WPCNR MR. & MRS. & MS. WHITE PLAINS VOICE. October 26, 2005: An observer has a different take on last week's League of Women Voters debate:
I concur with the WP resident regarding the types of questions that were posed at the recent debates, and that they indeed appear to have been planted questions. The "usual suspects" from the public comments portion of Common Council meetings assailed the Mayor, and even booed as he answered questions. That's a real classy move. Those people were not interested in a real issues based debate. They wanted red meat.
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The forums held to date have left many without a clear sense of what the Power platform is. I have to question what exactly Mr. Power would do as mayor, besides move "city hall to the neighborhoods." Besides being the "residents come first" candidate, he has no platform to run on. The "residents come first" bit may sound nice, as does his 3% cap on budget increases. But you don't need an advanced degree in economics or finance to see the holes in his plan. Capping the budget just wont work and Mr. Power knows it. Mr. Power also states he wants to freeze all capital improvements. All of them, except for the new capital projects he is proposing such as "311" helpline, the renewable energy sources that he says we should be investing in, capital improvements to parking garages, etc.
These are the type of questions that Mr. Power fears, questions about his plans and his record. Four rather undistinguished years as a councilman, highlighted mostly by the fact that he never learned the rules of procedure does not give him credibility as a Mayoral candidate. A dubious claim of "36 years management experience" may help his cause with the new resident that is unaware of his past, but Mr. Power certainly has some explaining to do to the rest of us that have not seen this man of mystery in nearly 13 years.
Gary
