Nutter's problem is that his organization - City Hall - will be seriously short on cash until the economy starts to grow again, something administration budget experts do not expect to happen until 2011, when Nutter's first term will almost be over.
"There's no doubt that what has happened over the last three to six months in the global economy will dramatically influence the mayor's ability to implement the specific promises he talked about when running for mayor," said David L. Cohen, former chief of staff to Mayor Edward G. Rendell and the new president of the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce.
Although Nutter said his administration tried to preserve his agenda while cutting the budget, his priorities were hit hard nonetheless.
Tax cuts, which Nutter considers essential to job growth, were frozen. Funding for the Community College of Philadelphia was cut by $2 million, and 11 libraries were shuttered - cuts that clearly run counter to his education goals. The park system, which Nutter said was a top priority, will not get the extra money he promised until at least 2011. Even public safety - the hallmark issue of his campaign - was not spared, as the mayor was forced to settle for 200 extra officers on the streets instead of the 400 he had originally budgeted for.
"It seems like he took the core promises he made on his campaign and sacrificed them," said tax-cutting advocate Brett Mandel.
"A lot of people who voted for the mayor voted for him because they thought he was going to carry out those promises, and he even laid out ways to pay for those promises . . . now he is moving away from those promises."
