San Diego 6 News: Local Labor Groups Call For Unemployment Insurance Extension

 "Instead of screaming for more handouts, they ought to be screaming to make it so they can get jobs," said T.J. Zane, president of the Lincoln Club, which was holding a fundraiser with local business leaders across the street from the vigil.

Read the article here.

SDUT: Flurry of endorsements in San Diego races

FYI.

Read the article here.

Labor Council endorses Scott Peters for U.S. Congress, Bob Filner for Mayor in San Diego

For Immediate Release                                                                                                 

Labor Council endorses Scott Peters for U.S. Congress, Bob Filner for Mayor in San Diego
Mathew Kostrinsky and Councilwoman Marti Emerald also get nod for San Diego City Council

SAN DIEGO - The San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council tonight voted to endorse Scott Peters for California’s 52nd Congressional District. Peters, currently Chairman of the San Diego Port Authority, is running for the newly redistricted seat that encompasses portions of San Diego, La Jolla, Imperial Beach, Coronado, and Poway.

“Scott Peters is a problem solver who knows how to create good, middle-class jobs--a skill that is sorely needed in Washington, D.C.,” said Lorena Gonzalez, Secretary-Treasurer/CEO of the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council. “He has demonstrated a history of bringing people together and getting things done for San Diegans.”

The Labor Council also voted to endorse U.S Congressman Bob Filner for Mayor of San Diego.
“Congressman Filner is hands-down, the best choice for hardworking folks in San Diego – both union and non-union,” said Gonzalez. “He’ll put an end to the ideological war on workers that has come from extreme right-wing politicians, and focus on putting our city back to work.”

To receive an endorsement from the Labor Council, a candidate must receive two-thirds approval from Labor Council unions and delegates.

In addition to Peters and Filner, the Labor Council endorsed 2012 San Diego City Council Candidates Mathew Kostrinsky (7th District) and Marti Emerald (9th District).

###

San Diego-Imperial Counties Labor Council
The San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council, AFL-CIO includes 133 affiliated labor groups in the region with a membership of more than 192,000 working families.  Founded in 1891, the Labor Council advocates for more jobs, better jobs and better lives for all of San Diego’s workers – union and non-union.

www.unionyes.org      

SDUT: Labor council endorses Peters for Congress

The San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to endorse Democrat Scott Peters for the 52nd Congressional District.

Read the article here.

SDUT: Fletcher pushes “innovative city” jobs plan

Fletcher, a Republican, gave The San Diego Union-Tribune an advance copy of his speech in which he outlines his goal of creating at least 75,000 new jobs in the San Diego region during his first four-year term. In addition, he expects to increase by one-third the number of patents, venture capital spending and exports in the region by 2020.

Read the article here.

SDUT: Latinos say Escondido elections unfair

”Half of Escondido is Latino,” Demetrio Gomez, a 40-year Escondido resident said during the council meeting’s public comment period. “But in 123 years, Escondido has elected only one obviously Latino candidate to the City Council. There are no representatives from our large Latino neighborhoods, and this council is elected by — and caters to — wealthier non-Latinos.”

Read the article here.

KPBS: Payroll Deduction Measure Qualifies for Ballot

The proposal would ban both corporations and labor unions from collecting political funds through “payroll deduction”

Read the article here.

Organized Labor and Local Clergy Call on Congress to Pass Unemployment Insurance Extension Now

 

Organized Labor and Local Clergy Call on Congress to Pass Unemployment Insurance Extension Now
Thursday, December 8, 2011

5:00 p.m.
Civic Center, 1200 3rd Avenue and B Street, San Diego, CA 92101

The San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council will call on Congress to extend unemployment insurance (UI), set to expire for more than two million Americans, including 305,400 Californians, on Dec. 31. 

Local union members will join with the Interfaith Committee for Worker Justice of San Diego County (ICWJ), Occupy San Diego and other community supporters, for a press conference and public vigil followed by a silent march to the federal building downtown to emphasize the need to reauthorize UI benefits and create jobs for those who desperately need them in Greater San Diego.
California’s still-fragile economy will take another brutal hit unless Congress acts now to help.

Special guests including: Lorena Gonzalez, Secretary-Treasurer/CEO, San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council; Rabbi Laurie Coskey, Executive Director, ICWJ; and Michael LaDouce, Unemployed Member, Ironworkers Local 229.

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www.unionyes.org

SD CityBeat: Peters underestimates Occupy and how to run for president

Peters expressed sympathy for the protesters, but he was dismissive of the idea of a demonstration at the port. Peters said he’d checked and he was fairly certain there would be no protest. Boy, was he wrong. After Occupy San Diego organizers sent out a press release confirming they will participate in the “West Coast Port Shutdown” on Monday, Dec. 12, we went back to our recording. We’d asked him how the Port of San Diego, which has its own police force, would respond to an occupation.

Peters: I think that people have the right to assemble peacefully. If they’re really talking about getting in the way of trucks getting in and out… we’ll probably have to ask them to move.

Read the article here.

SD CityBeat: District Attorney settles public-records lawsuit

“Not only is she district attorney, she’s running for mayor, so I think it’s important for the people of the city of San Diego to know how she handles complaints against officials,” Shapiro tells CityBeat.

In his email to Dumanis, Shapiro asked to see all complaints against government officials received by her office since 2003. He had filed a similar request with Dumanis’ predecessor, District Attorney Paul Pfingst, in 2001. While Pfingst did not provide the complaints themselves, he did provide written summaries—24 in all—as required by the CPRA. Shapiro was expecting the same treatment from Dumanis.

Instead, Dumanis denied Shapiro’s entire request. He revised his request, and she rejected the revision. He revised it a second time. The DA rejected it again. In May, Shapiro sued Dumanis in Superior Court for an alleged violation of CPRA.

Read the article here.

SD CityBeat: Jan Goldsmith is sure that he’s not biased on pension initiative

The basis for Gloria’s concern was Goldsmith’s participation in a press conference this past April announcing the campaign to collect enough signatures to get the initiative on the ballot. CityBeat was there that day and asked Goldsmith why, in light of his campaign pledge in 2008 to steer clear of policy matters as city attorney (distinguishing himself from then-incumbent Mike Aguirre), he was violating that vow by actively supporting a major policy overhaul. He told us he was supporting the initiative as a private citizen, not as city attorney. When he saw Gloria questioning his professional honor, Goldsmith hurried across the Civic Center Concourse to defend himself. From the council’s dais, he said he knows how to separate his personal opinions from his legal analysis.

Read the article here.

SD Reader: County Supervisors Discuss Limiting Role of Community Planning Groups

County Supervisors received recommendations to streamline the land-use permitting process from the Red Tape Reduction Task Force on Wednesday. The task force spent months drafting the recommendations after interviews with county employees, and poring over county documents.

Among the recommendations, one received the most attention. That recommendation focused on community planning groups. The task force found that community planning groups often delay projects and hold too much power and influence over projects. To solve that issue, the task force recommended that the board limit the scope of their responsibilities, and limit the number of years volunteers can serve. 

Members of the public criticized the recommendation. 

Read the article here.

SDUT: San Diego mayoral forum on jobs closed to the press

The three high-profile Republicans running for San Diego mayor participated in a Tuesday morning forum focused on job growth before a well-heeled crowd of political insiders and business leaders.

That’s about all that can be said about the sold-out event because its sponsor, the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corp., barred local media from covering the forum, which was held at The University Club in downtown San Diego.

Read the article here.

SDUT: County won’t take on SDG&E over higher solar rates

The county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday refused to oppose a contentious proposal from San Diego Gas & Electric that would result in substantially higher rates for solar users.

