As reported in the Dorchester Reporter at the Ward 15 Democratic Caucus yesterday, Rep. Marie St. Fleur announced that she will NOT seek re-election. Further coverage is in the report by Gintautus Dumcius at his blog
After 12 years, St. Fleuer, the founder of a group for Haitian-American legislators, is ready to move on.
St. Fluer just returned from a trip to Haiti where she is actively involved in relief efforts in her native country. Her intelligence, work ethic, and ability to engage in long range planning could be critical to that effort.
For myself, I will miss her presence in state government because she was one of the few legislators who truly understood child welfare laws and the needs of kids in foster care, and worked in practical, commonsense ways to improve their lives.
The Department of Children and Families spends more on consultants with fancy academic credentials then on services to keep families together, to this day. But more as to that in a future post – to those of us who care more about people than corporate profits for a small elite, Marie St. Fleur will be missed.
I wish her well in her future endeavors and am absolutely certain that in whatever she decides to do as she reinvents herself and goes forward, Marie St. Fleur will make a difference in the lives of many people.
As to those who have made snarky comments about Rep. St. Fleur’s past financial issues, as a now-single parent with two kids in college – more power to her for keeping her head above water and her kids in school. I suspect that the “financial problems” and the “former husband” had something to do with one another, and that that set of problems are part of the past and will not recur.
So, as to Rep. St. Fleur, it is “exit, stage left” but with my admiration and good wishes.
Conspicuously so in a delegation with more than its fair share of chowderheads.
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p>Speaking of chowderheads: St.Fleur had the integrity and guts to include her financial difficulties in her Ethics Commission reports, and those reports were filed well before there was any attempt to advance her to higher office.
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p>Let me repeat: The Representative never hid from her problems; indeed she put them on the public record.
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p>Any attempt to milk those difficulties for a cheap laugh or purile criticism shows the intelligence and moral fortitude of a garden slug.
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Our crack former AG presumably just forgot to ask…
…although he shares the blame.
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p>I wouldn’t pretend to read Tom Menino’s mind, but a lot of his flunkies were taking credit when the St.Fleur Lt. Governor candidacy was announced, only to play Sgt. Schultz when it blew up in Reilly’s face.
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p>That said, dumping Gabrielli insured a totally unnecessary civil war within a previously seemless operation. That, and the absence of media prep re Rep. St. Fleur’s problems, opened the door for Patrick’s victory in the primary.
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p>Pause…
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p>On mature reconsideration, a this was a difference that made no difference. By not standing behind Rep. St. Fleur and citing her abovementioned ethics filings Reilly hung her out to dry: a bush league move that rightly bit him in the ass.
…Rep. St. Fleur’s speech during the anti-gay marriage amendment debates where she first declared her support for equality. Her pro-equality stance was straining her relations with her mother, and she feared she would likely lose re-election in her heavily Catholic district. Nevertheless she acted on principle, not fear, and did the right thing. I still get tears in my eyes when I remember the tears in her eyes during that speech.
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p>It’s easy to look back now and say she had nothing to fear regarding reelection, but at the time that was not at all certain. On the contrary, too many VT legislators had lost their seats for voting for their civil union law. She’s been a courageous and honorable legislator – a real roll model. I wish her every success going forward.
Although I live in Dorchester, I do not live in Marie’s district. However, I was able to talk with her on a few occasions on the Marriage Equality debate, and was able to hear her speak both a public meetings and the state house during the debate and always found her to be spot on with not only the Marriage Equality issue but many other issues. I am sad to see her go, and wish her the best.