When you see a corrupt official, the first thing you think of is Recalling or Impeaching them. I have that feeling right now about several elected officials. At times I have participated in Recalls, hopefully for the right reason. Seldom did I think down the road, to what happens if successful, who will replace the crooks and sleazy office holders?
That is a question we do need to ask—what if the success means higher taxes, worse policy. What if you set up someone to kill your economy—like when we Recalled the deficit hiding, sweetheart deal making Gray Davis. We got Arnold and the California Depression, total control of government by unions, high taxes and AB 32 which will until repealed assure Texas of being a fiscal success and keeping California in a generational Depression.
Recalls are needed, but make sure the replacement is better than the current crook or sleaze. Your job and financial security depends on it.
Stephen Frank editorial, Exclusive to the California Political News and Views, 7/22/13
In 2003 I was joyful when found out there was a movement to Recall Gray Davis as California Governor. He had been caught lying about the deficit, the revenues and hiding contracts with oil companies. Only a lawsuit by then Assemblyman Tony Strickland got us a peek at the sweetheart deals Davis struck with the big corporations, at the expense of families and jobs.
Though supportive of the Recall, I was opposed to Schwarzegger being Governor. He refused to answer questions about taxation, but had Warren Buffet as his economic advisor—who cried about property taxes being too low. Arnolds non Republicans background was also a problem. He had only helped one GOP candidate, Congressman Dana Rohrabacher. He refused to help elect Bill Simon just a year before, though they knew each other and for years attended the same Catholic Church in Santa Monica.
Prior to running for Governor he had never supported the California Republican Party, but now wanted to be its leader. Something smelled. But, the people of California had buyers remorse, less than one year after barely beating Simon, Davis was thrown out of office. Maybe his 35% pay increase for Corrections Officers had something to do with it as well.
We got Arnold as Guv. We also got higher taxes, $144 billion in deficits, a pension system collapsing and the unions got what they wanted. Then we had the Arnold jihad against the Republican Party, killing off fund raising and grass roots trust of the Party. AB 32 is because of Arnold and his friend Fabian Nunez, tens of thousands of jobs were killed—and many more shipped to Texas and other States.
Davis was a disaster. Arnold was a massacre of the economy and Republicans. I apologize for my support of the Recall in 2003. California, and Republicans, would be better off if Davis had stayed in office and we used his policies and lack of ethics to defeat Democrats for legislative office. We might have even won the governorship in 2006 based on the Davis record, and not have Jerry Brown as governor today.
There is a Recall movement beginning in San Diego against the self admitted serial sexual harasser Mayor, Democrat Bob Filner. We know the story—he feels up intern and campaign workers, he tells women they would get along better at City Hall if they came to work not wearing panties. His own fiancé dumped him for harassing woman in her eyesight.
Those demanding he resign are not GOP’ers or conservatives—they are his supporters—even his Chief of Staff resigned.
The problem is not kicking him out of office, who wants to side with an admitted sexual harasser? The real problem is who will replace him?
Kevin Faulconer, is a well meaning decent member of the San Diego City Council—but too weak to take on the special interests and the unions. He votes right, says the right things, but has not shown himself to be a leader for a city the size of San Diego. Carl DeMaio is running for Congress and has made it clear he will not run for Mayor. The City Attorney Jan Goldsmith, a personal friend, would be great, but has not made any suggestion he would be willing to run. Maybe the Progressive Donna Frye would run, but she is a female version of former LA Mayor Phony Tony—who had large deficits, turned the city over to unions and preferred big government to honest government.
That leaves the chameleon Nathan Fletcher—who went from a conservative Republican to ardent Democrat in less than one year. The only way to describe the ideology and attitudes of Fletcher is to say he is a younger version of Arnold, without the accent or hormonal problems. When the San Diego Republican Party endorsed DeMaio for Mayor in 2012, he decided to leave the Republican Party. As an “independent” he endorsed Filner for Mayor. Then, when Filner became Mayor, Nathan went with the power and admitted, and registered, as a Democrat. Steve Schmidt, who ran the 2006 Arnold re-election campaign, was asked what Party did Arnold associate with (a strange question since Arnold was the titular head of the California Republican Party) at the moment. The Schmidt answer was a classic—“Arnold is not a member of any Party. He is a member of the Arnold Party, a Party of one.”
The same can be said of Fletcher. Republicans can not trust him, Democrats can not trust him and independents understands he supports himself, not them.
The lesson of the 2003 is that while the incumbent may be lying and withholding facts from us, the replacement might be even worse. Before a Recall is actually started, the leadership needs to look at the finished product. If it looks like another Arnold in office, is that what you want? Do you want a Mayor that represents himself and his political future, rather than the needs of the people of San Diego—is that what you want?
Having a weakened Filner is office is better than a self serving Arnold ideological look a like. If Filner stays, the Council needs to pass an ordinance that no woman should be forced to be with the Mayor alone.
Recall elections are about the results of the election, not just the votes.