The 3-2 vote runs counter to recent actions by a growing slate of local government entities, including cities, public school districts and water authorities that generate their own solar power.

Read the article here.

After 9 more arrested, Occupy San Diego seeks apology, resignation of SDPD Chief

OCCUPY SAN DIEGO
For Immediate Release: December 6, 2011

Contact:
info@occupysd.org
Kali Katt 1-619-916-1304
Rick Halsey 760-822-0029

After 9 more arrested, Occupy San Diego seeks apology, resignation of SDPD Chief

By Kali Katt
http://www.examiner.com/city-buzz-in-san-diego/after-9-more-arrested-occupy-san-diego-seeks-apology-resignation-of-sdpd-chief#ixzz1fmbf45tt

San Diego -- Occupy San Diego will march Tuesday Dec. 6 at 6:30 p.m. from Freedom Plaza (formerly known as Civic Center) to the San Diego Police Headquarters on Broadway Ave and 14th  St. in protest of the continued police brutality, misconduct and unlawful arrests at the OSD protests. In the fourth raid since Oct. 7, 30 San Diego Police Department officers arrested nine protestors around 2 a.m. the morning of Monday Dec 5, charging most of them with Cal. Pen. Code S148 resisting, delaying or obstructing an officer, Cal. Pen. Code S647 illegal lodging, and the infamous San Diego Mun. Code S54.0110 unauthorized encroachments.

The protestors arrested were not sleeping or camping when the officers poured in, but were watching a DVD of Michael Moore’s “Capitalism- A Love Story”. No warning was giving to disperse before officers began grabbing people and arresting them. A member of OSD’s media team who began filming the unlawful arrests was arrested.  This adds to the over 100 arrests OSD protestors have been subjected to since the first arrest on Oct 14, one week after occupying Freedom Plaza.

Since the arrests OSD has discovered that a transgender female protestor has been placed in the Central jail with the general male population, and a female protestor is being detained by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  There have also been false quotes in the media yesterday by SDPD spokesman Gary Hassen that protestors were setting up tents and this is why the raid occurred.  Documented video (at 01:09:00) shows the protestors calmly awake, without tents, and watching a movie when the officers came in.

It has been become routine for SDPD to enforce municipal codes at whim, without prior talks or mediation, and often resorting first-hand to violent tactics, to prevent, deter, and intimidate protestors and all San Diego citizens within this city from exercising their first amendment rights.

During the first raid on Oct. 14  SDPD was aggressive with protestors and sprayed hazardous chemical agents upon  numerous people simply for having tents. A member of OSD’s media team documenting the second police raid on Oct 28 was arrested for Penal Code 408 unlawful assembly for standing in the middle of the street and Municipal Code 59.5.0401 excessive noise for using a megaphone. The 51 protestors arrested during the second police raid on Oct. 28 were subject to police brutality and inhumane conditions at the jail with even the San Diego County Sheriff’s Dept. admitting the protestors were forced to urinate and defecate in the buses while being transferred to jail.

In the following weeks they began heavily enforcing Cal. Pen. Code S647 illegal lodging, which means very aggressively arresting people for allegedly sleeping, or just laying down in a sleeping bag, - even a homeless man in a wheelchair on Thanksgiving morning. During the Nov. 16 raid they arrested another media team member while he was documenting action for San Diego Mun. Code S83.0203 pedestrian standing on the sidewalk. Then they yet another member of the media team was arrested, this time for registering voters, on private property under a citizen’s arrest from the owner of the Civic Center  - CB Richard Ellis. They continue to arrest protestors for simple things such as allegedly tearing police caution tape and calling it vandalism.

Not only is OSD calling for the resignation of Chief Police Landsdowne by petition for the way he has mishandled the Occupy San Diego protests, but a young female protestor Julie,  who does graphic design for the OSD media team, has now declared a hunger strike until Chief Lansdowne apologizes to OSD for the continued intimidation, harassment, and suppression.  She joins a group of citizen's willing to forgo sustenance until action by our elected officials is taken toward more fair treatment of civil liberties.

After a summer of troubling reports of SDPD officers being involved in a variety of criminal activities ranging from assaulting minors, stalking, driving while intoxicated, and sexual abuse, we are now faced with another series of offenses done to citizens by the officers of the SDPD.  OSD is hoping Chief Landsdowne will help make the situation right by apologizing for this misconduct as he did earlier in the year for SDPD’s misconduct.

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The Zombie Cults and SD Unified

From Two Cathedrals:

With the state budget poised to dramatically under-deliver and trigger large budget cuts for schools across the state, local media has spent a couple months wading into the looming financial crisis at San Diego Unified for a while now. And while the immediacy of the local challenges makes it crucial to cover well, it isn’t like this is a crisis in a vacuum.

Any discussion of the budgetary straitjacket in Sacramento that’s made this budget crisis inevitable has been strikingly absent, aside from the perfunctory ‘state’s broken’ before getting into mitigating the effects. For years, California’s 2/3 majority requirement for any new taxes has been an effective moratorium on any new taxes. In the state where Governor Ronald Reagan once raised taxes to balance the budget, the Jarvis/Norquist no-tax dead-enders have been able to ensure that there will always be a Republican minority in Sacramento large enough to block any new revenue. In boom times, the state can get by in that system. But as we’ve seen in the last few years, when times are tough and the only option allowed is budget cuts into oblivion, things turn ugly in a hurry.

Republican Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher is leaving his seat to run for mayor of San Diego. In Sacramento, he was more open to non-partisan, pragmatic problem solving than many of his colleagues have been in years. He also just finished up an education town hall series with City Council President Tony Young. One might expect a few questions asking why Sacramento is taking millions out of our classrooms in the name of continuing the no-new-revenue gridlock, why Fletcher’s colleagues are forcing it to happen? Since the same cabal has plenty of pull in San Diego as well, might have been interesting to learn more about how he expects to break through gridlock here that nobody, including him, can seem to break through in Sacramento. One expecting such topics would have been sorely disappointed. Let’s hope he has a good answer though — we need one. If he doesn’t, let’s hope someone does.

How about other local legislators who’ve been a part of systemic obstruction in Sacramento? Martin Garrick was Assembly Minority Leader for the bruising 2010 budget battle, and is presumably eying a senate run. What’s his plan to keep our classrooms functional? Brian Maienschein is running for Assembly and recently signed the no-tax pledge, but who’s talking about what exactly his plan is to stem the de-funding of our schools that necessarily results? Plenty of other local incumbents and aspirants have bought into this system, what’s their response to parents whose children just aren’t going to get the education they could? This should be be more than yet another austerity vs workers false premise — it should be a flash point for accountability of those who make careers from these never-ending cuts.

The Governor has been clear from the get-go that the whole plan is to force accountability; force irresponsible legislators and their constituents to face the reality they’ve created — no more gimmicks. It’s shock doctrine; the desperate financial straits (that we’ve really been building for a generation or more) and a resulting conversation about priorities is the point… not that you’d know it from the conversation in San Diego so far.

Maybe it’s a function of how beaten down we’ve collectively become, but we aren’t getting an accountability discussion that touches the root. Instead, we get conversations that ignore the clear-cutting of the forest to argue over the proper way to cut down a couple trees near us. Sure we want to keep the trees, and sure the people driving the bulldozers supposedly work for us, but oh well. Let’s cut our trees down now since we’ll have to cut them down eventually. Natch.

