News and Media
John Ellsberry
Best Loose Cannon: Tom Kiefaber
Best Loose Cannon
Tom Kiefaber
Published: September 21, 2011
Despite Baltimore’s penchant for bombastic public figures, local political stories can be a little humdrum these days. Over the years our elected officials have learned the benefits of hunkering down behind PR people with their wiggle words and sunny press releases, making the whole enterprise less entertaining both for reporters and the public at large. But then along came Tom Kiefaber. The mercurial former owner of the Senator Theatre has never been a retiring fellow, but his entrance onto the local political stage was memorable even by his standards: At a routine June City Council meeting, he dramatically dropped the velvet rope in chambers and made his way to the podium, loudly declared Baltimore “a banana republic,” and then proceeded to sit down on the floor in protest. His gripes had to do with his and the Senator’s treatment at the hands of the city; Kiefaber subsequently channeled that rage into an announced run for City Council President. This despite the fact that he has been ordered by the city solicitor to give 24 hours’ notice before entering City Hall. In an unrelated case, Kiefaber has been charged with second-degree assault stemming from a complaint by the Senator’s new management. (A trial is set for Oct. 21.) As @RealTomKiefaber said in a July 3 tweet, “My passion bucket overflows.” True that.
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