Who is Scott Sherman? (Part II)

The Republican Party's central committee might be sorry to hear, but Scott Sherman was not the first choice by C. April Boling, but after calling and meeting with other of her tax clients from her expansive rolodex she got to Scott. 

Scott needs some major help.  It seems he doesn't know about anything his own community, let alone the city.  Don't tell the residents you didn't know there was such a thing as the Allied Gardens Community Council.  So, instead of looking for a winning team, they go back in time to 4-years ago to use the same failed team of 2008; Duane Dichiara, John Pilch and Clinton Soffer.

The 2008 Dream Team does have a top tier fundraiser, but it seems Scott was not so great at raising money and his rolodex not so good too.  New fundraiser please.  Every other Republican raised over $100,000, they promised he would be in the six digits at filing time, but sadly Scott raised $55,000 with most spent on his consultants.  Good thing the Republican Party had an endorsement interview with only Scott and didn't invite the other Republican in the race, Rik Haupfeld.  Scott will need the party to help him, because he can't get the money himself.

Scott's public or private appearances don't go over very well.  He has to be educated at one meeting what is tax increment and the names of committees at the city council.  He doesn't understand the issues, can't talk clearly to a crowd of people and doesn't connect with the audience of people who are not partisan activists.  Scott even flopped trying to talk about how he is a community involved person too.  It turns out he hasn't done anything in his own community when asked about it.  Wait, he was a single father raising a daughter.  Heart goes out right?  It should. It is very hard to be a single parent and raising a child is not easy, even for a two parent household.  Give the guy a break.  Oh no, it turns out Scott has been remarried for 6 years and his child is in their mid 20's living out of the community.  Okay, Plan B, he says he taught martial arts to kids at the YMCA in Mission Valley, bingo it is in the NEW district.  We have a fall back community activity plan.  Bring in the talking points and no matter the question, really, never talk about anything but the pension ballot, managed competition, $2.2 billion unfunded benefit, running the city like a business and being a small business owner.  Oh, don't forget Scott is against taxes (or not) and favors something called zero budgeting.

Saldaña endorses Filner for Mayor

Saldaña endorses Filner for Mayor

SAN DIEGO -  Former State Assembly Pro Tem Lori Saldaña announced her support today for Bob Filner for Mayor of San Diego, the only Democratic candidate in the Mayor’s race.

"After 20 years of Republican misrule at City  Hall, it's time for a change," Saldaña said. "Bob Filner offers the best chance for a break from the past."

"Bob and I have our differences, but this is not about personalities. It’s about what's best for the people of San Diego. Bob is a much better choice than any of the other candidates. Bob has a far better record on behalf of working people and protecting the environment; and he’s not bought and paid for by the downtown establishment that has run San Diego for a generation."

Saldaña is the Democratic frontrunner in the race for the newly drawn 52nd Congressional  District.

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Peters, Filner Urge Initiatives to Boost Port Business

Peters, Filner Urge Initiatives to Boost Port Business

 Peters Reiterates Call for Nat'l System of Ports as Part of 'Invest in America' Strategy

San Diego, CA – Unified Port of San Diego Commissioner Scott Peters and United States Congressman and Mayoral candidate Bob Filner held a press conference this morning to discuss initiatives designed to expand traffic at port and grow our local economy.

“Congress could invest in a plan that puts us on the path to a national system of ports, securing a more prosperous future for San Diego and our country,” stated Peters. “Right now, Congress could be looking for ways to link our ports and increase the efficiency of our infrastructure, streamline our supply chain, and make it more attractive for companies to invest in manufacturing and processing in our country. Increasing these investments will be my priority when I get to Congress.”

Peters first announced his initiative to link the nation’s ports to improve commerce as part of an Invest in America strategy he unveiled last month.

