Editorial by Matt Marquardt –
This week, Mason City Mayor Eric Bookmeyer questioned my character. He questioned my devotion to my family.
Make no mistake, folks, this man has been waiting for his chance to go negative, and he didn’t just go negative, he went nuclear. He fired everything he had, he detonated a verbal nuclear weapon on the radio airwaves, and then threw another candidate, Jodi Draper, a mother of six, right under the bus along with me in a flippant disregard for this fine person and her family.
Fellow citizens, we are in trouble at City Hall. I need your help to take back our City and hand it back to you.
Citizens of Mason City, let me explain my situation to you.
Yes, I am a business owner. I own and operate a burgeoning news website which you are reading right now, NorthIowaToday.com. I am an investigative journalist. When I write, I write truth, and sometimes it is hard to swallow the truth, especially for a man like Eric Bookmeyer who has constantly for three years treated the rank and file people of Mason City like second-class citizens. I have written hard-hitting stories on the mayor, the City Council, the School Board and the County Board of Supervisors. I call it like I see it, and give you video and downloadable documents, many times, with the story so you can make up your own mind. Yes, NIT publishes opinion pieces. Opinions of others are not necessarily my views, just as the Globe Gazette or the Des Moines Register or any news outlet would say. We simply honor the First Amendment to our Constitution and PUBLISH what citizens have to say.
As I have attended meetings of our City Council and other boards for three years, I haven’t always liked what I saw. I editorialized as such from time to time. Occasionally, I inject humor into my writing. For example, recently Council member Travis Hickey compared City Hall to a McDonald’s. So, I used a software program called Photoshop to place a “golden arch” behind Mr. Hickey in a photo and then published the graphic along with what he said. This is called “lampooning,” much like an editorial cartoon. I left it to NIT readers to decide whether they agreed with me or not.
Let me be clear:
I will continue to operate my business as I see fit, whether I am elected to the City Council or not.
If I am elected, I will represent the people of Mason City with a vigor and enthusiasm never seen from any current council members or this mayor. I will have your backs; the games from this mayor, other council, and the special interests will grind to a halt if I am elected. I will report so much truth, their heads will spin. Of course I will know when to reign in the flow of information regarding litigation or other matters that must be confidential. By the way, please note that it is extremely rare to find an elected official who does not write or speak opinions or create press releases. This is all covered under the First Amendment, my friends. This is still America, even in Mason City, where the people have lost control and the special interests run the show entirely.
Help me help you. Do not let Eric Bookmeyer and his cohorts rule you. We can take our City back, make it warm and welcoming once again, include all citizens, whether they are rich or poor, elite or not, regardless of race, ethnicity, or age.
Stand up, my neighbors.
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Audio response from Matt Marquardt regarding attack from Mason City Mayor Eric Bookmeyer, to be broadcast on KGLO radio Friday at 12:32 PM:
httpv://youtu.be/h9xhPzQs3Hc
My audio worked fine.
I couldn’t get the audio either Matt. You may want to test that.
OK. It is a Youtube video, actually. So the player needs to have the volume up and also your computer (of course) and the speakers. Obvious things but we always start there when testing.
One of the best statements from mr LAgios! classy pEter!
Glad you didn’t become ballistic. Please continue to present meaningful information and keep the dialogue informative positive .
Matt,
Don’t play the game….let all be said in the other corner…stay true to you and the issues! People who know you will support you without having to defend the explicable comments. Be the better person and justice prevails!!
To me, Matt is running for office like any good citizen would. When the mayor determined Matt would not support him, the mayor not only bashed Matt but his whole family. Matt is right, what a cowardly move. And then the mayor ran from Matt’s challenge of a debate. I’m pretty sure Matt will win this election. I will then be tuning into EVERY council meeting.
Bookmeyer really showed his true colors with this interview, and Bob Fisher showed he has no journalistic integrity. Good Luck Matt, and keep taking the high road.
Good luck Matt
Good Luck Matt. You will be a great city council member and advocate for Mason City
It is great seeing you taking the high road with all this mess Bookmeyer has but out there. I hope everyone can focus on the issues. I am hoping for a debate with all the candidates like they have done in the past elections. If there is no debate someone is trying to hide something.
This guy is a class act, this city would be fortunate to get him
I think KGLO should have been more focused on the federal civil rights violations the mayor and his “Klan” are facing. Like for example if they remain in office and these complaints are founded does it bar us from federal contracts for having pre-60’s style racists representing our city?
I am so glad you presented yourself so eloquently and professionally and did not dignify Bookmeyer’s comments by refuting them point by point. High ground well taken!
Great article Matt. But, I couldn’t get the sound to turn on on the video. It just shows how low the mayor will go when he attacks your family and Jodi Draper. Jodi has not been part of any negativity that I am aware of and in my conversations with her she did not bad mouth her opponent at all. She explained what her views were and refused to be drawn into any discussion about Hickey, although in my opinion there are lots to discuss and dislike about the puppet Hickey. That goes for Solberg who I consider a laughing stock and of course everyone already knows about the special interest elitist the mayor and Turncoat. We need to vote them all out and put in a new city government.
Congratulations Matt:
Thanks for putting your name on the ballot to give us a CHOICE. Best of Luck & good reddens to the rich who try to rule this town for their own & wealthy friends gain!