Moving Election Day to March has had the unintended consequence of bringing it closer to Groundhog Day. And yes, Aspen’s own Punxsutawney Phil, Torre, has come out of hiding right on schedule to run again (and again) for office.
While one may lose count of the number of times he has unsuccessfully run, nobody should be lulled into thinking that his prior record qualifies him to represent the citizens of Aspen.
Torre, who when asked for the basis of a critical vote, defended it by saying he followed his gut — sound familiar? The same Torre who consistently exhibited a lack of acumen to process complicated issues, cast wrong-sided votes and was a divisive member of Aspen City Council.
Everyone knows what Phil the groundhog stands for if and when he appears Feb. 2. By now Aspen should know what Torre represents when he shows up for an elected position — utter mediocrity. There are two highly qualified candidates running for mayor and the ballot does not need to muddled up by incompetency.
Neil B. Siegel
Aspen