Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Sacramento Press / Mayor wants council to discuss new strong mayor plan in early June

Sacramento Press / Mayor wants council to discuss new strong mayor plan in early June

Mayor wants council to discuss new strong mayor plan in early June



A new "strong mayor" discussion at Sacramento City Hall may be just around the corner.
Mayor Kevin Johnson’s office wants to present the draft of a new strong mayor proposal to the City Council in early June, Johnson staffer Kunal Merchant said Monday night.
Johnson’s office is aiming for a City Council vote on the proposal in mid-July, Merchant said at a town hall meeting on the proposal.
The proposal’s backers hope to gain City Council approval in mid-July in order to place the plan on the November ballot.
A draft of the proposal has not been completed. At this point, the plan is an outline which can be read at the campaign’s new website.

Rhee urges top school officials to get political, find supporters

School district superintendents should find ways to gain political support from community members, according to Washington, D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee.
At a Sacramento Press Club luncheon Monday, Rhee urged the city’s businesspeople, media professionals and politicians to back Sacramento City Unified School District Superintendent Jonathan Raymond in his efforts.
These groups should “give this man some cover,” Rhee said.
Superintendents are not elected to their positions, but they can benefit from making alliances with groups, she said.
“When you are a superintendent and you want to do bold things that might not be popular, you have to have some political capital," she said.
Rhee, who is engaged to Mayor Kevin Johnson, gave the example of layoffs she made last fall. She said that because of a budget crunch, she laid off 266 teachers.