“As a member of the Board of Port Commissioners, I learned that one of the biggest challenges ports across America face is the lack of connections to highway and rail systems,” continued Peters. “America has stopped making those investments and it is hurting our ability to export American goods to international markets. We could put people to work right now and stimulate our economy by investing more to rebuild our roads, our bridges, our broadband, our power grid, and other public facilities. China is spending 9% of their Gross Domestic Product on infrastructure investment. Europe is investing 5%. And here in the richest country in the world, we are only investing 2.5%, and Congress is trying to cut that. That’s no way to increase our competitiveness in a global economy.”

Peters, who also served on the San Diego City Council, also discussed his support for smarter innovations designed to use our ports and border crossings more effectively and efficiently. “The Port of San Diego is a critical economic engine for our region; it supports more than 40,000 jobs and generates more than $3 billion in economic impact to our region,” said Peters.

“While we’ve been able to retain jobs here at the Port, we could be doing more. We need a more efficient method of transporting goods to market and raw materials to processing and manufacturing sites,” he said. “That’s something Congress could be working on right now to get our economy moving in the right direction.”

Peters was joined by Congressman Filner, who also supports expansion of the Port. Filner urged local officials to embrace a “clean good” movement.

For more information, go to www.scottpeters.com.

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DAVE ROBERTS SUPPORTS ARTS AND CULTURE TO BOLSTER SAN DIEGO REGION'S ECONOMY

DAVE ROBERTS SUPPORTS ARTS AND CULTURE TO BOLSTER SAN DIEGO REGION'S ECONOMY

San Diego - Third District Supervisor candidate Dave Roberts announced today that he will continue to strongly support arts and culture organizations in San Diego County and believes they are essential to the region's economic recovery and long-term vitality.

"Arts and culture are truly a hidden economic engine and one that I will strongly support on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors," said Roberts.  "Our world class symphony, opera, museums and theatres have become an important part of our region's economy and I want to continue the incredible momentum that has been created in the last decade."

Roberts cited a study conducted by the San Diego Convention and Visitors Bureau that found "cultural tourists" have a significantly higher median household income than other San Diego overnight visitors and they tend to stay longer (3.8 days vs. 1.8 days) and spend more money ($561 vs. $235 per trip) than other visitors.  Almost 60 percent of these visitors use hotel accommodations, an economic stimulus that contributes more to the region's tax base.

"It will take leadership and experience to ensure that San Diego County maintains its AAA bond rating and financial footing," said Roberts.  "Thinking outside-the-box and supporting organizations that enhance San Diego's quality of life are an essential component of a sound economic plan for our region. I will continue my strong leadership in this area as I have in my home community of Solana Beach."

Roberts added that the San Diego region is home to 4,631 arts-related businesses both for profit and non-profit.  These businesses employ over 22,500 people ranking us 9th overall in the country in arts related jobs.  In fact, many CEOs looking to relocate their corporate headquarters prioritize cities with vibrant cultural and arts attractions, noted Roberts.

Dave Roberts is endorsed by a large group of bipartisan leaders, including retiring Third District Supervisor Pam Slater-Price, who crossed party lines to support Roberts' campaign.  Roberts helped build a Fortune 500 company in San Diego, is a two-term councilmember and Deputy Mayor of the City of Solana Beach.  For more information, visit his web site at www.DaveRobertsforSupervisor.com.

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Howard Dean to Host Fundraiser for Saldaña

Howard Dean to Host Fundraiser for Saldaña

SAN DIEGO – Presidential candidate and Former head of the Democratic National Committee, Governor Howard Dean, will be in San Diego in May to host fundraiser for Lori Saldaña.

Saldaña, who is running for the 52nd Congressional District, was named one of the “Dean Dozen” during her successful 2004 campaign for the California Assembly.

The Dean Dozen were a group of twelve progressive Democratic candidates endorsed by Dean’s group, “Democracy for America” that included Barack Obama in his successful bid for the U.S. Senate seat in Illinois.

Saldaña is the Democratic frontrunner is to unseat Republican Brian Bilbray in the newly-drawn 52nd District.

