Ashley Swearengin has been mayor of Fresno for 100 days and has gotten off to an impressive start. Click here to read The Fresno Bee editorial board's take on Swearengin's administration at the 100-day mark.
Let us know how you think the mayor is doing by posting comments in the space below.
MOI became a non-believer in Ashley Swearengin when she was still running for the office that she now hold. Ms. Swearengin would not visit community and her folks were ever so protective in preventing her from even considering it.
Mind, Mayor Swearengin did come after she got elected, with a 'controlled' Town Hall Meeting setting', allowing no one to address issues to her directly. She did drag along a consul from Mexico to pander to Hispanic population of community and made much of poverty here and her wanting to help neighbours 'round Downtown'. This old geezer did not see it as one of her shining moments.
Mayor Swearengin did appoint Craig Scharton to be Downtown Tsar, giving him a brilliant pay packet of $128,000.00. This be the same chap who rings up MOI and tells that "MOI has not lived in Fresno long enough to know how local government works. He, Craig Scharton has been aware of what ails Fresno for 21 years and knows these things, and feels both he and the mayor deserve TIME to make a difference. Tick Tock - Tick Tock the clock is ticking and from where this old geezer site, not much as been achieved to address the real issues that plague Fresno.
There is still a 'Tale of Two Cities', there are still massive number of homeless wandering roads and the 'public purse' is still much depleted of coin.
There be folks on Fresno Bee that feel Ms. Swearengin can walk on water due to her victory to get coppers review. Not so neat a trick that when the stars line up and hand you the victory.
100 days, loads of chat show appearences, multiple trips to beltway and some progress to get Downtown off death bed.
This old geezer think that Mayor Swearengin has not been the new broom she promised to be at 'Silly Hall', and her wanting to micro-manage everything takes the spark of cleverness out of 'grace and favour' employees of the City of Fresno.
No, this old geezer is not hoping for miracles from Mayor Swearengin, her 'staff' will not be able to tap rock and make water spring forth. Mind, Ms. Swearengin is already planning to be mayor for 8 years.........fancy that, we the people have no say, we just roll over nad play dead for 8 years. More's the pity that.
Seems to me she is doing a pretty good job (& I don’t always agree with her, for instance on the IPA issue).
I was at a PUBLIC meeting a couple of weeks ago where the mayor spoke; she struck me as gracious and well-spoken. BTW, she took tough questions and was excellent in answering them. And BTW, again - there was NO media present, no TV cameras, no reporters, no PR person ... nothing. Struck me as being a bit unusual ... probably just as well that she spoke to us common folks without the drive-by media being there .... the media would have had a fit when they heard the mayor speaking of her "faith" and even - gasp - opened a Bible and read from it!