At the March County Council meeting on Thursday, as the meeting drew to a close, things took a rather nasty turn regarding an electronic correspondence written by councilman Jon Fussle.

“It came out of nowhere,” Fussle told StaceyPageOnline.com. “That meeting was great until they chewed me out.”

On March 10, Fussle sent out a personal email (Fussle has since posted the email to his website) that eventually found its way to public view. There was a particular passage in the email that Fussle’s colleagues took offense to.

The paragraph in question reads: “In my time as Councilman, I’ve made transparency and communication my hallmark. The easiest, quickest, and least expensive way to do this is through social media. I have post every vote I’ve cast on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and I’ve explained each vote as well. This has lead to a sometimes rough experience on the Council, but I’m proud to be the antithesis of the typical politician.”

“I definitely didn’t direct it at the coucil,” said Fussle. He did admit, after re-reading the email, he could see how his colleagues on the council might have interpreted it as such.

Council president Robert Sanders said he had discussed the email with all the other council members prior to the meeting. Sanders and councilman Larry Teghtmeyer both told Fussle that some of the items in the email offended them.

“If you’ve got issues, you need to bring them to this council,” said Teghtmeyer. “I’ve been in this business 33 years, and I don’t consider myself a politician.”

Fussle said he didn’t consider himself a politician either, rather he sees himself as a statesman.

After the council members raised their concerns, Fussle said he respects the other council members and told Sanders, “I admire what you do.”

Finally, after several tense minutes of heated conversation, Sanders – perhaps realizing things had gotten a bit out of hand – called the meeting back to order and quickly adjourned.

This isn’t the first time Fussle has been under fire for electronic correspondence. At a council meeting in late 2013, Fussle was chastised for posting council business on social media. However, that exchange was tame in comparison to last night’s meeting.

“I’ve posted every vote I’ve cast on social media,” said Fussle. “The idea is to be open and transparent to the public.”

Fussle feels votes deserve an explanation and he uses his website and social media channels to explain his votes. “I’m not there to explain [the other council members] vote,” he said.

Despite this opposition after just a little over a year as county councilman, Fussle is still optimistic about his role as a public servant. He started a “second council” meeting, which usually meets the Tuesday before the County Council meeting at the Saint Regis Club in Warsaw.

“We’re doing great things with this second council,” he said. “We have an informal setting. It’s just me sitting on a couch.” These meetings provide an informal setting for Fussle’s constituents to share ideas with him, which he can then bring before the council.

Fussle has, since the leaking of his email, admitted that he is running for county commissioner in the upcoming election. “I’ve always wanted to be a commissioner,” he said. “I don’t feel I fit in on the council.”