Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton is rightly celebrated as a masterpiece.
It also offers useful political advice, even for small town officials. From that musical’s Washington on Your Side, consider this sage observation on the limits of intra-institutional reform:
If there’s a fire you’re trying to douse,
You can’t put it out from inside the house.
There’s much to be said for an independent position, or at least a single position free from myriad conflicts of interest.
No one – ever – uplifts a community by lowering its standards.