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Who is Scott Sherman? (Part I)

Over the following week we will explore the man named Scott Sherman, the person C. April Boling found to save us from fiscal downfall, Carl DeMaio needs so desperately as his "fiscal" vote at city council, and the man who is Croatian by blood, Swedish by birth and American by choice; the always rational Tony Krvaric Dream Team.  Psst, to help make make Scott's storyline work for this election they hired the same person who lost the 2008 election for district 7 election,Duane Dichiara.

So....How were we lucky to have Scott run for San Diego City Council?

Just a year ago, there was no record of Scott Sherman, but the few political contribution checks he gave out to Republican candidates, the insurance business where he is listed on the website as a Producer and a sport fishing website where they call him the Shermanator, and he makes off color jokes to sell his insurance policies.  Instead, he came alive to us from the client rolodex of Catherine April Boling, the treasurer for every Republican organization, candidate or front group of every Republican organization, to now run for San Diego City Council.  It helped that Carl DeMaio testified for Scott's fishing issue and as Scott reported in CityBEAT he “owed him one” and hosted a coffee where he donated to Carl for mayor.  Scott will tell you he didn't think he would be running for City Council just a year, but was asked by a good friend April!

There will be follow-up posts to explore Scott, the making of a city council candidate. They will talk about his position on taxes or when he doesn't think a tax is really a tax, local development, community involvement, understanding of city government and who is the cast behind the scenes. 

Stay tune until next time...

San Diego Working Families Mobilize for May Day March & Rally, Pledge to Support Workers’ Fight Against The 1%

 San Diego Working Families Mobilize for May Day March & Rally, Pledge to Support Workers’ Fight Against The 1%

WHO:        Working class people throughout San Diego

WHAT:        May 1st day of action on International Worker’s Day

WHEN:        Tuesday, May 1st, 2012 at Noon

WHERE:        Downtown Civic Center, 3rd & “B” Street


SAN DIEGO – On May 1st, 2012, working families from throughout the county will rally in  San Diego’s Civic Center as part of a day of action against the 1% who for too long have impeded progress from the 99% across the country.

“Despite of the economic crisis , I keep fighting so that I can offer my children a dignified life, one filled with great opportunity and prosperity,” says María Felix, a janitor for 17 years.  “I am a proud janitor.  I clean after the 1%, and I will not allow building owners or their contractors threaten to stop our progress.  Together we will march; and together we will win the fight for a better life.”

Workers have felt the weight of economic policies do not benefit the majority. Working families deserve dignity and respect, policies that attack the quality of life of the majority and the two-party system that sides with the 1% of will be held accountable.

It’s time to recognize the tremendous contributions of working families, it’s time to stand with the majority.

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Congressman Bob Filner Endorses Scott Peters in CD52

Congressman Bob Filner Endorses Scott Peters in CD52

Current/Former Local Dem Electeds Overwhelmingly Back Peters

San Diego -- Today, Scott Peters, candidate for the new 52nd Congressional District, was honored to receive the endorsement of long-time House Democrat Bob Filner.

“Congressman Filner’s endorsement was a great surprise, and a tremendous honor,” said Peters. “Bob has been a forceful advocate for our region, for our veterans, for civil rights and for Democratic causes throughout his esteemed career in public service. I look forward to his guidance and taking up where he left off as a champion for working families when I get to Congress,” he said.

Filner’s endorsement is significant because Peters is running against entrenched Republican incumbent Brian Bilbray, who served in the House of Representatives with Filner for many years, and because Filner chose to endorse Peters over the other Democrat in the race who has also worked with Bob on issues of mutual concern over the years.

“There is definitely a trend in this race,” said Peters’ Communications Director MaryAnne Pintar. “Every current and former local Democratic legislator who has endorsed in this race at both the state and federal level, has endorsed Scott. These leaders know both Scott and Lori and back Scott because he has what it takes to get real results for working families. He gets it and gets it done,” she said.        

Other former and current state and federal legislators who have endorsed Peters are: former Congresswoman Lynn Schenk; former Senators Dede Alpert and Lucy Killea; former Assemblymembers Mary Salas and Howard Wayne; current Senator Christine Kehoe; Assemblymembers Toni Atkins, Marty Block and Ben Hueso.  Click here for a complete list of elected officials endorsing Peters.

