As one of the most outspoken critics of the publicly elected mayor position in Portland, I am very pleased with the job Mayor Michael Brennan is doing. It is fortuitous for the city that Brennan has as much legislative experience as he does, considering that the present state leadership is promoting an agenda that would negatively impact Portland.

Brennan’s presence in Augusta working in the best interests of Portland has gone beyond just supplementing the work already being done by this city’s state senators and representatives. The situation, though, does beg the question why our mayor needs to lobby for Portland when we have 10 legislators already representing this city in Augusta.

Brennan’s job performance so far has not proven that the position of mayor is more effective without having executive powers. The Portland Press Herald is assuming the vote “yes” for an elected mayor was an endorsement for the type of position we got. Many of Portland’s voters never read the fine print about the job description and did not understand that this position did not include those executive powers when they voted for it.

As for those of us who wanted a mayor who would be able to balance the power of the City Council and be able to cut through the bureaucratic red tape of City Hall, we’ll be reserving judgment until we see how the present mayor deals with these issues.

I, for one, believe Brennan could be doing an even better job as this city’s mayor if he were allowed the same powers that most mayors in America have.

Jay York is a resident of Portland.

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