John Lee got punked.
No way around it. A part-time bartender at a downtown wine bar who also happens to report news at the local TV station played the Ward 1 Councilman – bigly.
John Lee recklessly and with apparent forethought handed over a highly-confidential memo about Mason City Fire Chief Al Dyer to a TV reporter. Men that get paid six-figures told him to keep it secret, to protect us, the citizens. John Lee deliberately ignored that sound advice.
“I take full responsibility,” John Lee told the Globe, which is trying to catch up on this story that NIT has been on for nearly a week. “I don’t want anyone else to be blamed … it was just a major screw-up on my part. Call me ignorant and trusting, I guess.”
The truth is, there is no one – yet – to hold John Lee accountable for his action but himself, so he will get away with it. That’s how Mason City works when you are in the club he belongs to. That is, if and until a lawsuit is brought by Mr. Dyer for possible harm done to his “career” – a career that started in his beloved Michigan in a city of 37,000 and then for some reason made its way to rural Mason City, Iowa, population 27,000. A consultant with no web site and no phone number listed anywhere on the Internet made the recommendation to hire him, and the council took the bait. I’d call this sketchy to start with. It might turn out to be a big mistake and reckless, too. But that’s another discussion we will have.
Now, I’m not blaming Brian Tabick from KIMT for any of this. The kid is smooth – at least, way too smooth for John Lee. I really have to wonder, what is the nature of their relationship? Have you seen the video of Tabick chumming it up with John Lee on election night at the courthouse? (Some of it is viewable, below.) It was like a nephew with his favorite uncle after a couple of Keystone Lights. Making funny faces, giggling, cracking jokes while serious election personnel counted ballots. I was waiting for Ole John to give Brian a noggin’ burner or something right there in the hallway. The city’s future hung in the balance, some would say, that night. The “YES” crowd that John Lee practically calls family (he refers to anyone skeptical of his downtown project as “naysayers”) certainly took it that way. But John Lee didn’t show a care in the world that night; he knew the outcome. He and – as he calls them – the “positive, can-do circle” of “YES” folk put in the time and thousands of dollars to make sure things went right. It was all a matter of how high was the ceiling – it was 75% for YES.
John Lee got his tsunami victory that night, and he was riding high. Some say he was beginning to think of himself as the “Big Cheese” in town – untouchable, unbeatable. He taught those evil, dumb “naysayers” a lesson. He and his trusty sidekick Brian Tabick of KIMT were bonding, big time, and John Lee was on top.
But, the invincible John Lee let his guard down. First, he got giddy. Then, he got holier-than-thou. Then he got sloppy. And in the end, he got burned.
Maybe John Lee didn’t know Tabick has other friends – like Al Dyer. They’ve been spotted in a downtown bar getting cozy. Tabick served the drinks and Dyer – well, let’s just say he was there.
Maybe John Lee didn’t know that. I have to wonder, what does John Lee know. What could have possessed him to agree – allegedly in a grocery store – to voluntarily hand over such a confidential memo on a high-ranking city employee to a TV reporter? What was John Lee trying to accomplish?
After the Globe reported that Lee admitted to turning over the memo, I asked Brian Tabick a question: “Brian, got a question for you. I understand you asked John Lee – at a grocery store – for the memo on Fire Chief Dyer. Good work. At what point did John Lee, then, turn over the memo to you? In other words, how much time passed between your question, and him actually handing over the memo to you?”
See, that’s relevant, because unless John Lee had the memo in his pocket, he would have had to retrieve it and give it to Tabick. So, how much time passed between the question and the hand-off? How many hours did John Lee have to contemplate this action? Did he ever think to himself – “Gee whiz. This might just be a bad idea. Even though I want Brian to be my friend, I should probably not – no, I definitely SHOULD NOT – hand this memo over to this TV station reporter.”
He did. And now, the damage is done.
