"It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles."
—Niccolo Machiavelli
Just as Mike Tyson flashed his backside hyping his fight last Friday night, Gov. Kay Ivey showed hers to the people of Alabama when she picked a fight with Kent Davis and the State Board of Veterans Affairs.
But that’s not the only thing Tyson and Ivey have in common.
By braving the limelight of the ring one last time, Tyson tripped the tragic trick time plays on all of us – that he is Mike Tyson in name only now, a shadow of his younger self with a legacy fated to fade into dust.
“I’m just passing through. I’m gonna die. And it’s going to be over,” Tyson hilariously told a child reporter after being asked about his legacy. “Who cares about legacy after that? … We’re dead. We’re dust. We’re absolutely nothing. Our legacy is nothing.”
Though the mantle of “Iron Mike” will always be Tyson’s to wear proudly, his recent return to the ring serves as a haunting reminder that the title does not make the man. Woe to those who flaunt their mantle past their prime, else they expose themselves for who they really are in the light of what they are supposed to be.
For example, when Ivey decided to brandish her mantle of “supreme executive power” to unilaterally fire Kent Davis as commissioner of the Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs, she merely revealed herself to be anything but a supreme executive. Why use such executive power now when there was ample opportunity to do so in years past?
The firing of Davis was so petty and vindictive, so desperate and reactive, so shoddily and vaguely reasoned that it seemed more the hodgepodge product of a behind-the-scenes committee rather than the singular vision of an executive leader.
Whether or not the governor has supreme executive power in Alabama will be for lawyers and courts to decide in the near future. Though I personally find the idea of an empowered supreme executive to be quite invigorating, I would prefer an actual executive worthy and able of honoring such a title. Yet, the more I consider the supreme executive power of the governor’s office, the more difficult it is for me to shake the thought that Ivey is a governor in name only (GINO) – a shadow of those who honored the title in years past – all as her “office” runs the show.
Who is actually wielding supreme executive authority in the state of Alabama? Who is actually running the governor’s office? Who is actually running the state?
I ask because the more I ponder these questions, the more I suspect GINO Ivey ain’t the one in charge. Who really believes that someone you wouldn’t trust to drive you down I-65 to the airport is really able to carry the mantle of supreme executive power of the state of Alabama?
It’s absurd. It’s insulting. It’s not believable.
No doubt power does love to hide its true face. Very few who officially claim to be in charge are actually in charge. There is almost always a power behind the throne, as people who could never win an election themselves manage to gain immense power by serving in the name of those who can. Much political power can be found in the shadows, hidden away from the limelight of politics.
In fact, the hidden use of power is often much more effective than any formal flaunting of authority – less risky, less costly and less conspicuous. On the contrary, formal authority butt-naked to the world (as Ivey’s office flaunted in firing Davis) is always a risky display; risky because it brings extra attention and scrutiny to those putting on the exhibition.
When power is laid bare, people tend to squint a little bit more at who is claiming to hold the keys to the kingdom. Many Alabamians, especially veterans, are squinting a little bit more at the governor’s office right now. They’re wondering whether Ivey actually honors the title given to her by Alabamians – or if she is merely a governor in name only chasing the dust of legacy in the political ring one last time way past her prime.
Joey Clark is a native Alabamian and is currently the host of the radio program News and Views on News Talk 93.1 FM WACV out of Montgomery, AL M-F 12 p.m. - 3 p.m. His column appears every Tuesday in 1819 News. To contact Joey for media or speaking appearances as well as any feedback, please email joeyclarklive@gmail.com. Follow him on X @TheJoeyClark or watch the radio show livestream.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News. To comment, please send an email with your name and contact information to Commentary@1819news.com.
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