A Texas man upset about the way power outages were handled after a storm last week attended a city council meeting Thursday dressed as a clown, claiming he was fit for the job of CEO of Austin Energy. More than 348,000 residents were affected by the storm.
During the public statement portion of the meeting, Alex Strenger, an artist known for his performances at city council meetings, was called to the podium to address council members.
Wearing a rainbow-colored wig, face paint, a big red nose and a multi-colored polka dot tie with a yellow shirt, Strenger said he wanted to speak “in support” of items 39 and 81 because “accountability is necessary for what happened.” .”
According to the agenda posted on the city’s website, Section 39 addressed removal and replacement of members, among other related situations, and Section 81 was specifically written to “pass a resolution directing the City Auditor to conduct a comprehensive audit of Austin Energy’s Vegetation Plan”. and Austin Energy’s Response to the February 2023 Winter Storm Event”.
THOUSANDS OF AUSTIN RESIDENTS STILL WITHOUT POWER THE WEEK AFTER THE STORM, LEADING TO EVALUATION OF THE CITY MANAGER’S WORK
Alex Strenger, a resident of Austin, Texas, attends the city council meeting on Thursday, February 9, 2023, dressed as a clown to nominate himself for CEO of Austin Energy. (Austin City Hall Live Stream/Screenshot)
Strenger began his allotted time by claiming that his mother told him to “dress for the job you wish you had”, so he came to the board meeting dressed as a clown because he would like to nominate himself to be the next CEO. from Austin. Energy.
In his statement, meant to mock the liberal city’s priorities, Strenger said Austin needs leaders aligned with what’s important to residents, like “fighting climate change.”
“We need to get to net zero by 2030, and honestly, if we’re ever going to achieve these goals, it shouldn’t even be using energy. Okay?” he said, noting that he demonstrated that he is “firmly committed to saving the planet” by destroying his gas stove in a fire he created.
Alex Strenger addresses members of the Austin City Council during the meeting on February 9, 2023. (Austin City Hall Live Stream/Screenshot)
Strenger said he would be a great candidate for the job because his “priorities align so much with the city” and previous administrations at Austin Energy, adding that he put Ukrainian pronouns and flags in his Twitter bio.
He also said he would need a salary of between $350,000 and $500,000 a year to support his lifestyle, finance his cocaine addiction and care for his wife “who has stage 5 testicular cancer.”
“I also took a 23 and me test and found out I’m 3% black so not hiring me would be a literal act of violence,” he said.
Strenger concluded his statement by saying that he would really appreciate a recommendation for the position and that he is “obviously” the “most qualified person for the job, here in this room.”
AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL MEMBER CRITICISMS A ‘HUGE MISTAKE’ BY THE GOLF COURSE THAT HOSTED THE ADULT ENTERTAINMENT CLUB TOURNAMENT
His satirical speech comes a day after Austin Energy announced that it had restored power to more than 99% of customers who were without power for days after last Wednesday’s winter storm.
During the peak of the outages, approximately 150,000 Austinites lost power. Local media reported Wednesday night that around 230 residents were still without power a week later.
Austin Energy had previously stated that nearly all remaining customers could expect power to be restored on Sunday, February 12, but on Tuesday changed the schedule to “well before Sunday.”
Line crews work to restore power to neighborhoods following a winter storm in Austin, Texas, USA, on Friday, February 3, 2023. (Jordan Vonderhaar/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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Frustrated city councilors asked that Thursday’s meeting also include Austin City Manager Spencer Cronk’s job evaluation.
“I added the emergency item to the agenda this morning because the handling of this situation and the lack of clear, timely and accurate communication has left our community in the dark. It is unacceptable. The City of Austin can and will do better.” “. Mayor Kirk Watson, who took office last month, said in a statement Monday.
Also Monday, Cronk told Fox News Digital that he respects and honors the mayor’s and council’s decision to “ask questions, gather information and consider decisions in the best interest of the city.” He also said that he is “deeply proud of the City employees and community volunteers who have worked tirelessly since the storm hit.”
Fox News’ Paul Best contributed to this report
