Green vs. Kenney: The battle goes on

Like the Eagles and Giants, the Flyers and Pens, the Jim Kenney-Bill Green rivalry has its ups and downs, but never goes away.

The two councilmen often find themselves at odds - and at each other's throats - on issues of policy and personality.

In the last few weeks, Green has spoken out against Kenney's proposed legislation often enough that Kenney jokingly thanked him last month for his "continued scrutiny of my bills."

So perhaps it was no surprise when Green gave a speech Thursday opposing Kenney's bill to provide a trash-fee refund to condo owners, who don't receive city garbage pickup. Green called the bill "bad policy" and a "tax refund creating no jobs."

Kenney stayed mum during the Council meeting but afterward took a swipe at Green, who moved back to the city from Georgia in 2005 and rented a home.

"He doesn't understand the frustration of a taxpayer because he isn't a homeowner," Kenney said. "When he starts paying real estate taxes, he'll understand."

Told of Kenney's comment, Green said they were having a "substantive dispute" that Kenney was making personal "and demonstrating the lack of substance on his issue."

Then he seemed to warm to the challenge. Green said Kenney had pushed a vote on a bill that had no hope of approval (Nutter opposes it and can kill it with a veto that the lame-duck Council can't override). Green added that he was tired of "cynical" maneuvers from "political hacks."

"Councilman Kenney is legislating through pandering," he said. "It's good political grandstanding, but poor public policy."

Actually, the feud is looking more like Ali and Frazier.

- Troy Graham

Taking on Bob Brady is no easy task. Not only is he a U.S. congressman, he's also head of the local Democratic Party.

But Southwest Philadelphia resident Tracey Gordon was so angry at the party's attempt to prevent her from becoming a committee person that she sued in Common Pleas Court to force the party to reinstate her.

Gordon, a longtime spitfire community activist in her neighborhood, was elected a committee person in May 2010. A month later, at the first meeting of the 40-B Ward committee after the election, ward leader Anna Brown read the list of new committee people and did not include Gordon.

The group then passed a resolution removing Gordon from her committee post, citing a party rule that allows such a move if someone "fails or neglects to work in harmony with the ward committee." Two police officers then escorted Gordon from the meeting.

Gordon says the vote against her was retribution for her willingness to speak out on various issues. She also said Brown complained she had not asked for permission to run.

Irv Ackelsberg and the American Civil Liberties Union are representing Gordon.

Brady declined comment, and Brown did not immediately return a telephone call. - Miriam Hill