Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler's proposal to give himself new powers to restrict protests failed 2-3 on Wednesday when Commissioner Nick Fish cast the deciding vote against it.

"After careful consideration, I cannot support this ordinance," Fish said, calling his decision "a close call" based on his view that better alternatives may exist.

Commissioner Amanda Fritz and Chloe Eudaly joined Fish in voting no. Wheeler and Commissioner Dan Saltzman voted yes.

This leaves the city of Portland, viewed by many people as a liberal bastion, vulnerable to more protests led by right-wing activists who bring their provocations into the heart of the city, baiting opponents to show up in force too. How police will keep them apart and keep participants and bystanders safe remains an open question. To date, whether police turned out in force or were badly outnumbered, such dueling protests have led to injuries, arrests and property damage.

Wheeler's ordinance would have given him the power to issue orders dictating the conditions of protests if the group or groups planning to demonstrate had a history of violence and, in his judgment, would jeopardize public safety.

The mayor said he and Police Chief Danielle Outlaw developed the idea in response to the increasing number of violent demonstrations in Portland since 2016, during which right-wing protesters often provoke left-wing counter-demonstrators into fisticuffs or fighting with improvised weapons.

Outlaw has said those protests are difficult to police. She and the mayor contend new so-called "time, place and manner" restrictions on public gatherings would keep the public safer.

But a majority of the city commissioners were not convinced.

Eudaly said she believes Wheeler and Outlaw are well-intentioned and want to curtail political extremism. Yet Eudaly said she cannot "vote to expand their powers" in light of her view that significant police reforms are necessary.

Fritz decried the violent protests -- declaring that "white supremacists are not welcomed in Portland and the City Council should make that clear in every decision we make" -- and said Wheeler's proposal would not have made much of a difference to police.

Fish, an attorney, said he is wary of any restrictions on free speech, calling them a measure of last resort that may not pass legal muster. And he said he is not persuaded that police officials have used their existing authority enough to arrest lawbreakers at protests.

"I'm not convinced that we've done everything we can with the tools already at our disposal," Fish said.

Wheeler repeated his talking points Wednesday -- calling his proposal legal, reasonable and necessary -- while criticizing news coverage that called into question whether restricting protests is constitutional.

"I learned one thing from this, colleagues, if you put an ordinance out and there's any question about its legality, make sure your lawyers get to the media first, because once that frame is set it is very hard to turn that frame around," the mayor said.

And Wheeler, who has been dogged by the regular demonstrations since taking office, on Wednesday expressed his exasperation and weariness.

He said he tried and failed to keep right-wing agitators away from Portland by making public pleas. And he noted that the federal government declined his request to deny the right-wing Patriot Prayer group a protest permit -- a request that drew Wheeler widespread condemnation because it was seen as an effort to curtail free expression.

Yet Wheeler also expressed his resolve.

"We're going to do a lot of different things," he said. "We're going to continue to enforce the laws."

-- Gordon R. Friedman