Atlanta

Vincent Fort would be ‘disaster' as mayor, Kasim Reed says

ATLANTA — Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed isn't hiding his harsh feelings about state Sen. Vincent Fort.

A comment that apparently caught Reed off-guard came from a reporter during a news conference about the state of the city, which included updates about the Interstate 85 bridge reconstruction.

“Vincent Fort says thanks for leaving that rainy day fund for when he takes office,” a reporter told Reed.

“You and I should bet a dollar on a dozen doughnuts that he doesn’t qualify for the office of mayor,” Reed replied.

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Reed detailed Fort's indiscretions, saying that he would be a disaster as mayor just as he was a disaster in the Senate.

Belcher learned that a state Sen. Vincent Fort played role in the dispute as an intermediary.

Fort responded to the mayor's comments in a statement:

Mayor Reed once again showed that he is more interested in personal attacks than working on behalf of the regular people who make Atlanta great.  I am running for Mayor because City Hall has lost its way in the last eight years.  The Mayor has been more interested in megaprojects and the needs of billionaire sports team owners than in the needs of our neighborhoods and the people who live in them.

All one needs to know about Mayor Reed's administration is this:  It is currently the subject of three criminal investigations that we know about.  Mayor Reed sent a high-priced taxpayer-financed lobbyist to the state Capitol to bully members of the Atlanta House delegation to kill a bill – passed almost unanimously by the Senate – to create an Inspector General at City Hall to root out waste, fraud and abuse.  If he has nothing to hide, why is he afraid of a real watchdog at City Hall.

When I'm Mayor, City Hall will again have the interests of the middle class and those striving to join it at the heart of everything it does.  That will be a change, and it is unfortunately not surprising that a Mayor who has put the interests of the 1% ahead of the 99% would fight against that change.

WATCH the raw video of the mayor’s comments at the top of this story.

Cox Media Group

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