Cary councilman Mike Joyce resigns

CARY -- The town’s only blue-collar councilman, plumber Mike Joyce, will resign rather than continue to work in a town hall willing to donate $5,000 to a Hispanic cultural group putting on a Latin music festival.

Joyce’s decision, announced today on an afternoon talk radio show, was influenced in part by the debate over illegal immigrants now bubbling through the state and the country.

He complained that Diamante Inc., the organizer of the Ritmo Latino festival, honored a person who has publicly opposed a crackdown on illegal immigrants.

“This organization was supporting people with our money that I find to be a detriment to America,” he said.

Joyce, a blunt man who often touted his disdain for bureaucracy, never did fit in at Cary’s effete town hall. After two and a half years on the council, he found himself so isolated on June 22 that he could not get another council member to back his proposal to cut off Diamante.

He said the stony silence of his colleagues helped him realize that he could do more good teaching plumbers than attending city council meetings. “I have to look at where Mike Joyce will be most effective helping people over the next year and a half,” he said.

His resignation will not become official until he notifies the town in writing that he is quitting. He had not done that as of this afternoon.

Joyce, a 46-year-old Nashua, N.H., native, spent more than four years trying to get the council job. He positioned himself as the common man’s representative who would trim government spending and stomp out overregulation. He was the most conservative council member who often declined to compromise, often leaving him at the wrong end of 6-1 votes.

This summer, he asked the council to cut funding for Diamante because it had honored Ilana Dubester, a Chatham County woman who joined a rally against a Congressional plan to step up deportations of illegal immigrants. He later criticized the group for spending most of its money on administrative expenses.

Diamante said it was unfair to hold the group responsible for what honorees do after they win the award, and misleading to say that the non-profit group supports illegal immigration.

“We have nothing to do with illegal immigration,” said Lizette Cruz-Watko, the executive director of Diamante, Inc. “We go out of our way not to make our events political.”

Councilman Jack Smith said Joyce made some good arguments about Diamante, but "didn't finish building his alliance, he didn't finish his homework" in time to win over other council members. "We were trying to celebrate a $217 million package, and it wasn't go to be derailed by a $5,000 expenditure."

Joyce, though, said he could not wait until next year to take Diamante out of the town budget.

"I don't want to serve on a government body," he said, "that completely abuses its authority to tax the citizens."