The mayor who wasn’t there

The lights are off and nobody's home.

The Chronicle — Gavin Newsom has been increasingly absent from San Francisco, and his decision to enter the 2010 race for California governor means now he’s MIA for good.

Gavin Newsom has spent the equivalent of more than nine months traveling outside of California since he became mayor in 2004, in addition to his frequent in-state trips to Sacramento or Southern California.

His regular absences – particularly the recent ones that have coincided with ever-worsening news about the city’s budget deficit – have prompted some accusations that Newsom seems more devoted to his own agenda than he is to San Francisco.

Critics say it’s problematic because the city faces a $576 million budget deficit for the coming fiscal year, representing the worst fiscal crisis in San Francisco since the Great Depression.

Newsom’s critics, most of them speaking privately (for fear of retribution) say it’s a question of how much face time he gives the city.

Department heads have complained of feeling abandoned by the mayor at a time when they’re being asked to make deep budget cuts.

It seems he’s always somewhere else — and let’s be real — long-distance relationships never work especially with a mayor.  I guess he’s just not that into me.