Let’s stop calling it “hypocrisy”  that’s too generous.

What Mayor Thompson pulled during his campaign looks a lot like deliberate misinformation than an innocent change of heart.

Thompson went hard on the attack, accusing the previous administration of being shady, undemocratic, and secretive. Remember all the outrage over “suspending the rules” to fast-track votes? He made it sound like some backroom scheme, something no honest official would ever do. And the closed-door executive sessions? He and Candice from The Forum  practically swore they were the smoking gun of corruption.

Now fast forward to today  and guess what? He’s doing the exact same things.

At the June 18th BOA meeting, all four aldermen, under his leadership, voted to suspend the rules to push a bill through in a single meeting.  Suddenly, the very tactic he claimed was “sneaky” is just business as usual. Don’t forget all those closed sessions he demonized? Turns out they’re not only legal, they’re necessary ,for personnel issues, legal strategy and advice , security and public safety  and real estate negotiations. Anyone with even a surface-level understanding of city governance knows this.

So here’s the question: Did Thompson not know that? Or did he and his cohorts know exactly what they were doing when he misled the public?

Because it’s looking more and more like the outrage wasn’t real. It was manufactured , a cheap political weapon used to stir up distrust and resentment against a local government that, by all accounts, was following the law and doing its job. He didn’t expose corruption,  he invented it.

This isn’t just hypocrisy. It’s a calculated move to deceive voters, sow chaos, and seize power by painting a false picture of dysfunction. He promised transparency, but what he really delivered was manipulation.

The citizens of Cottleville deserve to know: they weren’t voting for reform, they were actually voting for a rebrand of the same playbook he pretended to oppose. 

Check page 5 of the last BOA June 18th meeting minutes. The truth’s in black and white. 

Shady Stephen Thompson has been mayor of Cottleville since April 8. In that short time, he’s already shown us that the troubling behavior he displayed under oath during his civil trial wasn’t a one-time lapse in judgment , it was a preview.

Before he ever stepped into office, Thompson stood in court and gave testimony that contradicted itself over and over. He couldn’t seem to explain what $11,000 he received from the Mannino family was actually for. First it was a personal loan. Then a lease deposit. Then a down payment for his new home. When pressed, he admitted he used the money to help close on the house , but still tried to downplay its significance. Even when the terms of the signed contract were read to him in court, he claimed he didn’t read the contract carefully or didn’t really understand it. This was despite having had the document for weeks and acknowledging that he speaks and reads English fluently. 

That alone should have been disqualifying. But since becoming mayor, Shady Thompson has continued to operate with the same pattern of evasion, self-promotion, and disregard for basic principles of public service.

Shortly after taking office, Thompson had a chance to show leadership when a vote in the city board ended in a tie. Rather than stepping up to cast the deciding vote , one of the most basic and expected duties of a mayor , he simply refused. No explanation, no decision. He dodged responsibility in the same way he dodged questions on the witness stand: by disappearing behind silence or technicalities.

Meanwhile, he’s been busy trying to take credit for things he had nothing to do with. When a local development issue was resolved through an amendment, Thompson positioned himself as the hero of the moment, implying he played a major role. In reality, the amendment wasn’t his. He didn’t negotiate it. He didn’t write it. But that didn’t stop him from soaking up the credit , or the photo op.

Then there’s how he runs his communications. Instead of managing his mayoral presence professionally, Thompson has outsourced his official Facebook page to student interns. These unpaid students are running the city’s digital messaging , a task that should be handled by trained, accountable personnel. It’s one thing to mentor young people; it’s another to hand them the public’s trust while using them as a digital PR machine for yourself.

Even more troubling is Shady Stephen Thompson’s use of his personal email account to conduct mayoral business. Why does this matter?

• It bypasses transparency laws like FOIA (Freedom of Information Act).
• It exposes city communications to security risks.
• And it hides public records from public access

He encourages citizens to reach out to him directly through Gmail , bypassing official government systems.This isn’t just sloppy. It’s dangerous. Using personal email for city business opens the door to lost records, legal vulnerabilities, and a total lack of transparency. It’s exactly the kind of thing people with something to hide prefer , because it keeps their dealings in the dark.

What all of this adds up to is a clear and troubling portrait: Thompson treats the mayor’s office the same way he treated the courtroom ,as a stage for self-preservation, not accountability. He wants the title, not the responsibility. He wants the credit, not the work. He wants the praise, not the pressure.

