By Press-Register staff

November 09, 2009, 9:02AM

Willie Bean, seen here in 2008, “announced” via his web site that he will be running for mayor of New Orleans.Willie Bean, the canine candidate who made an unsuccessful bid for mayor of Fairhope last fall, is off and running again.

The affable Labrador announced on his Web site recently that he will be a candidate for mayor of New Orleans. The city’s election is May 3, and so far the race to replace term-limited Mayor Ray Nagin has been notable mainly for the number of candidates who have opted not to run.

The lack of serious interest has prompted local write-in campaigns for political guru James Carville and actor Brad Pitt. There’s even a Web site promoting actor Carl Weathers, a.k.a. Apollo Creed from the “Rocky” movies, as a candidate.

Willie is a native of New Orleans and embodies the spirit of the Big Easy, according to his owner, Tress Turner.

“Just like most New Orleanians, Willie never meets a stranger,” said Turner, an artist and manager of the Coffee Loft in Fairhope.

Turner said Willie’s campaign will raise money for the Humane Society of Louisiana and has established local headquarters at the Old Point Bar in Algiers Point. For more information, visit Willie online at www.williebeanformayor.com.

He may have returned it slightly slobbery, but Willie Bean — the 7-year-old golden Labrador retriever campaigning to be the mayor of Fairhope — caught the ceremonial first pitch at the BayBears game Saturday.

“We’ve been practicing and I’ve been throwing a speed ball and he ducks,” Tress Turner, Willie Bean’s owner, joked before the start of the game.

But the popular dog showed no signs of hesitation when he caught the ball just after 7 p.m. at Hank Aaron Stadium in Mobile. He leapt from the pitcher’s mound to catch a baseball thrown by team member Rusty Ryal at home plate. Willie Bean grasped it confidently in his mouth, even running a small victory lap before returning the ball to Turner.

“He loves to catch,” Turner said. And the crowd clearly loved Willie Bean.

They erupted in applause when he caught the ball. Turner threw the ball to him one more time before calling him off the field, tugging him by a white Willie Bean campaign bandana around his neck.

Willie Bean’s campaign kicked off last month when Turner taped a picture of the yawning dog to an espresso machine at the Coffee Loft in Fairhope, which she manages. A customer, as a joke, scribbled “Willie Bean for Mayor” on the photo.

“It just took off from there,” Turner said.

Seven human candidates are running for the Aug. 26 election. None of them were given first-pitch honors.

Turner initially made 24 T-shirts for Willie Bean’s campaign; she said they sold in a day. Willie Bean has received letters from international fans and was a topic on the “Late Show with David Letterman.” A Willie Bean Web site has been launched — www.williebeanformayor.com — and scores of campaign souvenirs have been sold, many at Saturday’s game.

Even though Willie Bean has no chance at winning the mayoral seat, people were eager to buy T-shirts, campaign signs and cartoon sketches of the dog.

Part of the proceeds, Turner said, will benefit the Baldwin Animal Rescue Center. Also, people who want to cast a “vote” for Willie Bean on his Web site must donate a $1 to the shelter.

“We’re hoping he gets more (online) votes than the population of Fairhope,” Turner said.

Willie Bean actually caught the second “first pitch” of the evening. Former Monroeville Mayor Ann Farish tossed a throw from the pitcher’s mound to the catcher.

“We’re just real excited about this because this game promotes Willie Bean more in Mobile,” Turner said. “This is doing a good, good thing.”

As persuasive as Jeannie Paradise was in her letter of Aug. 6, “Willie Bean support alarming,” I find it reprehensible that she resorted to playing the species card in her contention that this runner would indeed be lacking in breeding to become “top dog,” so to speak.

To augment my contention, just consider the following, and your opinion may flip or flop:

Take into account that Willie Bean had few backers and that he started from scratch. He refuses to accept any contributions from the PACK (Political Action Committee K-9) and promises to sign only those laws which have the “teeth” to enforce them.

Anyone claiming that flower beds and other arboreal types are in danger is barking up the wrong tree. Since way back when Hector was a pup, he has had a leg up on preserving nature’s bounty. His woof is as good as his bond. There are no canned speeches or rubber chicken fund-raisers with empty promises. His pledges are kept ? the whole kibble and caboodle.

He rejects the innuendo of a leashless society were he to be elected. In fact, he supports utilizing them on felines in his FED (Fur Equalization Doctrine). He supports a “leash and order” policy.

He is in favor of limiting the number of illegal feral cats, as they compete unfairly with the local predators. His independence is notable in that he would not heel, roll over or play dead on command to those who would hound him.

He takes pride in his appearance, breeding and grooming, although even with his fetching good looks he still loves to roll in the short grass, catch Frisbees, jump into ponds, play tug-of-war and enjoy the simple pleasures of the average Jo-Jo.

He denies vehemently (pooh-poohs) that his laying on of paws cured a constituent of distemper. Most probably an opposing candidate started this fiction to make him appear to worship golden idols.

Postal workers and other civil servants need not fear hostility. They can navigate their appointed rounds at ease, as anyone in uniform will be considered a friend (the one exception being someone carrying a rope loop on a long stick).

About tree-lighting ceremonies being hogged by dogs: There will be no discrimination. All are requested to participate. There will be open invitations to Alvin and the Chipmunks, Rudolph, the three blind mice, Barney, the inchworm, the itsy bitsy spider, Mary’s lamb, Puff the Magic Dragon and the yellow bird, and the Swan is asked to perform the finale.

So there you have a complete refutation of Ms. Paradise’s forebodings. Be not afraid of mounting a horse of a different color. It is not a bone of contention but rather an affirmation of Fairhope’s fair appraisal to go beyond fair and to become the best in show.

