Noted Democratic Mayors, Republican Governors Lead "Most Rubbished" Governments
"Big city" Democratic Mayors and Republican Governors run many of the "dirtiest" governments with widespread trash on public spaces. Cities include New Orleans, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Memphis. States include Mississippi, Nevada, Indiana, Texas.
Online, October 19, 2012 (Newswire.com) - Democratic Mayors of major American cities, along with Republican State Governors, appear to lead America's "dirtiest" governments-those noted for allowing high volumes of un-removed, illegal solid wastes on their public spaces, according to Steve Spacek, author of the "American State Litter Scorecard" and a Washington, D.C.-based Government Performance Consultant.
An analysis of ten top large "America's Dirtiest Cities," featured in September's TRAVEL+LEISURE, and bottommost "worst" states in the 2011 "American State Litter Scorecard," shows leading elected public officials from the two major political parties share much blame for "...doing little or nothing, just a terrible job, at removing longstanding debris and rubbish along their tax-paid roads, streets, sidewalks and parks," Spacek said.
Mayors of the Democratic Party leading TRAVEL+LEISURE's "Dirtiest Cities" include Mitch Landrieu (New Orleans), Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (Baltimore), Antonio Villaraigosa (Los Angeles), Kasim Reed (Atlanta), Michael Nutter (Philadelphia), A. C. Wharton (Memphis), Mike Rawlings (Dallas) and Anise Parker (Houston).
Governors from the Republican Party running the Litter Scorecard's "worst" States for polluted public spaces are Bobby Jindal (Louisiana), Phil Bryant (Mississippi), Brian Sandoval (Nevada), Robert Bentley (Alabama), Mitch Daniels (Indiana), Nathan Deal (Georgia), Mary Fallin (Oklahoma), Jack Dalrymple (North Dakota) and Rick Perry (Texas).
Spacek noted that littering and dumping breeds diseases and unwanted vermin that creates harm to nature and animals. He also said that over 800 Americans are killed each year in vehicle collisions with unremoved debris on the nation's streets and highways.
Spacek also commented that cities deemed "Dirtiest" were compiled from a poll of participating readers from the annual TRAVEL+LEISURE's "America's Favorite Cities" Survey. The Scorecard's "worst" states came from a summed total score of indicators for each of the fifty states, providing "a realistic picture, positive or negative, of environmental circumstances citizens and registered voters should know about."