Figurehead Ethan Strimling Parading Last Year!
By Carol McCracken (Post # 2,663)
“I don’t know what to think about Mayor Strimling. I can’t figure him out,” said a Munjoy Hill neighbor last week when this blogger asked what she thought of the Figurehead’s job performance to date. “I don’t know what he’s up to,” she added. No one does. Cause he’s not up to anything. His razzle dazzle is gone. That’s all there ever was. Razzle dazzle. Poof!
It’s not unusual for the public to assess the job performance of an elected official a few months into his/her election. The Figurehead has been in office now over six (6) months and it seems appropriate for that assessment. As a resident of Portland who also happens to be a blogger (not a journalist, please!) it’s been hard to discern what his record of achievement is because there is none. He simply doesn’t have one.
We know that he annoyed countless voters when he hired a special assistant to assist him as a stand-in when he’s otherwise occupied; he offended more when it was confirmed that his wife basically tossed him out of their marriage because of an affair with his campaign manager,; and that he insulted a productive City Manager Jon Jennings by trashing him at a city council meeting. A bad, bad move.
He was on “vacation” when the Black Lives Matter moving tribute happened at the AME Zion Church on Munjoy Hill. Really? How does one get vacation time and how much of it after being on the job far less than a year? That’s Figurehead work I guess!
What else he has done in his first months of office is a mystery to many So, mhn.com emailed him a week ago and asked him to supply this blogger with a list of his accomplishments and where he hopes to go in the future. That was an effort to present a :fair and balanced” look at his performance so far. Nada. Absolutely nada back from him or his stand-in special assistant. More recently mhn.com emailed the Figurehead and suggested that perhaps he’d prefer an ‘eyeball-to eyeball’ rather than a paper exchange. Guess what? More Nada. Nothing.
The Mayor is arrogant. He is SO arrogant. His arrogance, lack of intellect and lack of empathy are his Achilles’ heel – just like it will be for The Donald in November. His re-election is a long time away, so who is keeping count of his vacation and sick days in the meantime? HE is.
OMG!
You’re being very hard on poor Ethan! Now that the office has been refurbished to his satisfaction and he has an assistant to take care of the boring day to day stuff I suspect our fearless Figurehead is beavering away on his next campaign. Clearly he has no interest in being mayor and views it as a convenient avenue to higher office.
Thanks for keeping an eye on this slippery character. Perhaps your diligence and determination will rouse other media outlets to act and maybe our Figurehead mayor will finally be held accountable.