For more information about Scott Peters for Congress, go to www.scottpeters.com.

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Bob Filner Touts Port Expansion, Endorses Port Chairman Scott Peters

Bob Filner Touts Port Expansion, Endorses Port Chairman Scott Peters

San Diego, CA – U.S. Congressman and Mayoral candidate Bob Filner will be joined Tuesday by Port Commission Chairman Scott Peters to urge expansion of the Port into an economic engine for the region, bring jobs back to San Diego, and to urge local officials to embrace a “clean goods movement.” Filner will also be endorsing Peters’s candidacy in the 52nd Congressional District race.

Filner has made the expansion of the San Diego Unified Port the centerpiece of his economic revitalization plan for San Diego. “We can create thousands of good-paying middle class jobs by enhancing the Port’s regional and international stature, and do so in a way that is beneficial to the surrounding neighborhoods,” said Filner. Scott Peters, an environmental lawyer by training, and past President of the San Diego City Council has worked to increase the size and scope of the Port’s operations during his time as Chair of the Port Commission.

 

NORTH COUNTY DEMOCRAT STEPS UP ENDORSEMENTS IN FLETCHER’S TURF

NORTH COUNTY DEMOCRAT STEPS UP ENDORSEMENTS IN FLETCHER’S TURF

SAN DIEGO – April 29, 2012 ‐ State Assembly Candidate Ruben (RJ) Hernandez has been extending his moderate political platform across North County and inviting constituents to add their ideas to reform policies and “make this sate work.” The Poway, Black Mountain and Rancho Santa Fe Democratic Clubs signed on board with him since the state party endorsed Hernandez in February.

"We've been building a lot of momentum and have had a positive response in our meetings with community leaders, elected officials, educators, businesses and constituents,” Hernandez says, campaigning as a small businessman and educator. “The support is appreciated.”

Increasingly Hispanic and moderate, District 77 is at the core of key population shifts, voting for Democratic presidential candidate Barak Obama in 2008. Hernandez aims his campaign at regional issues that will create jobs, reboot political energy and reform education. “I have seen politicians come and go but solid repeatable systems never stick,” he says. “I don't have any political baggage
weighing me down, and will listen aggressively to engage the obstacles we face as a community.”

Other key supporters include the Latino Legislative Caucus and the San Diego Young Democrats.

Hernandez is out to claim a region comprised of Poway, Rancho Bernardo, 4S Ranch, Rancho Penasquitos, Rancho Santa Fe, Carmel Valley, Mira Mesa, Scripps Ranch, Tierrasanta, Kearny Mesa, and North and East Clairemont. Find out more about District 77 and RJ Hernandez at http://www.rjhernandez.org.

PSD Announces 2012 Primary Endorsements

PSD Announces 2012 Primary Endorsements

Progressive San Diego is pleased to announce the results of its endorsement process for candidates who sought our endorsement for the  June 5, 2012 Primary Election. Further endorsement decisions will be made as necessary for the General Election in November.

Congressional District 52: Scott Peters and Lori Saldaña. 
Lori Saldaña is a “progressive's progressive,” with an outstanding record of standing up for progressive values. PSD encourages her to continue  her efforts to improve consensus-building among progressives. Scott  Peters, whose voting record on local issues has not always earned him  the praise of progressives, is guided by deeply held progressive values  that will serve his constituency well on the issues he will have to confront  at the federal level. PSD urges him to remember that even the toughest  decisions he will have to make must be guided by what is in the best  interests of individuals and local communities.

Congressional District 53: Susan Davis.

State Assembly District 78: Toni Atkins.

State Assembly District 79: Sid Voorakkara, Pat Washington, and Shirley Weber.
It is rare that one race has so many good progressive candidates. While each of the three candidates has unique strengths, the residents of the 79th Assembly  District will be served well by whoever is elected to represent them in Sacramento.

San Diego City Mayor: Bob Filner.

