I am a fan of the video show Saratoga Podcast featuring Robin Dalton, Dan De Federicis, and Adam Israel, but I do have a caveat.
I have been a guest on their show on a number of occasions and have posted links to their shows routinely. Their podcast has been quite critical of the current Saratoga Springs City Council, at times harshly but deservedly so. The three of them have very different perspectives on the local political scene, and it makes the show quite lively. I continue to recommend their podcast to the readers of this blog, but these three are missing an opportunity to better serve the community.
They have had Commissioners Minita Sanghvi, Dillon Moran, and James Montagnino as guests on their show. These interviews could have been valuable educational opportunities for the community by seeking answers for many of the most troubling actions these Council members have been involved in. Instead, Robin, Adam, and Dan have squandered these opportunities by engaging in the most banal conversations. To characterize their questions as timid would be an understatement. Assertions made by these politicians that were false or exaggerated went unchallenged, and there were no questions asked that might make these Commissioners even slightly uncomfortable.
These are just a few examples of questions they might have asked.
Someone might have asked Montagnino why he has made adultery by the police the basis for employment termination.
Dillon Moran might have been asked something as simple as why it has been months since his announcement that barriers for outdoor dining were going to be deployed, and for better or for worse, they have still not appeared. This is an over two-month mystery, and he has said nothing, and not one of his colleagues on the Council has had the temerity to ask why.
It would have been interesting to ask Minita Sanghvi how links to her Facebook campaign site appeared on the city website, something that the city Ethics Board recently ruled violated city policy.
Some might defend the podcast’s approach as civil dialogue. This would be a disservice. I frequently watch British Broad Casting (BBC). They have excellent reporters who show no reluctance to ask tough questions, but they do so in a professional and dignified manner. They do not let the politicians they interview filibuster, and they have no qualms about doing follow-up questions when their veteran politicians resort to dodging answers.
Thoughtful, tough interviews can be done civilly if the goal is to make elected officials accountable. Otherwise, why bother?
I expect that our politicians may not agree to appear on this podcast, though, if they fear they would be asked questions they would prefer to avoid.
I would welcome a post on this website by Robin, Dan, or Adam explaining why they do not ask tough questions of our elected officials when they invite them on.
I leave it for the readers to decide whether it is better to eschew probing questions in order to get Saratoga Springs politicians on the Saratoga Podcast.
Saratoga Springs Politics 
First, this is their podcast, not yours; I wouldn’t listen to them if they constantly berate ALL our officials like you do. They did a directly ask Commissioner Sanghvi about tax rate issues and other relevant and important topics, and Commissioner Moran did address the dining barricades directly (while he also mocked your criticisms, right or wrong). I didn’t hear the Commissioner Montagnino interview.
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Mocking John Kaufmann, when he should be apologizing to him for the nasty remarks he made at the last council meeting. As of today’s Channel 13 news, new barriers were created for the outdoor dining. Was this a budgeted item? Was it sent out for bids? Or was Dillon doing some back door shilling? Based on his past performance, we will probably never know.
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John,
I appreciate you recommending the podcast! Here is the issue in my opinion. As the school board election showed us, candidates or elected officials (as of now) don’t need to come on our show to get elected. They simply need to be the candidate supported by committee democrats.
The committee democrats have two advantages. One is enrollment numbers, and the other is Wendy from the TU and Waite from the Gazette carry their water and inevitably write a hit piece linking any candidate that is right of the left to MAGA and trumpism . They then have their outraged army (like Bruce) blast it all over social media as gospel.
So if we ask hard questions then nobody would agree to come on and we would be talking to an echo chamber.
The best we can do is show the human side of the commissioners, try to impress upon them they represent more than just the most extreme left in our community, and have an open dialogue.
(Thanks for defending us Bruce 😜)
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I’m with you John. This council is so dysfunctional that we need someone who will call a spade a spade.
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