Now, maybe this is just considered a foregone conclusion. Sacramento is hopelessly gridlocked, has been since before most of us remember, and the seats are all too safe to contest the elections. So a pox on everyone’s houses and argue over the best ways to mitigate the disaster locally. That, of course, is exactly what the cuts-only zombie cultists are relying on though. The longer they can prevent government from working, the more compelling their argument becomes that the government can’t work. And once that dysfunction passes into conventional wisdom, the paupers begin clawing over the scraps, and the system is changed. Until we can go around again and drop another level into Hell.

Quietly rolling over and accepting the notion that revenue is evil is infectious. The no-tax-no-services dead-enders will always exist. But their legitimacy comes because we aren’t serious about having the conversation in the first place. One of the two major parties has incorporated repeatedly kneecapping education funding as the single most important plank of its platform, and instead of calling it out, we’re talking about how to best take the hit over and over again.

You want schools to work, start with those responsible for breaking them in the first place. Maybe parents will even decide that education isn’t worth it. But as long as we’re locked into the same old reactive debates over how to treat the victims, we’ll never solve the crime.

by Lucas O’Connor

Open Letter to the People of California

From Jerry Brown.org

When I became Governor again -- 28 years after my last term ended in 1983 -- California was facing a $26.6 billion budget deficit. It was the result of years of failing to match spending with tax revenues as budget gimmicks instead of honest budgeting became the norm.

In January, I proposed a budget that combined deep cuts with a temporary extension of some existing taxes. It was a balanced approach that would have finally closed our budget gap.

I asked the legislature to enact this plan and to allow you, the people of California, to vote on it.  I believed that you had the right to weigh in on this important choice: should we decently fund our schools or lower our taxes?  I don’t know how you would have voted, but we will never know.  The Republicans refused to provide the four votes needed to put this measure on the ballot.

Forced to act alone, Democrats went ahead and enacted massive cuts and the first honest on-time budget in a decade. But without the tax extensions, it was simply not possible to eliminate the state’s structural deficit.

The good news is that our financial condition is much better than a year ago. We cut the ongoing budget deficit by more than half, reduced the state’s workforce by about 5500 positions and cut unnecessary expenses like cell phones and state cars. We actually cut state expenses by over $10 billion.  Spending is now at levels not seen since the seventies.  Our state’s credit rating has moved from “negative” to “stable,” laying the foundation for job creation and a stronger economic recovery.
Unfortunately, the deep cuts we made came at a huge cost. Schools have been hurt and state funding for our universities has been reduced by 25%.  Support for the elderly and the disabled has fallen to where it was in 1983.  Our courts suffered debilitating reductions.

The stark truth is that without new tax revenues, we will have no other choice but to make deeper and more damaging cuts to schools, universities, public safety and our courts.

That is why I am filing today an initiative with the Attorney General’s office that would generate nearly $7 billion in dedicated funding to protect education and public safety. I am going directly to the voters because I don’t want to get bogged down in partisan gridlock as happened this year. The stakes are too high.

My proposal is straightforward and fair.  It proposes a temporary tax increase on the wealthy, a modest and temporary increase in the sales tax, and guarantees that the new revenues be spent only on education.  Here are the details:

• Millionaires and high-income earners will pay up to 2% higher income taxes for five years. No family making less than $500,000 a year will see their income taxes rise. In fact, fewer than 2% of California taxpayers will be affected by this increase.   
• There will be a temporary ½ cent increase in the sales tax.  Even with this temporary increase, sales taxes will still be lower than what they were less than six months ago.
• This initiative dedicates funding only to education and public safety--not on other programs that we simply cannot afford. 

This initiative will not solve all of our fiscal problems. But it will stop further cuts to education and public safety.  

I ask you to join with me to get our state back on track. 

SDUT: Pension measure headed to June ballot, for now

The City Council on Monday moved to place on the ballot a proposal that would fundamentally overhaul the city’s public employee pension system, a month after proponents collected the requisite number of signatures to qualify the measure.


The 5-3 vote essentially clears the way for the Comprehensive Pension Reform initiative to go before voters in the June 5 primary election. It came amid heavy jostling from opponents who pushed for placing it on the November ballot, citing higher turnout among voters and the potential to save the city money.

Read the article here.

SDUT: Young elected to another year as SD council president

“This is a privilege to me,” Young said. “And I do want to make sure that we continue as a council to become an entity that the public really respects. We want to make sure we give confidence to them: To let them know that we are doing these things on their behalf, we’re working on their behalf.”

Read the article here.

SDUT: Romney hosts fundraiser in San Diego

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney hosted a fundraising lunch Monday at the Westgate Hotel in San Diego.

Romney, who plans to expand his beachside home in La Jolla, has been in and out of town for private fundraisers as he works to hold off Newt Gingrich’s surge in several national polls and early voting states such as Iowa and South Carolina.

Read the article here.

Occupy San Diego to Establish Picket Blockade at Port

OCCUPY SAN DIEGO
_________________________________

For Immediate Release: December 5, 2011

Contact:

info@occupysd.org

Kali Katt 1-619-916-1304
Rick Halsey 760-822-0029

Occupy San Diego to Establish Picket Blockade at Port

Local citizens to support coordinated effort along the entire West Coast in solidarity with other Occupations

Monday, December 5, 2011 – In response to coordinated attacks across the nation on the Occupy movement by the 1% on Monday, December 12 Occupy San Diego will stand in solidarity with other West Coast occupations in a West Coast Port Blockade to disrupt the economic apparatus of the 1% using a peaceful, nonviolent picket line.  OSD is asking participants meet at Chicano Park at 6am with supplies to be prepared to stay the day and late into the evening, at least.   

The West Coast Port Blockade was called upon by Occupy Oakland and is in solidarity with the Longshoremen in Longview, WA in their struggle against the multinational corporation EGT, and with the struggle of port truckers in Los Angeles against Goldman Sachs.  The 1% has disrupted the lives of longshoremen, port truckers and all other workers, just as the 1% has also coordinated nationwide police attacks turning US cities into battlegrounds in an effort to disrupt the Occupy Movement. Occupy San Francisco, Occupy Los Angeles, Occupy Portland, Occupy Tacoma, Occupy Seattle and Occupy Vancouver have all joined in responding to the West Coast call of action by Occupy Oakland.

Participating occupations are asked to encourage that during the port shutdowns the local arbitrator rules in favor of longshoremen not crossing community picket lines in order to avoid recriminations against them. Should there be any retaliation against any workers as a result of their honoring pickets or supporting our port actions, or in the event of police repression of any of the mobilizations, additional solidarity actions will be prepared and shutdown actions may be extended to multiple days.

On Nov. 2, 2011 30,000 protestors shut down the Port of Oakland after Occupy Oakland called for a Day of Action in solidarity with Longview longshoremen. On Nov. 19 Longview workers Local 21 president Dan Coffman said, “You cannot believe what you did for the inspiration of my union members who’ve been on the picket line for 6 months.”  Then on Dec 2, 2011 International Longshore and Warehouse Union office clerical workers in Los Angeles-Long Beach walked off the job and formed a picket line shutting down the port and calling off 18 month contract negotiations.

###

About EGT and Goldman Sachs

EGT is a multinational grain exporter consortium. Bunge Ltd is the largest partner in EGT who reported 2.5 billion dollars in profit last year alone, has direct ties to Wall Street, and has caused economic despair in countries such as Argentina, Brazil, and now the United States. EGT has been rupturing ILWU jurisdiction in Longview, Washington and bringing in scab labor.

Goldman Sachs owns a large part of the SSA port terminals and is guilty of facilitating the exploitation of non-union and short-run, port truck drivers who have struggled for dignified and humane conditions in the workplace for several years now. These independent truck drivers are primarily immigrant workers who are pitted against each other and receive low wages and unreliable hours while Goldman Sachs, the shipping companies and their underlings, reap record profits.

