OC Political

A right-of-center blog covering local, statewide, and national politics

Archive for May, 2014

Did Long Pham Lie To Me At The 2014 CRA Endorsement Convention?

Posted by Former Blogger Chris Emami on May 20, 2014

As many of our readers may know I am a partner in the political consulting firm Custom Campaigns, which owns OC Political. We have been fortunate to have a great deal of success electing candidates in Orange County over the past few years. One of our success stories was electing Robert Hammond to the Orange County Board of Education in Trustee Area 1 replacing sitting board member Long Pham who decided to run for the 72nd Assembly District.

LongPham

Long Pham is currently running for the 34th Senate District in a race against sitting OC Supervisor Janet Nguyen and Rancho Santiago Community College District Trustee Jose Solorio. The top two candidates will advance to the November election under the new Prop 14 rules. I want to preface that I have no problem with Long Pham running for the seat (although I would call his chances of advancing to November virtually impossible). However, Long Pham unsuccessfully tried to paint himself as the conservative candidate by vying for the endorsement of the California Republican Assembly (the CRA endorsed Janet Nguyen).

One of the biggest mistakes that you can make as a Republican when vying for the endorsement of the CRA is either endorsing on giving money to a non-Republican (especially when a CRA-endorsed candidate is running for the same seat). I have issues with Long Pham applying for the CRA endorsement because he refused to endorse Robert Hammond at the CRA endorsing convention in 2012, and I wanted to know why he refused to endorse the only Republican running for the seat (who went on to win the seat despite not having Pham’s support).

At the CRA endorsing convention that took place on March 22, 2014, I asked Mr. Pham why he refused to endorse Robert Hammond, the successful CRA-endorsed candidate for Trustee Area 1 on the Orange County Board of Education in 2012. Pham responded that because he did not know who was running at that point and felt that it would be improper to endorse before he knew who all was running. I was a direct witness to Robert Hammond asking Mr. Pham for his endorsement at the CRA meeting.

For the sake of our readers, I will note the timeline of June filing and the CRA endorsing convention back in 2012:

Filing for County Board of Education closed on March 14, 2012
CRA Endorsement Took Place on March 24, 2012

Based on this timeline, the field was set before the endorsement meeting took place. Here is a look at the candidates that were running for the seat:

Robert Hammond – Republican
Ken Nguyen – No Party Preference
Art Pedroza – Libertarian
Eleazar Elizondo – Democrat

Clearly, only one Republican was running, and he was the CRA-endorsed candidate. If Long Pham had some kind of issue with Robert Hammond, he should simply say so instead of trying to claim that he did not know who was running for the seat.

I am not the only one that has faced the issue of Pham’s odd recollections. A month ago, Martin Wisckol wrote an article for the OC Register where Mr. Pham appeared to contradict himself about his education. We will see what happens on June 3rd in this race.

Posted in 34th Senate District | Tagged: , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Lincoln Club Endorses Eric Woolery for Orange County Auditor-Controller

Posted by Newsletter Reprint on May 20, 2014

This just came across the wire from the Eric Woolery for Auditor-Controller campaign:

LINCOLN CLUB ENDORSES ERIC WOOLERY FOR ORANGE COUNTY AUDITOR-CONTROLLER

NEWPORT BEACH — The Lincoln Club of Orange County, one of the state’s most respected conservative leadership organizations has endorsed Eric Woolery for Orange County Auditor-Controller. According to Lincoln Club President Wayne Lindholm:

“Eric is the consummate professional — a CPA with a long track record of professional and personal success as a financial manager and advisor. Beyond his significant accomplishments as an Auditor and Controller, he has successfully navigated his 700-employee department through the recent financial crisis while maintaining service levels without tax increases. This kind of skill demonstrates that he is exactly the right person to keep watch over Orange County’s finances on behalf of the taxpayer.”

The Lincoln Club endorsement is one of the most sought-after in the county. The club selected Woolery from a field of five candidates vying for the position. The Auditor- Controller’s office is currently managed by an appointee of the County Board of Supervisors but has not had an elected Auditor-Controller for more than two years since David Sundstrom resigned.

