Mayor-elect Ashley Swearengin will be on the Boren/McEwen political podcast Monday to discuss her transition plans in preparation for taking over the mayor's post in January. You can listen to today's podcast by clicking here.
Swearengin is scheduled to announce her transition team Monday and Bill McEwen and I will ask her about what that group will do to prepare her for taking over City Hall. We also will zero in on some of her immediate priorities as she assumes power over California's sixth-largest city. She will be sworn in on Jan. 6.
Swearengin was elected mayor on Nov. 4 and will succeed Mayor Alan Autry, who has served two terms as Fresno's top elected official. He could not seek re-election because of term limits.
Under Fresno's strong-mayor form of government, Swearengin will run the City Hall administration through her city manager. Right now, she plans to keep Andy Souza, Autry's city manager, in place for about the first six months. She said she'll then conduct a national search for a city manager, and has told City Hall reporters that she hopes that Souza applies for the permanent position.
"Swearengin is expected today to name members of a transition team that will help her meet those challenges.
The team will be headed by Fresno State political science professor David Schecter, who served as her campaign manager, and Ray Steele, former publisher of The Fresno Bee." as told in the Bee today.
Ms. Swearengin called self 'outsider' but the above shows just how well connected she is with the 'powers that be in Fresno'.
With a retired Bee 'bigwig' and her campaign manager being at the top of list, is there any wonder that folks do not believe that change comes to 'Silly Hall'?
"I wanted a group of independent leaders who would help me chart my course for the next six weeks," Swearengin said, "and also help lay the foundations for my first 100 days in office, and the rest of that first year."
MOI will forever remember Mr. Schecter ringing up and telling that it was his opinion that offering to show Ms. Swearengin round a trouble bit of Fresno was 'all about Rob DeFrees and not about Ashley Swearengin', followed up by a early moring knock up from Ms. Swearengin that told of her needing to be 'portected' from folks who want to 'use' her.............she passed on this bit of information as she was on the way to dentist to have smile brightened.
"It's fair to say there are certainly people in City Hall that I want to talk with about staying," Swearengin said.
Ms. Swearengin has told that she will keep His Holiness AndyI in place for a spell, inviting His Holiness to fill out an application and stand in the queue forming of brilliant 'city managers' lined up to come to Fresno. His Holiness AndyI has his detractors, to be sure, but MOI is not so quick to join that crowd. Neither a svengali like figure or machiavelian character is our City Manager.........More like a 'cat on a hot tin roof', trying to not let the heated barbs from councilmenbers catch his papal robed on fire. With the guiding hand of a retired Fresno Bee 'big shot' one can only guess what intrigues have been whispered in her ear.....
MOI hopes that Mr. Boren and Mr. McEwen do the filmed bit in Hawaiian shirts with ukeleles at the ready.......they already have the flowing Moses-like robes and the Ten Commanment tablets.
MOI is a fat old geezer, pedantic and decrept, is a no body, would it not be grand if Ms. Swearengin got advice from "We, the people", the most important voice that should be whispering in her ear. That is the elephant in the room that is ignored, more's the pity.
MOI will not be listening with bated breath for the interview, but will watch and listen to it.....MOI is not like some in Fresno who hate the Fresno so much they will not have anything to do with. It is after all, the only game in town, and one has to know what is going on, even if the views are slanted in one direction.
Rob,
You call yourself a "fat old geezer, pedantic and decrept" be careful what you ask for we take no prisoners on the Fresno Bee Opinion site.
At least give them a chance to fail before you poke fun with your (not so snide) remarks (I wanted to call you what you called yourself right here).
has henry t called up ashley to congratulate her on the mayoral victory?
How very kind! MOI must remember that. MOI is well aware of the folks on here.......shall MOI start packing gladstone to cross the pond?
Gladstone? Your not shy about showing your age, then again your not shy about anything.
Go on.............folks will get the feeling that 'you like MOI, you really like MOI.'
Mind, if you know what a 'gladstone' is, you might be not so young self...........for you who do not know, it was a small bag that one put 'overnight' things into for a trip. Named after a former Prime Minister of UK by the same name.
why do you call yourself MOI?
Thick as a brick MOI is, took time to get the bloody thing to work but when it did, a good portion of the interview was past.
MOI loved the fact that he was not blinded by a field of white from Jim or Bill, one had a 'blue' shirt on and the other had a jacket. Sadly there were no Hawaiian shirts, but then the neckwear was gone as well. Ms. Swearengin was a vision in "Blue", quick study she is.
The only part of the interview seen so far was about the 'homeless' in Fresno. Ms. Swearengin never did answer the two part question put to her by Bill, and she seems at a loss as to how to go about the problem. She does admit that she has loads to learn on the subject.
MOI lifted this from 'Wikipedia' and would pass it on for her consideration. MOI loves the UK and sees much that could be emulated here.
In the 1960s, the nature and growing problem of homelessness changed for the worse in England, with public concern growing. The number of people living "rough" in the streets had increased dramatically. However, beginning with the Conservative administration's Rough Sleeper Initiative, the number of people sleeping rough in London fell dramatically. This initiative was supported further by the incoming Labour administration from 1997 onwards with the publication of the 'Coming in from the Cold' strategy published by the Rough Sleepers Unit, which proposed and delivered a massive increase in the number of hostel bed spaces in the capital and an increase in funding for street outreach teams, who work with rough sleepers to enable them to access services.
Being 'uncovered' is dealt with aggressively in UK, as it has in other countries and in other cities in the United States. There is a great deal of information out there, all one has to do is read it. Just outside the doors of 'Silly Hall' one can see the problem on a daily basis, the very place that Ms. Swearengin will be toiling away.
The coppers MOI has met try very hard to get a handle on the problem, but their job description is not to be a full time 'social worker', there is but so much they can do.
Let MOI be quite clear on one point. MOI is not trying to bash the new mayor, Fresno needs to hope and pray that she will do many of the things she promised to do to get elected. Mayors in other cities have been brilliant id dealing with many of the problems faced by Ms. Swearengin in the coming months. She says that she is 'hands on' sort of person. Might she emulate other mayors in other cities in the past and get up close to the problems in need of solving? The mayor-elect could do a drive through troubled parts of town and see how the folks fair. She could do a ride-along with the coppers and see the daily demands made of them.
MOI has had the god fortune to have met mayors that were bloody brilliant. As the top elected official of the city, they went whole out to make themselves very visible in dealing with problems faced with citizens.
Mayor Autry had his own special style, hanging out in Starbucks and not coming to the office. Mayor Autry did get one part right, being in a 'power office' at 'Silly Hall' was not going to make him a better mayor. Ms. Swearengin will have one shot at setting the tone of her time in office. From day one, folks will judge her on her style. Should thing a good pair of walking shoes are in order, along with some 'riding clothes' for going along on patrol with the Chief or a regular copper.
MOI will have to catch the rest of the interview, but this was what MOI saw and thought.
Because 'Miss Piggy' does, and MOI just adores her delivery.
MOI short for Mohel
Information on Mohel's
http://www.circlist.com/rites/bris.html
Rich,
Enough already...........keep this up and you will have me soil the adult nappy MOI wears.
I thought MOI was french for me. I'd better get out my dictionary. Gladstone.. oh you mean ruck sack, tucker bag or my favorite, matilda. What I'd give to be a swagman walzing my matilda at times.