It all started when Silverton Mayor Shane Fuhrman banned the Pledge of Allegiance during a town meeting a few months ago, now it’s snowballed into a recall election for him and two town trustees.
The petitions have been gathered and approved without protest and the recall election for Fuhrman, Mayor Pro Tem Sallie Barney, and Trustee Jordan Bierma is set for Oct. 12.
The petitions list grievances that include their disrespect for the pledge of allegiance, but include other issues as well.
Fuhrman failed to live up to his campaign pledge on affordable housing, said recall organizers Cole Davenport, Gigi Raine and Floyd Barela.
They are also quite angry about Barney’s vote to ban off-highway vehicles in town limits.
There are several complaints against Bierma, who didn’t defend himself so much as he just insulted the recall organizers for grammatical errors in the petition.
The petition said Bierma lied about his position on OHVs, and voted against economic growth “for people who have lived or want to own a small business.”
The word “here” was apparently left off at the end of the sentence.
Bierma’s statement from the Durango Herald:
“It is not possible for my actions as a trustee to directly affect the economic outcome of dead people. I am not an economic necromancer. It is also impossible for me to have knowledge of every person in this town who might ‘want to own a small business.’”
Bierma declined to protest the petition or the recall election.
“Ultimately I believe it is a further waste of taxpayer money and I would rather win or lose my recall election based on the merits of my abilities rather than the voiding of a nonsensical petition because of an individual’s willingness to lie under oath and their inability to write coherent sentences.”
Okay then.
We’re guessing it’s this attitude that’s probably pissed off enough of his constituents to request the recall election in the first place.