people in this community believe that women should be making those decisions with their doctors.”

Likewise, McDonnell seemed to be the only opponent in the race targeted by the Stothert campaign, which referred to him online as a “disgraced former fire chief.”

Tom Becka, a former radio host with KFAB, seemed exasperated that Ewing was not getting enough attention in the race. “I got a response from a friend of mine who’s usually tuned in and didn’t even know you were running for Mayor,” Becka said. “People think that it’s a two-person race,”

“I think the media has to be fair. I don’t know how you don’t consider a guy who’s been serving this community for 43 years as not a viable candidate,” Ewing said. “I’ve actually chastised a reporter who interviewed Mike and Jean and then wanted me to send him a written statement.”

Mayor Stothert will be speaking to the Free Speech Society when the group meets again on March 15, along with a fourth candidate for mayor, Jasmine Harris.