EGT and Goldman Sachs are the 1%. The Occupy Movement is committed to shutting down the 1% and is using its collective political power in order to confront the 1% with mass mobilizations that shut down sites of profit.

Through it’s exploitation of both human and natural resources, Wall Street has sent our local communities and families a message that people and the planet are less important than profit. Join with Occupy San Diego for a day of action at the San Diego Port to tell Wall Street to put people first!

SDUT: Lawmaker’s background plays into UC pepper spray hearing

Block will chair the Dec. 14 Assembly Higher Education Committee hearing into the incident captured on a video that has gone viral and set off a firestorm of debate nationally.

Read the article here.

SDNR: Supporters of pension reform initiative warn of delay or manipulation of measure

Supporters of the Comprehensive Pension Reform (CPR) Initiative held a press conference Friday ahead of the City Council’s vote on the initiative Monday, asking San Diegans to contact their council members and urge them to put the initiative on the June 2012 ballot without “manipulating” it. 

Read the article here.

SDUT: Popaditch announces congressional bid

Running against Susan Davis.

Read the article here.

SDUT: Mayoral candidate served in Iraq, Africa

This is news?

Read the article here.

SDUT: For Rep. Bilbray, no sign of shift to center

If there was any doubt whether Rep. Brian Bilbray would stick to his guns on immigration and economic policies heading into a tough election year, the six-term congressman answered that this week.

In an appearance before local tea party activists, Bilbray, R-San Diego, burnished his conservative credentials, including votes against the stimulus package and the bank bailout.

Read the article here.

SDUT: La Mesa councilman seeks assembly seat

Dave Allan, who announced in August that he would not run for a fourth term on the La Mesa City Council, is staying in politics.


The 56-year-old Allan, a retired San Miguel Consolidated Fire District firefighter, announced Tuesday he intends to run for the 79th Assembly District seat.

Read the article here.

SDUT: Lawmaker warns about special interests, goes on junket

Assemblyman Brian Jones sent out mailers last week calling on the state to “Stop special interest money to protect the democratic process” — even as he mingled at a resort in Hawaii on a trip paid by special interests.


The mailer from Jones, a Santee Republican, was delivered to 97,023 households in his district and cost taxpayers $19,373 in postage. In it, Jones promotes legislation he is carrying that would limit payroll deductions and contributions by unions and corporations that are then used for political purposes.

Read the article here.

SDUT: Penn State scandal triggers Vargas bill

“If it happened in California, it might not be a crime,” Vargas said of the alleged reporting failures of several of those involved in the Penn State case.

Read the article here.

OCCU-PIE San Diego--Everyone deserves a fair share of the pie!!

PRESS ADVISORY

FROM: Rev. David Miller and Faith Leaders for Peace

EVENT: OCCU-PIE San Diego--Everyone deserves a fair share of the pie!!
                 Monday November 21, 2011
                 5:30 - 7:00 p.m.
                 Civic Center Plaza

SUBJECT: On the Monday before Thanksgiving, multi-faith leaders from San Diego County will hold a short service of peace, nonviolence, gratitude, thanks and sharing. As a community of Occupy supporters and friends we are all invited to bring pies of all sorts, (chicken, turkey, tofu, pumpkin, peach, apple) to share together in thanks and gratitude for those holding the space at our local Occupation and to give thanks for all those lifting up the issues of fairness, compassion and equality being shared by this movement. Mostly, it is a day of gratitude for what we already have, including each other. Please bring the whole pie, perhaps equally pre-cut, to this multi-faith event. Paper plates, napkins, and forks will be provided. 

Recently there have been accounts of people not being allowed in with food to feed the Occupiers protesting at Civic Center. We were told by the police sergeant in charge of permits that we don't need a permit because as clergy and people of faith, it was within our first amendment rights to come and speak, even with pies. If they do not let us in, we will find a nice corner nearby. Please join us for discussion and interviews with protesters and multi-faith leaders while enjoying Occu-pies donated by the public!

CONTACT: Rev. David Miller (619) 876-7456

SDUT: Republicans seek majority on San Diego council

The party has already established a slate for the June primary — small-business owners Ray Ellis, Mark Kersey and Scott Sherman — that leaders say is needed as badly as a pension initiative appearing on the same ballot and a Republican successor to current Mayor Jerry Sanders. The party plans to urge voters to support all three elements in order to fix San Diego’s financial crisis.

Read the article here.

If so, then why were you not at Regulatory Relief Day?

Last night the City of San Diego held its first Regulatory Relief Day in a very long time. Businesses and residents came out to talk about how the city could improve their processes to help business. Business organizations have been overrunning everyone's in-boxes to turnout. It was billed as a major step for the City of San Diego to stimulate business, create new jobs, improve government and allow our economic base in the region to grow.

The economy has been front page issue from the national level all the way down to the local level. The political parties have been on all the stations on why their party is the party that is serious about turning around our government.

When it was time to show it is important here in San Diego, where the rubber hits the road, it is a little ironic Tony Krvaric, chair of the San Diego County Republican Party, and supposed business advocate instead of showing up to Regulatory Relief Day at San Diego City Hall to offer his supposed good ideas to turn around the city is instead hosting a political party money making stunt across town, asking people to pay to vote in a straw poll. Where were all his big ideas he has waited so long for a council to docket a meeting of this type for him to speak on improving City of San Diego? Serious business advocates showed up at the hearing.

So, the next time Krvaric tweets, Facebook status updates, blogs or talks to a reporter about how he really is so concerned about the state of our economy, businesses and the problems with government regulations, then your first question to him should be: If so, then why were you not at Regulatory Relief Day?

VOSD: Roads Officially Worse Under Sanders, Report Says

A full quarter of city streets now are in poor condition, up from 18 percent four years ago. The number of streets rated in good condition decreased from 37 percent to 35 percent during the same time. Both figures contributed to the overall deterioration of the city's 2,800 mile street network.

Read the article here.

Twitter: Imperial County Dem Chair endorses Vargas for Congress

Pleased to announce Jim Horn, Chairman of the Imperial County Democratic Central Committee, has endorsed Sen. Juan Vargas for U.S. Congress.

Tweet here.

The Hill: Two Calif. Dems get EMILY's List support in House races

EMILY's List, a political action committee that supports Democratic women who favor abortion rights, has added Denise Moreno Ducheny and Gloria Negrete McLeod to its list, the first step toward an eventual full endorsement.

Ducheny and McLeod are both California state senators running to represent California in the U.S. House. 

Read the article here.

VOSD: Second Thoughts on the Pension Reform Initiative: Social Security

And that is the real question. Do the voters really want to play chicken with the IRS?

Read the article here.

Calling Politician Carl DeMaio out, Pt. 1

Guest post by Martha Sullivan

If SD City Councilmember Carl DeMaio is so worried about homeless people disrupting business for the Coffee Cart & Hot Dog stands at the City Concourse, then why did he put out this release last year stating that a temporary homeless shelter should be set up AT the Civic Center (!!!) so that City Leaders "would not forget" that we need to do something to provide a solution for the homeless in San Diego. (I think we would AGREE with DeMaio about the urgency of providing a solution for homelessness, but why the sudden change of heart now that some homeless people are occupying the City Concource for POLITICAL reasons?)

SDUT: Filner calls for infrastructure funding

“It is a core part of our federal responsibility to invest in our transportation infrastructure and lay the foundation for job creation and continued economic competitiveness,” Filner said in a prepared statement. 

Read the article here.

