Were Mallory's Trips Worth It ?Kevin Osborne asks the question & has scant answers. Actually, the fruit of these efforts by the mayor probably won't be realized for awhile. Business analysts expect a lot more foreign investment in the US in coming years - paving the way to Cincinnati is really a very good idea. But are the connections with the right countries and right industries and just how good a job is he doing at making them? Cranley & Wenstrup both campaigned on being narrowly focussed, insular mayors. Charlie Luken spent most of his last term as mayor skulking around in the shadowy basement of city hall. That didn't do the city much good. Luken noted that Cincinnati had problems in Columbus but never did anything about it. When Mallory was first elected, the first thing he did was reach out to neighboring communities.
Cincinnati doesn't exist in a vacuum. It is affected by world affairs & economics. It must reach out and it needs to sell itself. I don't see Qualls doing it as much as Mallory just because of personality differences, not because she doesn't think it's important. Ohio's 1st district congressman is pushing legislation that might help small businesses a little bit - nothing like the radical changes Henry Wallace made when the Commerce Department only served giant businesses, but Chabot has never been too big on the whole vision thing. That's why we need representatives like Mark Mallory & Roxanne Qualls. The city cannot depend on the Federal & State governments. Chabot is better known for screwing his district and denying his home town. Schmidt didn't accomplish anything & it looks like Wenstrup is just going to be a GOP errand boy. Governor Kasich has created financial problems for the city for years to come. Don't get me started on Dale Mallory, Shannon Jones, etc….
Given that, Mallory's representing the city outside the city has been a breath of fresh air but his informing the public about his successes & failures has been a complete failure. For that matter the local media's coverage has also been a dismal failure. For Osborne's headline, he doesn't offer much. Maybe his bosses only gave him half an hour to write the story - I dunno. Regardless, any harvest will be reaped over the years to come but Mallory's basic strategy is right on - ya gotta plant the seeds if you want anything to grow.

WCPO article here