San Diego City Council District 3: No Endorsement. 
Despite the fact that PSD endorsed Todd Gloria four years ago, he failed to  receive our endorsement this time. PSD is deeply concerned that Todd is not a  bona fide progressive. For instance, he strongly supports the expansion of the  Convention Center without any financial protections for taxpayers and without  any credible evidence of benefits for anyone other than downtown hoteliers. He  also actively campaigned against the creation of the Latino/Immigrant Empowerment District for the new council district delineated by  the San Diego Redistricting Commission. Unfortunately, there are many other  examples of anti-progressive actions. PSD hopes that Todd will take this  opportunity to demonstrate that his many departures from the priorities and  interests of the people who voted him into office are simply good-faith mistakes  by a first-term council member. PSD has invited him to a follow-up meeting with the endorsement panel in order to discuss what he can do to earn our  endorsement next time.

San Diego City Council District 7: Mat Kostrinsky.

San Diego City Council District 9: Marti Emerald.  
 Marti Emerald has cast good votes on the majority of progressive issues over the  past four years, and PSD is pleased to endorse her again. Her opponent, Mateo  Camarillo, has a long history of promoting positive change in the San Diego  community, but he did not demonstrate a stron g understanding of the leading progressive issues facing the City.

Progressives worked hard to ensure that the 9th Council Distrct, whose boundaries were set by the San Diego Redistricting Commission last year, would  be a “majority-minority district”--meaning that a majority of the eligible voters are  non-white. Given this effort, PSD is pleased that Marti has expressed a strong  willingness to encourage and mentor aspiring leaders in the new district who  reflect its tremendous diversity.

San Diego Unified School Board District A: John Lee Evans.
San Diego Unified School Board District D: Richard Barrera.
San Diego Unified School Board District E: Marne Foster.
San Diego Community College Board District B: Bernie Rhinerson.
Chula Vista City Council Seat 3: Pamela Bensoussan.
Chula Vista City Council Seat 4: Mary Salas.

DA Dumanis posts signs on State property (illegally we're sure)

These were taken near City College:

Scott Peters Will Fight to Protect Social Security and Medicare, Strengthen Them for Future Generations

Scott Peters Will Fight to Protect Social Security and Medicare, Strengthen Them for Future Generations

San Diego, CA – Today the Scott Peters for Congress campaign set the record straight about his plans to strengthen Social Security and Medicare after his Democratic opponent grossly misrepresented his position.   

“We’ve got to balance the budget, but we’ve got to do it the right way.  Simply put – we can’t let Washington try to balance the budget on the backs of seniors and the middle-class.  We must protect Social Security and Medicare.  Period.  It’s a right seniors have earned after a lifetime of hard work and paying into the system.”  

“We’ve got to get back on the road towards a balanced budget, but it’s going to require a new approach -- like eliminating corporate loopholes that defy common sense.  It’s time to end taxpayer subsidies to the oil companies – at a time when they’ve never been more profitable.”  Peters said. “Protecting critical priorities while finding new and innovative ways to balance the budget -- that was my record on the city council, it’s my record with the Port Commission, and that’s the type of approach I’ll bring to Congress.” 

While with the City Council, Peters set in motion a plan that reduced the overall cost of the pension program while preserving the benefits already paid for by city employees.  Protecting and strengthening programs like Social Security and Medicare will require a similar approach. “I’m the only candidate in this race that has actually fought to save pensions for employees and partnered with workers to strengthen benefits, while reducing their overall cost.” 

Peters added, “I’ve taken this same approach on the Port Commission. When we were faced with a budget deficit, we cut our workforce by 15%, without layoffs or litigation, mostly through eliminating unnecessary management and executive positions and by combining departments.  We’re actually saving and creating more jobs and it’s costing less money. I’m really proud of this accomplishment, and it’s exactly the approach that would bring results in Washington.”