Eric Woolery is a CPA and successful owner/manager of a large accounting firm and currently the top administrative and financial head of a large public agency overseeing more than 700 employees and a department budget of $108 million.

He is the only candidate for Auditor-Controller with direct experience in both the private and public sector.  He is committed to providing Orange County taxpayers with the independent oversight required to make government open and accountable to the people.

His campaign website is http://www.ericwoolery.com/ ; on Facebook at Eric Woolery for OC Auditor-Controller or follow him on Twitter @WooleryOC. He has lived in Orange County most of his life and attended Lutheran High School of Orange County and Cal State Fullerton.  He and his wife Lisa have two children and reside in Orange.

Posted in Orange County Auditor-Controller | Tagged: , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Steel Finally Goes Negative

Posted by Marion Morrison on May 19, 2014

After nine pieces of fluff, Michelle Steel finally goes on the attack.  Steel hits Allan Mansoor for his “fee” creation and increase record during his time on the Costa Mesa City Council.  Using her official endorsement of the California Republican Assembly, Steel highlights that Mansoor failed to receive the support of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayer’s Association in his bid for Orange County Supervisor.  We’ll see if Mansoor cares to respond in the next couple days.  So far this household has yet to receive one piece of mail from him, aside from the letter I posted last week: https://ocpolitical.com/2014/05/11/mansoor-first-to-go-negative/

Stay tuned…

Steel Hit 2 of 2 Steel Hit 1 of 2

Posted in 2nd Supervisorial District, Mail | Tagged: , | Leave a Comment »

AD 74 Mail – Curry Postive and Patrascu Negative

Posted by Marion Morrison on May 19, 2014

In dueling mailers today Keith Curry promotes himself, while Emanuel Patrascu aims for his head.  Even though one of the two pieces vaguely goes after Curry’s record on supporting local “fees,” the amount of name ID picked up today probably turns out as a net positive for Curry.  Interestingly, the hit piece claims Curry has been “striking out” for 15 years; however Curry was first sworn into office in 2006.  I’d be interested to know what kind of math the Patrascu campaign is using?

Emanuel Hit 2 of 2 Emanuel Hit 1 of 2

Curry Positive 1 of 2 Curry Positive 2 of 2

 

Posted in 74th Assembly District, Mail | Tagged: , | 2 Comments »

Central Committee Update: Lots of Neutrality on Endorsements

Posted by Chris Nguyen on May 19, 2014

Your intrepid blogger was delayed to Central Committee since sometimes one’s main source of income is more important than the blog. :)

Thanks to fellow OC Political bloggers Thomas Gordon and Craig Alexander for filling me in on some items.

In the Fifth District Supervisor’s race, the Endorsements Committee had recommended Robert Ming for endorsement on a 4-1 vote. Tonight, Ming asked the Central Committee to stay neutral in this race, and the Central Committee agreed unanimously.

In the judicial race between Superior Court Commissioner Carmen Luege and Deputy District Attorney Jeff Ferguson, the Central Committee upheld the Endorsements Committee recommendation of neutrality.

(8:02 PM): On motion of Deborah Pauly, the Central Committee unanimously voted to stay neutral in the Attorney General’s race.

(8:11 PM): On motion of Deborah Pauly, the Central Committee unanimously endorses Pete Peterson for Secretary of State.

46TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

(8:12 PM): Candidate John Cullum questions the integrity of the process because he thought the party had decided to stay neutral last month (Editor’s Note: the Central Committee delayed the endorsement vote to tonight). He notes he is endorsed by the American Independent Party. He claims to have name ID (he lost the 2012 primary). He attacks Carlos Vasquez for being a former member of the American Independent Party.

(8:15 PM): Baron Night says Vasquez is tending to his ill son tonight. He says Vasquez is pro-life and opposes gay marriage. He wants education with stronger job skill training. Vasquez wants more local control for schools, lower taxes, including 100% deductibility for health insurance premiums. Night notes Vasquez is the only one to fill out an application for endorsement. Night then ends with a limerick.

