Two months before the May primary for mayor of Pittsburgh, I attended a community meeting in my home neighborhood of Brookline headlined by Mayor Ed Gainey. It was the evening I became very sure he wouldn’t win reelection.

The mayor didn’t connect with the audience that night because he had become obviously, deeply insulated within his own comfort zone of yes-men and allied politicos. He entered the Brookline Teen Outreach hall that night with an entourage of city and campaign employees, who positioned themselves along the back and right side of the room.

They laughed at every joke and applauded at every political remark, giving the impression of steadfast approval in the room — while the neighborhood attendees quietly looked around, curious at the show they were witnessing.

I remember

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