Lincoln Club Invite

See the invite here.

SDUT: SD pension initiative qualifies for June ballot

A proposal that represents the most dramatic change ever to San Diego’s public employee pension system has qualified for the ballot after election officials deemed supporters collected enough signatures to put it before city voters next June.

The initiative -- crafted in April by Mayor Jerry Sanders and City Council members Carl DeMaio and Kevin Faulconer -- would end guaranteed pensions for all new city hires except police officers. They would receive a 401(k)-style plan instead.

Read the article here.

VOSD: Manchester Looking at Buying the Union-Tribune

"There's lots of people interested in that asset," Manchester said. "There has not been anything completed. We're looking at it. It's a very complicated transaction if it were ever to come to fruition."

Read the article here.

SDUT: Conservative scorecard flunks Fletcher

San Diego Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher is being docked by Capitol Resource Family Impact, a socially conservative voice in Sacramento.

Fletcher, a Republican and candidate for mayor of San Diego, scored 20 percent on the organization’s 2011 legislative scorecard released Monday.

Read the article here.

SD Reader: Maienschein Paid $106,270 As Homeless Commissioner

As it turns out, Maienschein hasn't done all that badly in the money department.

According to the San Diego United Way's most recent IRS return, filed in January of this year and covering the period betweeen July 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010, United Way paid the former councilman $101,099 in salary, plus $5,171 in estimated "other compensation," for a total of $106,270.

Read the article here.

VOSD: Dumanis Debuts With Schools

Bonnie Dumanis made a debut of sorts Thursday night. The Republican district attorney appeared at a candidate forum with other major mayoral hopefuls for the first time. Dumanis didn't have the polish of Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher or comfort of Congressman Bob Filner, the two other candidates who spoke. Both of them have been debating for the last two months.

Read the article here.

Two Cathedrals: Is this Bonnie Dumanis in charge? Or asleep at the switch?

Cross-posted from Two Cathedrals:

CityBeat stumbled into a very strange story this week when they received what should have been a pro forma records response from Bonnie Dumanis’ District Attorney office. A straightforward request — how does the DA’s office spend asset-forfeiture funds — returned a document rife with basic spelling errors and an oddly passive-aggressive breakdown of cost to the taxpayer for providing records publicly:

It’s the sort of basic accounting record you’d expect to be readily available from a public office. But, no—in the email response to CityBeat’s public-records request, Dumanis’ office said that compiling the document took roughly four-and-a-half hours of staff time. That time, apparently, didn’t include basic proofreading, since words like “investigator,” “rescue” and “association” were misspelled throughout the document.

It’s particularly strange for a number of reasons. The first is basic public access to how the public’s money is being spent. Asset forfeitures provide public money, so it isn’t as though the public’s right to access this information should be in any doubt. But the response from the DA’s office made clear that the records were not otherwise compiled, and presumably not otherwise easily accessible for the public. So what we’re looking at is the cost to taxpayers of being able to know how their own money is spent — because the DA’s office never thought to keep track in the first place.

Second is the hubris involved in quoting a price ($322.09 if you’re curious) for producing such a fundamentally incompetent document to the public (their employer). It immediately begs the question: is this the quality standard that Bonnie Dumanis has established for the DA’s office in all official business — research, litigation, all other public documents. And, given the volume of typos, is there reason to assume that all the numbers are accurate?

If this is the universal standard, um… why is anyone getting paid? And if it isn’t, why is there a lower standard being applied to providing access to public records about public resources? Did CityBeat get a receipt because there’s an option for taxpayers or other entities to pay extra and receive competent service from their public officials?

One of the few things that supposedly recommends Dumanis for mayor is that she’s the only one of the four leading candidates to have executive (as opposed to legislative) experience. But this shows that on her watch, basic accounting records aren’t being kept, there’s a missing standard of basic competence for official documents produced by her office, and a passive-aggressive attitude towards the notion that the public should have access to how their elected officials are using the public’s money. Not sure that really recommends her executive experience.

On Monday, we discussed Dumanis’ new(ish) campaign consultant Ron Nehring, who has struggled to maintain basic competence for years in various jobs. Now right on cue, the issue for Dumanis is basic competence.

by Lucas O’Connor

Here's the schedule of the first five states in the nominating process:

January 3: Iowa (Tuesday night) both parties

January 10: New Hampshire (Tuesday) both parties

January 21: South Carolina (Saturday) GOP only

January 21: Nevada Democrat Caucuses (11:30AM)

January 31: Florida (Tuesday) GOP only

February 4: Nevada (Saturday) GOP only

OC Register: GOP flagging in effort to reverse initiative change

The Democratic Legislature drew its share of flak earlier this year when it changed the rules for statewide ballot measures, forcing them off primary ballots and onto consolidated general election ballots. A group of Republicans launched a referendum effort to ask voters to return initiatives to the primary ballots, but the Sacramento Bee is reporting that they’ve failed to raised enough money to collect the 505,000 signatures needed to qualify the measure for the ballot.

Read the article here.

VOSD: Frye Rules Out Mayoral Run, Endorses Filner

"I am not running for mayor," she said in an email to me.

Instead, Frye said she will endorse Filner, a congressman and the lone major Democrat in the race.

Filner wants Frye to handle open government issues, one of her pet concerns when she was in office.

Read the article here.

SD CityBeat: Medical marijuana lawyers react to Bonnie Dumanis statement

Alex Kreit, a Thomas Jefferson School of Law professor who chaired the city's Medical Marijuana Task Force, has published a reaction on the liberal blog Two Cathedrals, criticizing Dumanis for hypocrisy and daring her to "walk her talk." He breaks down her statements one-by-one, highlighting the reality. 

Read the post here.

Labor Council Sponsors Withdrawal Wedne$day

WHAT:          
Withdrawal Wedne$day – Community rally to encourage San Diegans to transfer money from big banks like Bank of America and Wells Fargo to community credit unions that keep and invest money locally.

WHO: 
Lorena Gonzalez, Treasurer-Secretary/CEO for San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council; Norma Chavez-Peterson, Director/Lead Organizer for Justice Overcoming Boundaries, and Pat Zaharopoulos, President/CEO for San Diego Middle Class Taxpayers Association will be onsite to call attention to the importance of transferring money from the big banks to local community credit unions.

WHEN:           
Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2011
12:00 noon

WHERE:         
5th Ave & B Street (outside Bank of America & Wells Fargo), San Diego, CA 92101
Supporters will meet at 1200 B Street and march to the 5th & B rally location.


HIGHLIGHTS:         
·         Meet: Lorena Gonzalez (San Diego Labor Council), Norma Chavez-Peterson (Justice Overcoming Boundaries), Pat Zaharopoulos (San Diego Middle Class Taxpayers Association) 
·         Rally to promote National Bank Transfer Day
·         Community march from Civic Center to Downtown banks on 5th & B
·         Public setting provides excellent crowd shots, signage and natural sound
·         Opportunities for midday local news live-shots or stand-ups are also available


ADMISSION: This event is FREE and open to the general public.

San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council

www.unionyes.org

# # #

SDUT: Filner urges Obama to back off medical marijuana

Rep. Bob Filner and congressional colleagues are urging President Barack Obama to reschedule marijuana as a legitimate controlled substance for medicinal purposes, saying state and local governments must be allowed to develop and enforce their own public health laws with regard to medical cannabis.

Read the article here.

Vargas endorsed by Assemblyman Manuel Pérez (D-80) and the Chula Vista Democratic Club

This is according to his Twitter feed.

SDUT: Dumanis navigates early bumps in mayoral bid

That’s not to say there haven’t been changes. In August, Dumanis hired a new campaign manager and Ron Nehring, the former chairman of the Republican Party on both the state and county level, as a strategy consultant.

