Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer says he hasn’t paid much mind to criticism from his former boss.
As a guest panelist on KSEE-24’s “Sunday Morning Matters,” former Fresno Mayor Alan Autry said that Dyer has sold out the city to Gov. Gavin Newsom. He has since followed up with more Dyer criticism on his daily radio show on KXEX-AM 1550.
As mayor from 2001-2009, Autry — a well-known actor as well as a politician — hired Dyer as the city’s police chief in 2001.
Dyer is taking the criticism in stride while also pointing out that his job is to bring as much financial help as possible to Fresno.
“I haven’t given much consideration to it. Alan and I are friends. We have been for a lot of years. He is entitled to his opinion. You know, quite frankly, I think Alan is operating without a lot of information (and) from a 15-year-old perspective,” Dyer said in response to a GV Wire’s questions on Wednesday.
The mayor also said that he must deal with a much different political paradigm than Autry did.
Dyer, a Republican, is dealing with a Democratic governor’s office and White House.
“If you don’t have a relationship with the state or the federal government, you won’t get anything,” Dyer said. “And I will tell you, when Alan operated as a mayor, he had a Republican president and a Republican governor and a Republican (city) council. It’s not like that today. But I still work with both sides in order to do what’s best for the city of Fresno.”
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What Autry Said
Appearing on KSEE’s public affairs show hosted by Alexan Balekian, Autry was a panelist alongside GV Wire News Director Bill McEwen.
Asked about Gov. Gavin Newsom designating $250 million in the state budget for downtown Fresno improvements, Autry took sharp aim at Dyer.
“Don’t pee on my leg and tell me it’s raining. $250 million is nothing to that (state) budget,” Autry answered. “We have always gotten the crumbs from the state and this mayor, I love him like a brother, but he is reluctant to fight the good fight for the city on anything.
“He’s thinking (as long as I) stand next to the governor and I’m going to say good things about him while he runs for president, I’m going to be the one Republican. And that’s what it appears with our mayor now, just like he’s a little puppy dog at the table, wanting to get the scraps.”
In contrast, McEwen described the funding as a positive for the city and noted that downtown has long needed better infrastructure to position the area for positive transformation.
Autry followed up with nearly daily diatribes on his radio show. He said that Dyer isn’t fighting to bring more water to the Valley and that he should have resisted state-imposed COVID restrictions.
“You’ve got to be a grown Rottweiler for the people you swore that oath to represent,” Autry said on the radio.
