Don't Back Down

Let me say that again: Charlotte. Has. A. Weak. Mayor.

When I say that, it's not intended as an insult against Pat McCrory. It's a fact. Charlotte is a city that makes use of a weak mayor. This means that the mayor doesn't run the day-to-day tasks of the city. That's a job for the city manager, a position appointed by city council. And speaking of the council: Except in rare occasions of a tie vote among the members (and a few other minor areas), the mayor has no vote whatsoever.

What does this mean? It means that the candidates for mayor are really not saying much at all when they say that they will change things once elected. In a weak mayor system, the mayor quite simply cannot change things. This is somewhat akin to the president of the United States. The president, as much as he might like to do so, can not just make arbitrary decisions for the country. Those must be made by congress.

Now to say that there is no influence whatsoever is certainly wrong as well. Anyone who has watched a council meeting here in Charlotte knows that the current mayor likes to do things his way. Often the rest of the council goes along with him, well, because he's the mayor. But it does not have to be this way. Electing a strong council that will stand up to the mayor and not give in to influence where none should exist is the best solution for Charlotte.

Blaming a single man for the failures of the city is simply wrong. Pat McCrory is good for sound bites. Presumably he's good for Duke Energy's payroll. Except in rare instances where he doesn't get much sleep in an emergency, he generally looks good in pictures. That's the end of it. He simply doesn't have more say. Rather than spending time spinning wheels and trying to get rid of him, spend time electing council members who will speak for you.