Following his landslide win this week, I didn't think there was any chance of Boston Mayor Tom Menino shaking things up in his fourth term. But maybe I was wrong. In his victory speech on election night, Menino sounded ambitious and energetic, not like someone destined to succumb to fourth-term-itis. And now, in today's Globe, we learn that Menino plans to ask for the resignations of
every city department head, with an eye toward reappointing only those who've shown "productivity, management skills, and creativity. ''I have to look at how we do things differently... how to bring people into the administration," Menino told the Globe's Andrea Estes. ''I'm full of ideas."
Sounds great. But once the afterglow of victory's worn off, will Menino follow through? After all, this is a guy known both for his strong sense of loyalty and for his unwillingness to take criticism. It would be great for Boston if Menino replaced incompetent administrators with high achievers willing to push him out of his comfort zone. We'll see if it happens.
In the interim, let's speculate a bit. Who should Menino reappoint? And who
will he reappoint?
It already sounds like
Kathleen O'Toole's job is safe...