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BELLO: Yeah. I thought. . .meet certain. qualifi- cations . But as far as politics is concerned , I ' d like to divorce myself from that. Because I told the mayor I 'm taking this job with no political (inaudible) . BETHEA: Well, what I meant was that obviously you have the job because you were appointed by the mayor . BELLO: That' s right. BETHEA: He could haveappointed someone else and gone down the line until he found someone who the Council is going to approve. . . BELLO: That ' s right. BETHEA: . . .so that, I think in a sense, that for better or for worse, that the Fire Department is in that sense perhaps more political than the Police Department. GREENWELL: You take that attitude, then everything ' s politicalbecause the -chief (inaudible) Police Commission is acquainted (inaudible) . BETHEA: Well, that 's the analysis that. I . . . GREENWELL: You think that everything is political. BETHEA: Well, that ' s the analysis that I went through is one step before that because you may have a Police Commission that's been appointed by several mayors . And I think the number of mayors who learn to, their disappointment, commission members don' t always follow a party line. Because you get.:a -good person on the commission, and they end up making their own mind. (Lost some words in tape change. ) BELLO: I should give the mayor the credit, that he gave me the opportunity to pick my d e .p .a t. .y . In the past, I believe the mayor picked the deputy for the chief. CUSHNIE: I might. . .excuse . me, I might point out that that is the difference between several departments . . . is a direct line to the deputy chief appointment for the Fire Department as opposed to other deputy chiefs. Thank you. JUVIK: Would you like to see the Charter qualify the:. right of the chief to appoint his own. . .his or her own deputy? BELLO: That ' s right. I ' d sure like to see that. 189