Free Republic

The Austin City Council on Wednesday voted to fire City Manager Spencer Cronk following his response to the winter storm earlier this month. The council voted 10-1 in a special called session, with only Natasha Harper-Madison (District 1) voting against Cronk's firing. Cronk's termination is effective Thursday, Feb. 16. He will receive a one-year severance of $463,001.50, under a City ordinance in which he was hired in 2018. The council has appointed Jesús Garza, who served as Austin's city manager from 1994 to 2002, to serve as interim city manager. “I serve at the pleasure of the mayor and council...

When you're governor of California and need a boatload of cash in less than 80 days, you're going to be hanging out with some pretty wealthy people. Like Rick Cronk, who paid $1 million for Dreyer's Ice Cream in 1977 and merged it with Nestle three years ago in a deal reportedly worth $2.4 billion. He and his wife, Janet, are hosts for a fundraiser for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in the East Bay on Sept. 28. Or Arte Moreno, owner of the Los Angeles Angels, who is throwing a Schwarzenegger fundraiser at the team's game in Anaheim on Tuesday night...