HERB KANDEL

Fairhope

Editor’s note: Blue-ribbon letters are those selected by our staff as being especially interesting or well-written. Authors will receive a lapel pin and an invitation to lunch with Press-Register editors.

Why we respond to dogs

Regarding the clamor surrounding Willie Bean’s candidacy for mayor of Fairhope, it is a human tendency to joke about something we feel deeply about.

I submit that the overwhelming response is less politically motivated than the electorate’s acknowledgment of the ascendancy of the dog as an adopted member of the human familyelevated the dog’s place in our culture.

As for Willie Bean, he is the cause celebre, the role model, the Every Dog. But the power is in the electorate, which has recognized for centuries man’s enduring faithful companion. They have used the term “watch dog” to stand for guardian and protector.

It is they who have called him surrogate child of those who have lost or never had children; who have hailed him as a hero for rescuing humans from fires or floods; who have promoted his advance as caretaker of the young and old, and even therapist to the ill and disabled.

Most important to the electorate are his values — the index to his character, one they can understand and believe in. They do not care whether he is populist or elitist, pedigreed or mutt.

Young and old, blue collar and white collar, rich or poor, Republican, Democrat or Libertarian, all give their allegiance to the dog, who asks little — a meal and a walk a day, sheltered bed and affection — and gives all he has.

What the electorate seems to be saying is, “We declare we are all together in this, and we know a unifying symbol when we see one.”

JULE MOON

Create your user name and password on this page. Now click shop online and spread the love around the world. Thank you all for support and joining in on the fun.”

FAIRHOPE’S FOURLEGGED FUTURE…

W B “THE DOG”!

FAIRHOPE - America wants Willie Bean.

How else to explain the sensation surrounding Willie, whose improbable run for mayor of this Alabama coastal town has become a national phenomenon?

On Tuesday morning, the calls and e-mails were pouring into his campaign headquarters from all corners of the country. Supporters in Oakland, Boston, Indianapolis and Atlanta were ordering Willie Bean T-shirts. Interview requests were coming from radio stations in Iowa, Alaska and Tennessee. A producer for David Letterman wanted a photo.

The candidate took the publicity in stride, napping on the kitchen floor and later chasing a tennis ball in his backyard. Willie Bean Roscoe P. Coltrane is a 7-year-old yellow Labrador retriever. His owner is Fairhope artist Tress Turner, who manages a local coffee shop that doubles as Willie’s election office.

His campaign began as a lark. No less than seven people are running for mayor in the Aug. 26 election. Fairhope, on the Eastern Shore of Mobile Bay, is as laid-back as towns get, but money and a few sharp elbows thrown by the candidates have combined to give the race a big-city edge.

The political hardball hasn’t played well in a community known more for its flower boxes, antique shops and Southern charm. In response, Turner and friend Beth Goldberg, owner of the Coffee Loft, taped a photo of Willie on the espresso machine. “Willie Bean for Mayor,” someone scribbled beneath it.

Customers chuckled. A bigger sign was posted. The Press-Register’s Virginia Bridges and Josh Bean (no relation) wrote stories that got picked up by the Associated Press. From there it hit the Internet, where it ran wild. Now Willie Bean T-shirts are outselling the lattes, Turner is answering fan mail from Sweden and local cats are nervous.

“I can’t explain it. But I look at him and think, ‘It couldn’t happen to a nicer dog,’” Turner said.

Willie can’t win ? he missed the July 15 registration deadline ? but that hasn’t discouraged his supporters.

“He doesn’t have any skeletons in his closet,” said Vince Kilborn, a local lawyer and Coffee Loft patron. “He ate them all.”

Willie isn’t the first dog to run for office, and election officials have come to expect write-in votes for everyone from Forrest Gump to Santa Claus. Voters in Picoaza, Ecuador, elected a foot powder for mayor in 1967.

But Willie’s appeal is bigger than dog-friendly Fairhope. The national attention suggests something deeper at work.

“Voters are stressed out,” said David Lanoue, a political science professor at the University of Alabama. “We’re at war, we’re still worried about terrorism, and now the economy is bad. It’s a very serious time, and that’s wearing on people.”

Lanoue said even the most devoted political junkies have grown tired of the current presidential campaign. America, he said, is hungry for comic relief.

“Willie may be connecting with people who have grown cynical about politics,” he said. “You know, a dog is faithful. A dog is loyal. A dog never misleads you. That’s more than a lot of politicians can say.”

(Political Editor George Talbot can be reached at 219-5623 or gtalbot@press-register.com.)

Political Celebrity Dogs

by J. D. Crowe

Just a few weeks ago, Fairhope was buzzing with alleged sightings of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. The celebrity power couple of Fairhope might more likely be Paris Hilton and Willie Bean.

This election year is getting stranger and stranger, and everybody has a dog in the fight. We’re all quite proud of our own dog…the Canine Change Candidate from Fairhope, Willie Bean. His campaign for mayor has gotten worldwide attention while raising money for good causes and adding a sense of fun to a heated election year.

But who in the heck woulda thunk that ol’ John McCain would be dragging Paris Hilton and Britney Spears into the presidential campaign by comparing them with Barack Obama? And Paris, who, like, never misses an opportunity for self promotion, has jumped all over it with her own series of ads in response to McCain’s charges. If you haven’t seen at least one of the ads, you will. They’re hot. And she has a pretty good energy plan.

I’m afraid this whole celebrity thing will go to Willie’s head. He’s a good ol’ Southern boy, well-heeled and raised right, but all this attention and fame, I’m afraid, will have him humpin’ legs he shouldn’t be humpin’. All I’m sayin’ is, Willie has been doing great so far. He needs a sex scandal about as much as McCain needs a sunburn.