“When you compare Scott’s record of accomplishment to the Saldaña campaign’s trail of lies and misinformation, the choice is clear,” said Peters Communications Director MaryAnne Pintar. “Lori Saldaña’s false accusation regarding Scott’s position on Social Security and Medicare is just plain wrong; and frankly, her decision to misrepresent the truth on this both pathetic and sad. We're taking our message directly to the voters, and we’re confident they’ll know which candidate will fight for them, and more significantly, which candidate actually gets results. Scott is the candidate who not only gets it, but gets it done,” she said.

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Lori Saldaña calls on Scott Peters to explain why he is hiding intent to slash Social Security, Medicare.

Lori Saldaña calls on Scott Peters to explain why he is hiding intent to slash Social Security, Medicare.

Peters' mailer misleads voters into believing he can be trusted to protect Social Security and Medicare, but he's busted by earlier interview on KUSI.

SAN DIEGO - Corporate Democrat Scott Peters has revealed that he's not much different than Republican Brian Bilbray when it comes to radical cuts to programs like Social Security and Medicare - or his willingness to conceal that fact from voters.

Scott Peters' first political mailer hit mailboxes this week vaguely asserting "We need results that responsibly reduce the deficit and protect Social Security and Medicare."

But in a televised KUSI interview, Peters revealed his belief that seniors who rely on  Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare are appropriate sacrifices on the altar of 'deficit reduction'.

Peters: "Everyone has to give up something."

Anchor: "So are you in favor of cuts to entitlement programs- Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare?"

Peters: "Yeah, I favor a balanced approach."

Democratic frontrunner Lori Saldaña says Peters needs to come clean about his attempts to mislead the voters about his stance on these programs.

"Scott Peters made a public statement that contradicts what he's now delivering to voters' mailboxes," Saldaña said. "He needs to explain to voters why he is hiding his intent to slash Medicare and Social Security, rather than protect them."

"How is cutting programs that keep seniors alive and out of poverty 'balanced'?" Saldaña asked.

Republican Brian Bilbray tried employing a similar political slight-of-hand in his own mailers featuring clip art photos of smiling seniors with headlines declaring "Congressman Brian Bilbray is Protecting the Promise of Medicare" and ''Congressman Brian Bilbray is working to "Protect Medicare for All Taxpayers".

But the mailers conceal the fact that he voted twice to dismantle Medicare and turn it into a voucher system, a scheme that would effectively gut the program and leave seniors without enough money to cover their healthcare costs.

"Voters are seeing very little difference between Peters and Bilbray these days," Saldaña said.

Lori Saldaña is running against Bilbray and Peters to represent the 52nd Congressional District.

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New Poll Shows Saldaña Swamping Peters

New Poll Shows Saldaña Swamping Peters

Saldaña leads Peters nearly 3 to 1 among Democrats, garnering 38% of their support while Peters get just 14%. She also beats Peters among independent voters by 6 points, 16% to 10%

A recent survey conducted by Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin, Metz & Associates (FM3) shows that Democrat Lori Saldaña is leading the field among Democratic contenders, including Scott Peters, and moves to within a statistical dead heat of Republican incumbent Brian Bilbray when voters learn more about her.

In the new open primary system (where the top two candidates regardless of political party qualify into the General Election), these results show that Saldaña not only has a strong opportunity to move onto the General Election as one of the top-two vote-getters, but that Bilbray is vulnerable to Saldaña in the General Election if she succeeds in getting out her messages and putting forth a strong and sustained campaign.

In the first query, before voters heard anything about the candidates other than their ballot designations, Saldaña runs second only to incumbent Bilbray among the 10- candidate field. In fact, she is out front of her leading Democratic contender, Scott Peters, by eight points, 18 percent to 10 percent. While the better-known Bilbray leads with 32 percent of the vote, no other candidate—Democrat, Republican, or non-partisan—earns more than two percent of the vote (31% of voters are undecided).

As shown in the figure below, in the first vote, Saldaña garners 38 percent of the vote among Democrats, while Peters earns just 14 percent—for a nearly 3-to-1 advantage among Democrats. She also bests Peters by six points with independent voters, 16 percent to 10 percent—with nearly half (43%) still undecided.