In addition, Dumanis said she is now open to participating in debates, backing off her initial plan to wait until March when the mayoral field is officially set. Her reversal was first mentioned in response to questions for this story; a week earlier her campaign said she would wait until March.

Read the article here.

Labor Council endorses Juan Vargas for U.S. Congress

For Immediate Release                                                                                                 

Labor Council endorses Juan Vargas for U.S. Congress

SAN DIEGO - The San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council is proud to announce its endorsement of Juan Vargas for California’s 51st Congressional District. Vargas, a state senator, is running for the open seat in a district that encompasses portions of San Diego, Chula Vista, National City, Imperial Beach, and Imperial County.

“Juan Vargas has demonstrated a strong commitment to improve job quality for San Diego and Imperial County workers,” said Lorena Gonzalez, Secretary-Treasurer/CEO of the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council. “He isn’t afraid to stand up for working families like he has in the ongoing fight to protect neighborhoods and small, local businesses against big box retailers like Wal-Mart.”

To receive an endorsement from the Labor Council, a candidate must receive two-thirds approval from Labor Council delegates.
 
In addition to Vargas, the Labor Council also endorsed candidates in other 2012 elections.
Candidates receiving Labor Council endorsements include:

·         Juan Vargas – United States Congress, 51st Congressional District

·         Marty Block – California Senate, 39th State Senate District

·         Toni Atkins – California Assembly, 78th State Assembly District

·         Ben Hueso – California Assembly, 80th State Assembly District

·         Pamela Bensoussan – Chula Vista City Council

·         Mary Graham – San Diego Community College District D

·         Bill Garrett – Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District 3

·         Mary Kay Rosinski – Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District 4

·         Mark Anderson – San Diego County Board of Education District 4

For more information, contact Patrick Pierce, Communications Director of the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council at (619) 228-8101 ext. 226 or ppierce@unionyes.org.

###

                                                 

Sac Bee: California Supreme Court rejects challenges to Senate, Congress maps

The two separate lawsuits were rejected by identical 7-0 votes, said Lynn Holton, court spokeswoman.

The court's decision ended the first hurdle to implementing boundary lines that were drawn this year, for the first time, by a 14-member citizens commission created by voter passage of Proposition 11 in 2008.

Read the article here.

SDUT: Log Cabin Republicans back Fletcher for mayor

The local chapter of the nation’s largest Republican gay advocacy group has endorsed state Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher for San Diego mayor, dealing a major blow to the two prominent gay Republicans in the race.

Read the article here.

La Mesa Patch: Assemblyman Jones Backs State Prisons in Other Nations

Assemblyman Brian Jones, who represents much of inland San Diego County and a wide stretch of the border, says Sacramento should explore the “wild idea” of building state prisons in the countries of illegal immigrants to relieve overcrowding in the state.

“Let’s build their prisons in their home countries and send them to those prisons,” he said Friday morning in a meeting with Patch editors in his hometown of Santee.

Read the article here.

La Prensa: Dumanis and DeMaio demonstrate a lack of character by avoiding debate

A mayoral forum for the City of San Diego was held Wednesday night and of the four announced candidates only two participated and answered the questions from a diverse panel. What the audience did hear were the positions of candidate Bob Filner and Nathan Fletcher on a variety of topics. But, the audience probably learned more about the two candidates who did not show up. They learned that Bonnie Dumanis and Carlo DeMaio lacked the courage and the courtesy to attend this mayoral forum.

Read the editorial here.

VOSD: Downtown Is Starkest Contrast Between Filner, Fletcher

But another significant city issue showed the starkest contrast between the two: downtown redevelopment.

Filner wants to eliminate it. Fletcher's the one who recently extended its lifespan for two decades.

Read the article here.

SDNR: Fletcher endorsed by probation officers

The announcement came one day after the San Diego Police Officer's Association and the San Diego chapter of the Peace Officers Research Association of California showed their support for Fletcher's campaign.

Read the article here.

LGBT Weekly: Strange bedfellows: DeMaio, Hedgecock and Lysol Larry Stirling

That is what is so troubling about recent endorsements of mayoral candidate Carl DeMaio. DeMaio has rolled out the endorsements of Roger Hedgecock and Larry Stirling; both of these men have a homophobic past in which they have expressed animosity and shown hostility toward the LGBT community.

Read the article here.

SDUT: San Diego mayoral candidates talk stadium

Wednesday night's San Diego mayoral debate featured an exchange between Democratic Rep. Bob Filner and Republican Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher about the new Chargers stadium being backed by current Mayor Jerry Sanders.

Read the article here.

VOSD: Style in the Mayor's Race

At this point in San Diego's mayoral election, District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis and Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher can't compete with their Republican counterpart Councilman Carl DeMaio on his knowledge of city issues.

Actually, let's be real. It's doubtful Dumanis and Fletcher ever will — or even try to.

Read the article here.

SDUT: Does a candidate's unwillingness to debate opponents influence your voting decision?

Check out the votes and results here.

Protest Rally Tomorrow for School Funding and to make Nathan Fletcher listen to his Constituents.

In the three years that Nathan Fletcher  has been representing constituents in the 75th AD, including members of the Poway Unified School District community, California public schools have undergone their worst financial crisis since the inception of the state constitution in 1849, and the constitutional establishment of California public schools.  Over $17 billion have been cut from public education and the per pupil loss in the Poway Unified is over $1,300.  Even before 2008, schools were struggling with constant underfunding. 

Assemblymember Nathan Fletcher has signed a pledge to vote against allowing his constituents the opportunity to vote on a revenue extension measure, on the June 2011 special election ballot, that would protect education from deeper budget cuts. 

Without this revenue extension measure, the Legislative Anaylst’s Office (LAO) reports that funding for schools would fall by at least $2 billion, or more than $335 per student.  The Governor has stated that the cuts to schools could be twice that amount, which would be devastating for our classrooms.

Currently the Poway Unified School District has Kindergarten classes of 28 students, middle school classes with more than 40 students and high school classes with more than 50 students.  We are in survival mode.  If voters are denied the opportunity to determine the fate of the tax extension measure we will be facing a $25 million budget shortfall in 2012-13 and a budget so dire the following year that it is beyond comprehension.

Protest rally tomorrow, Friday 21, from 8:20AM to 9:20AM on the street corner at Los Penasquitos Elementary School in Rancho Penasquitos (14125 Cuca St., San Diego, 92129)

SD Reader: Juan Vargas Gets $1000 of Roski Campaign Cash

Majestic Realty honcho Edward P. Roski, Jr., locked in a battle with AEG's Philip Anschutz for the chance to build an NFL stadium in Los Angeles, gave $1000 to help retire the campaign debt of state Sen. Juan Vargas, now seeking the congressional seat that fellow Democrat Bob Filner is giving up to run for mayor.

Read the article here.

SDUT: The empty chairs at mayoral debates

It is still more than seven months before the June 2012 primary election that will whittle the list of candidates for mayor of San Diego from the current crop of 15 down to the top two, and we are hesitant to rush things along too much. But it is nevertheless disappointing that two of the leading contenders have not yet joined in debates.

Read the editorial here. 

VOSD: What the Police Endorsement Says About the Mayor's Race

To be sure, it's not as if this move was entirely unexpected. Fletcher carried a bill at the union's behest through the state Legislature last year. Fletcher's signature achievement, a law that gave tougher penalties to sex offenders, had strong law enforcement backing.

