'He would make a good city manager'

Yes, John Lassiter would, probably. It's a thought that hadn't occurred to us before reading the Observer's editorial endorsement of Anthony for mayor. But it makes sense. It also underscores why Anthony would be so much better as mayor.

The paper this morning ran long profiles of both men. The beginning of Steve Harrison's profile of Anthony:

When students elected Anthony Foxx the first African American president of Davidson College's Student Government Association in 1992, the campus was in turmoil.

A gay student had reportedly received death threats, and part of the student body was upset over the recent founding of a group called FLAG - Friends of Lesbians and Gays.

Foxx organized forums to ease campus fear and anger. Though he never formally supported or opposed the group, he argued it should receive funding from student fees, as other clubs did. The group ultimately got the funds, and Foxx today says his role was as a "facilitator."

"He never made it about him," said Alden Smith, who was Foxx's SGA vice president and who is now headmaster at a Vermont high school. "He had an unusual mix of humility and confidence."

Friends say Foxx's four years on City Council have been marked by many of the same qualities that first emerged at Davidson: an ability to relate to people with different views, and a willingness to step forward - even into the political heat.

From Jim Morrill's profile of Lassiter:

On a spring break trip to Florida in 1974, a scruffy bunch of long-haired college kids from Michigan walked into a roadside diner near Jesup, Ga., and waited for service. And waited.

After a half-hour, they realized they weren't wanted and left. It made an impression on the tall, spindly kid with shoulder-length hair.

"It was kind of an 'Aha' moment," says John Lassiter. "I was hungry. I realized that people were judging me from my outside appearance ... Ultimately I decided I needed to conform a little more. I needed to look a little more like what I wanted to be."

So he cut his hair. And within a year he moved from Michigan State to Wake Forest University, trading T-shirts and jeans for Izods and Topsiders.

The rebellious teen went on to thrive by working hard and fitting in - whether in Democratic-run state government, a button-down corporate culture or Charlotte's tradition of civic engagement.

And:

One day this month he started campaigning early and ended late. He never loosened his tie or rolled up his sleeves. He slipped on a jacket whenever he stepped out of his BMW. He remembers the lesson of the Jesup diner.

"I think every day, 'What is the image I'm projecting?'" he says. "Folks are looking for somebody who looks like he could be mayor."

No, John, actually, folks are looking for somebody who'll act like one.

Confronted with a problem, Anthony Foxx engages, leads and unites.

John Lassiter thinks: Wow. I'd better conform. What image am I projecting?

And how illustrative is it that he thinks what voters are looking for is a mayor who won't roll up his sleeves or loosen his tie?

From the moment he was elected to the City Council in 2005, Anthony has shown a willingness to dive into whatever issue he thought was important -- from public safety, organizing meetings among state and local officials to address justice problems, to neighborhood improvements. To roll up his sleeves, in other words.

It's something Lassiter manifestly doesn't want to do, and it goes beyond mere appearance. It's not just that he's image-conscious and inclined to follow rather than lead. It's that he apparently believes his brand of non-leadership is what Charlotte needs.

Could you be more uninspiring, more out of touch?