FIGURE 1: INITIAL VOTE AMONG DEMOCRATS


Saldaña takes a commanding lead over Peters after voters learn more her. Moreover, she is now in a statistical dead heat with Bilbray. After voters hear positive information about the five leading contenders, her share of the vote jumps from 18 percent to 29 percent. Peters earns just seven percent—giving Saldaña a 22-point lead. Meanwhile Bilbray’s support is little changed at 30 percent—statistically equal to Saldaña at 29 percent. This finding shows that, not only can Saldaña defeat Peters on the way to the General Election, but that she can also defeat Bilbray with a strong and sustained campaign that gets out front and outcommunicates the incumbent.

• After hearing the positive additional information, Saldaña earns 54 percent of the Democratic vote, to just nine percent for Peters—for a substantial 45 point lead.

• She also nearly doubles her support among independents, from 16 percent to 30 percent.

This gives her an 11-point lead among independents over Bilbray (who earns 19% of their vote) and 15 points over Peters (who earns 15% of the independent vote).

Saldaña holds her support even when voters hear negative information about her. After negative information about the leading candidates, Saldaña remains tied with Bilbray, each with 28 percent of the vote. She leads Peters by 22 points—with Peters now earning jut six percent of the vote.

The survey results clearly show that Saldaña is in a solid position to defeat Peters in the June primary. However, it also reveals that Bilbray is vulnerable. While Bilbray is familiar to three out of four voters, he fails to earn even one-third of the vote in the first balloting. Far lesser known at this time, Saldaña gains ground on Bilbray when voters learn more about her. In fact, Bilbray fails to pull out front of Saldaña after voters are introduced to her background and positions, and he fails to take the lead after voters hear negative information about the leading candidates, including Saldaña and Bilbray.

Furthermore, this survey was conducted among likely June voters in anticipation of the primary election. The November electorate may be as much as eight points less Republican, and a less Republican electorate should favor Saldaña all the more. If Saldaña has a well-funded campaign, she will emerge out of the primary as a serious challenger to Bilbray in November.

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Filner: I have decided not to attend today's mayoral debate...

From Filner's Facebook page:

I have decided not to attend today's mayoral debate because there is a no more fitting image of what is wrong with San Diego than Bridgepoint hosting a private mayoral forum. You need to look no further to see the power of special interests in dictating the actions of City Hall. 


Read my full statement here: Filner Spurns Forum, Denounces Bridgepoint’s Veterans Exploitation

San Diego, CA – Hours before the start of the Chamber of Commerce and Bridgepoint Education Mayoral Forum at the “Sunroad” Building, U.S. Congressman and Mayoral candidate Bob Filner issued a statement denouncing the predatory practices of Bridgepoint and their taxpayer-funded targeting of veterans and their G.I. Bill funds. 


Below is Filner’s statement regarding Bridgepoint and the undue power of special interests in City Hall:

“I have decided not to attend today's forum because there is a no more fitting image of what is wrong with San Diego then Bridgepoint Education hosting a private Mayoral Forum. You need to look no further to see the power of special interests in dictating the actions of City Hall.”


“Bridgepoint Education, which is currently under investigation by the Department of Education, receives over 80% of its funding from public dollars, and explicitly targets veterans for their G.I. Bill benefits. The company spends more on recruitment than instruction at an almost 3-to-1 margin, and bears the distinction of a 63% dropout rate, well above the national average. As the past Chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, I find these actions deplorable and a blatant abuse of public dollars.”


“My opponent, Nathan Fletcher, has publicly lauded Bridgepoint Education as a “success story,” and the company has responded in kind by donating close to 40,000 dollars to his campaign, including maximum donations from every member of Bridgepoint’s executive leadership. I find it hard to believe that as a veteran himself, Nathan can support an organization that is exploiting the benefits of our nation’s brave men and women.”


As Mayor, I will ensure that there are no more special interests, and that the focus of city government remains committed to protecting our veterans and the honest working men and women of San Diego.”

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