The Story of How Conservatives, the 1% and the Mafia Tried to Kill Cleveland and Its Mayor

Writeup by Alan Grayson.

Mitt Romney did not invent predatory capitalism. It’s been around for a while.

Predatory capitalism was already alive and well in 1978, in Cleveland. That was when the One Percent who controlled the banks, and pretty much everything else of value, decided that they wanted to steal the local power company from the people of Cleveland.

By way of background, Cleveland Public Power was founded by the Mayor of Cleveland, more than a century ago. It provides the people of Cleveland with electricity — without the price gouging, poor service, pollution and monopolization for which Big Energy seems to strive.

The One Percent didn’t like that idea at all. So they invested in a private company called Cleveland Electric Illuminating. They wanted to steal Cleveland Public Power from the people, and then jack up the rates, and make lots and lots of money.

They then issued this ultimatum:

(1) hand over the assets of Cleveland Public Power to us, or

(2) we will pull the plug on Cleveland.

By which they meant that they would boycott the City of Cleveland’s bonds as they came due, and drive the City into bankruptcy.

Which they then did. The One Percent forced the City of Cleveland into bankruptcy.

But they didn’t anticipate one thing. What the 32-year-old, first-term Mayor of Cleveland would say.

That was Dennis Kucinich. And Dennis said no.

No matter what the banks said, Dennis said no.

No matter what the City Council said, Dennis said no.

No matter what the bankruptcy court said, Dennis said no.

A newspaper on December 22, 1978 quoted Dennis as follows: “They are maneuvering to offer the city terms so bad that we will feel pressured to beg.” And Dennis would not beg.

No. Just no.

And Dennis paid a price for that. The “Boy Mayor of Cleveland” went down to defeat that year. The One Percent made sure of that. But the people of Cleveland kept their power company.

Twenty years later, the Cleveland City Council honored Dennis Kucinich for having the “courage and foresight” to stand up to the banks, for the sake of the people. They calculated that Dennis had saved the people of Cleveland $195 million in one decade alone. And Cleveland elected Dennis Kucinich to Congress.

And one more thing…

When Dennis Kucinich refused to turn over Cleveland Public Power to the One Percent, they decided to kill Dennis. Not kill Dennis’ political career. Kill Dennis.

You don’t have to take my word for it. You can read the chilling account in the Cleveland Free Times cover story, which includes quotes from the police interview with the hit man.

The plan was to shoot Dennis in the head, during the Columbus Day Parade. The Cleveland Cosa Nostra brought in a professional hit man from Maryland to do the hit. The hit man bought an untraceable rifle, and came to Cleveland.

Why didn’t the hit man kill Dennis? Because on Columbus Day, an ulcer in Dennis’ stomach burst. Dennis spent that day in the hospital, not in the parade. Or the morgue.

The hit man then staked out Tony’s Diner, an old rail car converted into a greasy spoon restaurant, on the corner of Lorain Avenue and West 117th. Dennis liked to eat breakfast there.

But then the banks found that they could force the City of Cleveland into bankruptcy, and force Dennis Kucinich out of office. So the hit was called off.

(By the way, of the thousands of people who have served as mayor in the United States, only three have been assassinated. Mayor Carter Harrison of Chicago, the hero of the Haymarket Riots, was killed by a disgruntled office seeker. Mayor Anton Cermak, also of Chicago, was killed by a bullet intended for FDR. And, as you may recall, San Francisco Supervisor Dan White killed Mayor George Moscone, and Harvey Milk.)

In order to save Cleveland’s municipal power company, Dennis Kucinich stuck his neck out so far that the banks and the Mafia tried to kill him. For the people of Cleveland, Dennis put his life on the line.

If the One Percent is so angry at you that they want to take you out, and they’re willing to enlist the Mafia to do it, then you are doing one heckuva good job for The People.