Fletcher's political consultant, Tom Shepard, owns the lobbying company that represents the police union. Marvel said his lobbyist, Kimberly Hale Miller, recused herself from the union's endorsement discussions.

Read he article here.

SDUT: The GOP chairman’s Twitter trickery

Is that really the ethical standard that local Republicans would set for their chairman? All is fair in politics? Trickery is part of the chairman’s job if it can help the party win?

We think the bar should be higher.

Read the editorial here.

Coalition calls on Carl DeMaio and Bonnie Dumanis to participate in A Better San Diego Mayoral Forum

***MEDIA ALERT***MEDIA ALERT***MEDIA ALERT***

Coalition calls on Carl DeMaio and Bonnie Dumanis to participate in A Better San Diego Mayoral Forum

WHAT:          
San Diego Mayoral Forum Press Conference presented by A Better San Diego; www.abettersandiego.org 


EVENT:         
Press Conference to promote A Better San Diego Mayoral Forum being held on Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2011 at Balboa Theatre starting at 6:30 p.m. San Diego mayoral candidates Congressman Bob Filner and Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher have agreed to participate in the Mayoral Forum, while Councilman Carl DeMaio and District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis have declined invitations.

WHO:            
Norma Chavez-Peterson, Director/Lead Organizer for Justice Overcoming Boundaries, and other A Better San Diego coalition members will deliver a pre-forum address to call attention to Wednesday’s Mayoral Forum and call on candidates Carl DeMaio and Bonnie Dumanis to participate. Chavez-Peterson and coalition members will be available for interviews following the address.

WHEN:          
Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2011                     
11:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m

WHERE:       
Balboa Theatre (outside the main entrance)
868 4th Avenue, San Diego, CA 92101

HIGHLIGHTS:
- Meet San Diego Mayoral Forum moderators: Norma Chavez-Peterson (Justice Overcoming Boundaries) and Lorena Gonzalez (San Diego Labor Council)
- Preview the San Diego Mayoral Forum being held the following night at Balboa Theatre
- Question and answer session
- Public setting to ask why other major mayoral candidates are not participating

ADMISSION:
This event is FREE and open to the general public. Call for details. To reserve your seat for the San Diego Mayoral Forum, go to www.abettersandiego.org.

A Better San Diego
www.abettersandiego.org
# # #

Scott Peters is running for Congress

I am writing today to share some very exciting news with you -- I've decided to run to represent San Diego's 52nd Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives.  We've had enough of the gridlock and the blame game.  It's time to get something done.  It's time for a change.

Some of our Representatives, including the incumbent, Brian Bilbray, have worked in the Beltway for so long, they've forgotten they work for the people back home.  The unrelenting partisanship in Congress has put our economy at even greater risk at a time when families already face unemployment and uncertainty at levels most have never experienced.  We deserve better.  I am proud of my record in public service as an independent and reasonable voice working to achieve results, and I'll bring that approach to Washington to help end the gridlock which has hamstrung our current Congress.

The American people -- especially San Diegans -- don't care about party politics as much as they care about their jobs, their quality of life and their children's futures.  They are embarrassed and worried that our national Representatives can't put aside their personal politics and put the people they represent first.

I learned from my parents that each of us has a responsibility to do what we can to help others, to make a difference, and to stand up for what's right, even when it's not easy.  This country has given me so much -- a great public education, a beautiful community and tremendous freedom and opportunity. I want our kids and our grandkids to have the same.

As I've told my children, the only time you lose is when you don't try.  The time is right for San Diegans to have new representation in Washington.

The next thirteen months will be both a very exciting and trying time for my family and me.  It will not be easy.  But I am committed, and with your help, we will be successful.  We share and hold dear many of the same principles that make our region and our nation so great.  I hope I can count on your support.

Sincerely,

Twitter and San Diego's Republican Party

As noted below, Twitter suspended the accounts of the San Diego Republican Party for setting up dummy accounts on Twitter for Democratic officials, in blatant violation of Twitter's rules.  In particular, the chairman of the San Diego Republican Party, Tony Krvaric was banned from Twitter because he was setting up these dummy accounts himself.  Weirdest of all, when he was caught, Mr. Krvaric didn't deny that he was behind the dummy accounts.

I mention all of this because Wonkette is right - while this sort of thing goes on all the time, its usually an intern, or a "overactive volunteer" who pulls this kind of stuff, not the head of the Republican Party.  That's because when the dirty trick gets exposed, as it will always be exposed, an intern, or overactive volunteer doing the dirty work will get ignored by the media.  When the GOP chairman gets caught, the media pays attention.  Good job, Mr. Krvaric.

Now comes the next fun question: which Republican officeholders and candidates will condemn and/or repudiate Mr. Krvaric's actions first?  My money is on Bonnie Dumanis, who's not only a law and order type, but she's also trying to shore up her centrist cred.  By the way, each time one of these GOP candidates/officeholders condemn or fail to condemn Mr. Krvaric's actions will draw a headline.  Again, if an intern, or "overactive volunteer" set up the dummy accounts, Mr. Krvaric could distance himself from the whole affair, and the story would die.

So, Mr. Krvaric, the Democrats you impersonated on Twitter may not have been savvy enough to setup Twitter accounts for themselves, but you were stupid enough to do the dirty work yourself.  Well done, sir.

Wonkette: Twitter Overlords Order San Diego GOP Chairman To Get a Life

Bored dingbat San Diego County GOP chairman Tony Krvaric got kicked off Twitter after he registered a half dozen fake accounts to the names of his Democratic opponents, because he is a vindictive weirdo who isn’t smart enough to blame this kind of banal malarkey on some intern. Instead he’s wearing it around like a Boy Scout badge of honor on his new Twitter account, and he wants us all to know that he is a heroic numbskull, because he has taught the Democrats an Important Lesson, about the ’puters. Why hasn’t someone thanked him?


Oh, it’s probably true that the San Diego County Democrats if they were smarter would have put some 14-year-old staffer who knows how to “work the buttons” in charge of this project, but seeing as how it’s not technically illegal (yet) to refuse to spend precious minutes of this one life on earth registering eighteen different Twitter accounts to variants of your name, Krvaric is acting like a very superior weiner.

Read the article here.

SDCDP: Republican Twitter Accounts Suspended

MEDIA ADVISORY: October 12, 2011

Republican Twitter Accounts Suspended
San Diego GOP Linked to Attempt to Impersonate Democrats

Days after a formal complaint from the San Diego County Democratic Party, Twitter has suspended several accounts impersonating San Diego Democrats, along with the official page of the County Republican Party (@sdrepublicans) and that of its chair, Tony Krvaric (@TonyKrvaric).

On October 6, the general counsel for the County Democratic Party contacted Twitter to protest four accounts that purported to represent candidates for the San Diego City Council -- @SherriLightner, @ToddPhilips, @MatKostrinsky, and @MartiEmerald -- in addition to one impersonating the County Democratic Party, @sddemocrats, and its chair, @JessDurfee.

The Democrats' letter cited Twitter’s policy on this practice, which defines impersonation as “pretending to be another person or entity in order to deceive.” The policy continues: “Impersonation is a violation of the Twitter Rules and may result in permanent account suspension.”

Though Krvaric’s and the Republican Party’s accounts were not mentioned in the Democratic complaint, both were suspended today along with the fraudulent accounts -- indicating that Twitter has pinpointed the Republicans in impersonating Democrats and trying to trick their followers.

“I applaud Twitter for acting quickly to shut the deceptive profiles down,” said Democratic Party Chair Jess Durfee. “Childish and unethical conduct online is nothing new, but I am disappointed to see that my Republican counterpart and his party may have been behind it. The idea of Tony Krvaric posting as @JessDurfee is just creepy.