And that brings me back to the whole accountability issue. I bet John Lee holds his students and athletes accountable when they mess up. There is a price to pay for wanton negligence that results in harm. We don’t know, yet, if Al Dyer will take action due to John Lee’s ignorance and reckless behavior that could impact his career. But, judging from the fact that the man is suspended from his job, things don’t look too rosy for him moving forward in Mason City. John Lee said he would accept responsibility for his actions. Therefore, he should resign immediately from the City Council before he does more harm. Furthermore, if Mr. Dyer brings a lawsuit, John Lee should hire his own attorney for his defense and leave the citizens out of the mess he created.
Opinion from Matt Marquardt, citizen of Mason City
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No matter how you try and spin this story, John Lee has no credibility. This is not about the personal matter, this is about a sitting Mason City Councilman purposefully releasing confidential personal information. That is malfeasance and he should be removed from office!!
Malfeasance
The commission of an act that is unequivocally illegal or completely wrongful.
Malfeasance is a comprehensive term used in both civil and Criminal Law to describe any act that is wrongful. It is not a distinct crime or tort, but may be used generally to describe any act that is criminal or that is wrongful and gives rise to, or somehow contributes to, the injury of another person.
No doubt about it – Tabick is on his way to the top! Possibly the next Alex Jones!
KIMT….why aren’t they stating John Lee leaked this memo? Last night’s news cast sounds like they are trying to cover-up for John Lee. Anyone else see the story ? Seems odd to me, even though everyone knows J.L. is the leaker. KIMT…ooops I mean the Rochester news program….. ADIOS
Until they make up a story about what this suspension is about, this is all pretty meaningless. Anyone that had heard about the chief not being at work had already surmised that it was a conduct related leave. John’s breach only confirmed that. Before you condemn him too much, remember, he was one of them that kept the pig plant out of your back yard!
What the voters of Mason City really need to know is: John Lee don’t represent the people! It really it that simple. People vote for a face, name, or hype that they THINK will represent them. In Lee’s case he is the poorest excuse for a elected official there is. The sooner he is off the Mason City Council the better the community will be.
Totally agree with you for once on this . I questioned the timing issue when initially talked about then actually delivered the memo. He should resign or be escorted OUT.
There’s no way a city employee can sue a city because his disciplinary suspension was recealed to the public. It’s called transparency. These aren’t HIPPA protected medical files we are takking about, and they weren’t court sealed. This is much ado about nothing. John Lee should have openly revealed this to the public when it happened and defied the secret handshake crapola. Brian Tabick aka Wonder Boy is part of the public, so moot point if Lee revealed it to him specifically. The real story is forcing the city to reveal why he was suspended in the first place. Protest city hall til you get them to answer.
I have had 3 discussions with John Lee. All 3 times I came away with the same observation. Everything is about John Lee and John Lee only. The guy is full of himself. well said all I can ad is the “apple” didn’t fall far from the tree.
It’s still weird to think about: that Alex Kuhn took his own life over a pig plant. It’s as if Grod the mind controlling Gorilla worked his powers over the deceased.
Matthew E Marquardt always has been and always be a pussy.
I have had 3 discussions with John Lee. All 3 times I came away with the same observation. Everything is about John Lee and John Lee only. The guy is full of himself. Didn’t know him before he got elected and I don’t care to know him now. Putting out confidential information is pretty typical for Mr. Lee. The fellow is uncouth.
I live in john’s ward that jerk does not go outside the rich part of his ward he should resign and leave town.
Everybody looking for their ten minutes of fame. It’s obvious this Lee guy is not a man of integrity and I would question his morals too. Sad to hear he is teaching our kids. No wonder people home school. He should resign since he can’t be trusted.
John Lee made a mistake, potentially a big mistake, in trusting someone he thought he could confide in. Yes, he should have kept the email on his computer and showed nobody. Sh!t happens. Shame on Brian for taking an “off the record” comment and putting it on the record. If he interviewed me wouldn’t give him the time of day.
John Lee admitted his mistake which is much more than most politicians would do. He could have blamed it on his addiction to Boone’s Farm or MD 20/20 that is served at the wine bar.