He didn’t just lie in court. He built a habit out of avoiding the truth when it doesn’t serve him. And now, he’s carrying that habit straight into City Hall.

Cottleville didn’t elect a public servant. It elected a spin artist with a poor memory, a stronger ego, and a very flexible relationship with the facts. Two months in, Thompson has shown us that nothing has changed. The only difference is that now, his behavior affects every resident in the city , not just the people he took money from and misled in court.

The warning signs were there. He gave them to us under oath. And now, we’re seeing them play out in real time.

Shady Stephen must think the people of Cottleville have short memories.

Just last month, when the Board of Aldermen deadlocked on whether to add a new pool to the Cottleville Trails development after residents showed up and spoke in full support ,Thompson had the power to break the tie. He didn’t. Shady Stephen  sat on his hands, let the motion fail, and walked away without saying a word. He turned his back on Cottleville Trails.

Now, here we are at this month’s board meeting, and suddenly he’s parading around like he’s the one who got it done. He’s trying to slap his name on an amendment he had absolutely nothing to do with an amendment that only passed thanks to the previous administration and the actual work of Emily Colombatto and former Mayor Bob. They’re the ones who met with residents, worked with the developer, and made sure that second pool happened.

Shady Stephen didn’t lift a finger until it came time to take credit.

That’s not leadership. That’s political theater. Worse, it’s a slap in the face to every resident who showed up in good faith, and to the officials who did the real work while he watched from the sidelines.

He had his chance to show up for the community. He didn’t. Now he’s trying to photoshop himself into the win like he was there all along.

Cottleville deserves better than a mayor who hides during the fight and grabs the trophy at the end.

It was said there was a full house at the last board meeting  and for good reason. Residents of Cottleville Trails showed up, spoke out, and made one simple request: honor the commitments that had already been made. The neighborhood pool, promised for over a year and a half, had cleared every hurdle. Developers met the requirements. The city had the plan in hand. All that was left was final approval.

So why, just mere weeks before, did Mayor Steven Manoj Thompson suddenly throw a wrench into the process?

This wasn’t a misunderstanding or some minor oversight. The timing was too precise, too deliberate. Was it a power play? A misguided attempt to reassert authority? Whatever the motive, the consequences are clear: Thompson stalled a long-awaited project that residents had every right to expect. In the end, it didn’t stop progress it just exposed how far the mayor is willing to go to create unnecessary drama. If a lawsuit had come from this fiasco, it would’ve been entirely of his own making. Let’s call it what it is “Shady Steven” fell off his high horse.

But Thompson’s meddling didn’t end there.

Which brings me to last week when Shady Stephen proudly posted the when and where of the “No Kings” protest on his Facebook page, like it was the social event of the season. Now, why would a mayor endorse something like “No Kings”? Simple. He just can’t help himself. It’s in his nature to bend over backwards to please the loudest crowd in the room unless, of course, that crowd includes conservatives or anyone who dares to admire President Trump. It’s almost impressive how he manages to virtue-signal and alienate half the city in one post. At this point, hiding his woke agenda isn’t even on the agenda.

And the concerns keep mounting.

Reports have surfaced that Mayor Thompson has been using his personal email account to conduct official city business. That’s not just a red flag , it’s a flashing siren. In an era where public trust hinges on transparency, this behavior is deeply unethical. Using personal channels for public matters creates a convenient escape from scrutiny ,a digital backdoor for hiding inconvenient truths or shielding political allies. For someone who campaigned on openness and accountability, the hypocrisy is staggering.

Let’s not forget the issue of public access. Residents have long asked for board meetings and work sessions to be live-streamed , and the equipment is already in place. So why the continued delay?

The answer may be simple, and unsettling: Mayor Thompson doesn’t want to be seen at least not unfiltered. He doesn’t want a livestream showing him fumbling through procedures, asking confused questions, or losing control of the agenda. It’s not about policy. It’s about ego. And transparency is easy to promise until it threatens that ego.

Cottleville deserves better. It deserves leadership that listens, not lectures. That follows through, not folds under pressure. That puts residents first, not personal image.

Mayor Thompson ran on change. Unfortunately, the only thing he’s changed is how obvious it is when someone lets power go to their head.