“From hiring a spy to shadow a Redistricting Commissioner to pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into failed signature-gathering efforts, this has been a busy year for San Diego Republicans,” Durfee added. “Now apparently they can add Internet fraud to the list. In the meantime, Democrats have out-registered them countywide, and we’re looking forward to out-campaigning them in 2012.”

Campaigns and organizations across the political spectrum have increased their presence on Twitter in recent years, using the social networking tool to communicate with supporters, raise funds, and promote stories in the news media. The authentic Twitter handles for the impersonated Democrats in San Diego include @Kostrinsky, @MartiEmeraldD7, @SanDiegoDems, and @ChairJessDurfee.

#  #  #

SDUT: Twitter accounts of county GOP, chairman yanked

Krvaric said he did send a few tweets as Jess Durfee, who he said joined “after I mocked him forever.”

“It wasn’t about him,” said Krvaric, now registered as @Krvaric. “It was really just goofing off."

Durfee said he was not surprised to learn Krvaric was behind the stunt.

"He doesn’t seem to spend his time doing the things that help build a party; rather he spends his time playing little games," Durfee said. "While they are doing all that crap, we’re out there registering voters. I guess I approach my position a little more seriously and am doing things that I should be doing."

Read the article here.

Mayoral Debate Next Wednesday

MEDIA ADVISORY
Contact: Evan McLaughlin, 619-850-2790 cell

San Diego Mayor's Debate Presented by A Better San Diego Community Coalition

Community Coalition To Test Next Mayor of San Diego On Economic Issues Facing City's Neighborhoods

Wednesday, October 19, 2011
6:30 p.m.

Balboa Theatre
868 Fourth Avenue (@ Horton Plaza)

The A Better San Diego coalition is comprised of community, faith, labor, LGBT rights, immigrant rights, environmental and social justice organizations who have been working to build an economic vision for our city that focuses on jobs, quality of life, equality, prosperity and fairness for more San Diegans.

This mayoral forum will be focused on presenting candidates in next year's mayor's race with the challenges facing our communities and seeking answers about the candidates' approach to confronting them.

The 90-minute forum will consist of a community panel, a media panel and questions from the audience. All members of the public are invited to attend.

All major candidates have been invited. Congressman Bob Filner and Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher have confirmed their attendance.

For more information or to submit a suggested question for the candidates, visit www.abettersandiego.com.

###

Congressional District 51

Image courtesy of MAD Magazine

Politics in the South Bay has been a seesaw of revenge and recriminations. Families and political alliances have shifted and rotated depending on electoral winners and losers. Often sharing staff and resources, players in this field can never be permanently counted out.


Vargas
State Senator Vargas has always wanted to be in Congress. So much so that he went to Republican donors to make it happen in a past run against Filner. But Filner has been the wall keeping Vargas from his dream. For years, politics in South Bay was aligned along the Filner -Vargas divide with Vargas gaining an upper hand on the local level and Filner always keeping the Congressional seat.

With Filner running for San Diego Mayor, Vargas has gone all out to claim the new 51st CD as his own. He has hired away Mary Salas's campaign manager, Filner's former Imperial Valley consultant, and is on track to hire Hueso staff to send the message that this train is unstoppable. Word on the street is that he has begun "pressuring" local elected officials in South Bay to come on board or get crushed. Vargas has already solicited big Democratic donors in San Diego and is working overtime to heal the rift with the insurance lobby and curry favor with the Native American gaming tribes.

In his race against Salas, Vargas won through his ability to buy the talent on the ground and work with Hueso in the west and Perez in the east to pick up the slack. It is rumored that Vargas expects to open the 2012 year with 6 million in the bank. He knows that the best way to become a real player is to arrive in D.C. with the most cash to spread around to other races.


Ducheny
But he cannot be as generous with the money as he could be with a non-token primary opponent. Enter Former State Senator Denise Ducheny. If there was anyone left, who was not Mary Salas, in South Bay to take him on, Ducheny is the one. She is a scrapper who is unafraid of fighting and does not appear to care about playing nice.

This makes her a great foil against Vargas but she comes in as the underdog. She does not have the name recognition from having run only last year nor does she have the cozy business relationships to the degree Vargas has to make campaigning easy.

What she does have are angry Salas supporters, latent Imperial Valley support from her terms in the State Senate, and an altogether different donor base that Vargas. Her campaign has not taken advantage of some Vargas staff issues in the Imperial Valley, which has raised some eyebrows, but it is still early.


Conclusion
Too early to tell. If the election were held today, Vargas would win for no other reason than he has a campaign team which is campaigning. He is courting Labor and tacking left. Ducheny does not have the deer-in-the-headlights reaction to Vargas's money that Salas had last cycle. She's been talking to Alvarez supporters about staffing and has been quietly building a war chest. She is known as a strategist and may just be taking her time. We will see.

SDUT: Supervisors embrace independent redistricting panel

Supervisor Bill Horn took issue with “wanting to fix something that’s not broken.” He noted that supervisors were directly accountable to voters — unlike the proposed independent commission.

“It seems like we are reacting to a very vocal minority that came in here at the last moment after what I thought was a very fair process,” Horn said.

Read the article here.

SD Mayor: Eight month check-in

Labor at work: Flyer sighted yesterday in Mira Mesa

We are a little less than eight months away from the Primary Election for Mayor of San Diego. In typical fashion, most of the electorate is barely aware of the upcoming battle for the future of the site where "happy happens."

Filner
What I find interesting about the SUSA poll is that Filner really has not begin campaigning and starts off with a quarter of those surveyed. Those are nice number to emerge from gate without lifting a finger. That does not mean that Filner can take the race for granted. He has not drawn any serious Democratic opposition and this will allow his campaign time to gear up for the hard slog ahead.

DeMaio
What is also interesting about the SUSA poll is that DeMaio comes in at a quarter and he has been campaigning since he arrived in San Diego. With his signature gathering over and list of supporters/contacts derived from this pension reform/election drive, it remains to be seen if politician DeMaio can actually mount a real citywide campaign. Without his initiatives proving a cushion for his elections and feathering his electoral nest with donors, it is hard to discern how DeMaio's campaign would get beyond this 25%. But with the lists of contacts and donors, his is the only campaign driving the "selfish angry voter who isn't too up on and doesn't care about details" which describes a good chunk of the SD Republican base. Hence the other two Republicans playing "me too." DeMaio is acting quite the politician in staying out of the Fletcher and Dumanis battles to spilt the Reps apart and keep his path to the General election open.

Dumanis
Inertia will only get you so far. Laws of thermodynamics and elections tell us so. With the swatting she received for flipping on the pension, the Dumanis campaign seems to be lying low, quietly collecting endorsements and slowly figuring out Twitter. This would be a fine strategy if it were only she and Filner. It is not and someone should inform the Dumanis campaign that Aesop's fable about the Tortoise and the Hare works if the hubris of the hare causes the hare to stop. As of this writing, neither Fletcher nor DeMaio show any signs of slowing down. She may limp into the next year but I just don't see how Dumanis can secure a spot in the General.

Fletcher
With his Sacramento and local support, Fletcher is still the "Dark Horse" in that he has yet to emerge from the shadows and do something to wake the San Diego electorate to his existence. It would not take much to remind them of what he has done and it is possible that he is holding his fire until 2012. Still, he has to carve a solid base somewhere that won't be attracted to the Filner-DeMaio poles and this task is made easier without Dumanis. As she flails amongst the "moderates" for support, Fletcher can either wait her out or plow forward, on his own which may be a gamble that he'd rather not take at this time.