There is some uproar about whether Republican Candidate Adam Nick was invited. Mark Bucher confirms he was.

David Shawver asks why Cullum refused to fill out an application.

Cullum says the party should stay out when there’s multiple good Republicans in the race.

A Central Committee member asks Cullum if he applied for the American Independent Party endorsement.

Cullum says he did.

The Central Committee follows up asking if Cullum values the American Independent Party endorsement more than the Republican Party endorsement.

Cullum cites the party endorsements in the sample ballot.

A lengthy debate on parliamentary procedure ensues.

(8:27 PM): Brenda McCune expresses her concern that the party is threatening to do nothing in Loretta Sanchez’s seat. She expresses alarm at Cullum, a candidate endorsed by another political party, urging the Republican Party to not endorse.

(8:28 PM): Deborah Pauly echoes McCune’s comments.

(8:29 PM): David Shawver notes the CRA listened to both Cullum and Vasquez and decided to endorse Vasquez.

(8:30 PM): The party by a nearly unanimous vote to endorse Vasquez.

VASQUEZ ENDORSED.

MEASURE A

(8:31 PM): Todd Spitzer speaks about Measure A, which requires elected officials to pay for their own pensions.

On motion of Baron Night, Measure A is endorsed unanimously.

MEASURE A ENDORSED.

Endorsements are complete.

The Orange County Young Republican Association speaks about several upcoming events and asks for donations.

The Volunteer of the Month is being awarded to the 30 youth under the mentorship of Maribel Marroquin who have been volunteering in the OCGOP’s Hispanic Engagement efforts in Central Orange County.

(8:55 PM): Deborah Pauly and Thomas Gordon ask for an emergency resolution supporting Proposition 13 and opposing the split roll. The resolution was drafted by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.

A lengthy discussion on parliamentary procedure ensues.

On motion of Baron Night and second by Todd Spitzer, the rules are suspended to allow consideration of the resolution brought by Deborah Pauly and Thomas Gordon at the behest of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.

On motion of Baron Night and seconded by numerous people, the resolution is adopted unanimously.

Posted in 46th Congressional District, 5th Supervisorial District, Republican Central Committee, Uncategorized | Tagged: , , , | 6 Comments »

Saddleback Valley USD Board Member Dennis Walsh Is Latest Politician Accused of Behaving Badly

Posted by Former Blogger Chris Emami on May 19, 2014

I have been extremely busy over the past few weeks and have not had a chance to blog very much. Luckily, I am going to be able to blog a little bit more over the next few weeks leading up to the June Election.

walsh

In the past we have reported about numerous politicians that have been accused of behaving badly including:

Buena Park Councilmember Miller Oh Charged With Perjury
Former Assemblyman Richard Robinson Being Arrested on Suspicion of DUI
Lake Forest Councilmember Peter Herzog Being Arrested on Suspicion of DUI

We now add a school board member to this growing list of politicians that have made the news for all the wrong reasons. The OC Weekly broke the story of Saddleback Valley Unified School Board President Dennis Walsh being arrested by Orange County Sheriff’s Deputies for resisting arrest.

Walsh allegedly ran into a fire hydrant with his car and fled the scene of the accident. Later, the car was spotted in the driveway by sheriff’s deputies and Walsh was informed that the car was evidence and would need to be towed. At this point Walsh apparently stopped cooperating with the deputies and was arrested.

One thing that was not mentioned in any of the articles is that Dennis Walsh is up for re-election this November and will likely face some issues with voters if he draws an opponent. The Saddleback Valley Unified School District has only had two elections in the past eight years and Walsh has never appeared on the ballot. We will find out this November how well both Dennis Walsh and Miller Oh will fare with both candidates slated to be up for re-election. Lake Forest Councilmember Peter Herzog opted to resign from office instead of facing what was likely to be a tough re-election.

It would not be unprecedented if either Walsh or Oh were to be re-elected. Back in 2010, Westminster Councilmember Andy Quach was able to win re-election despite pleading guilty to DUI.

CITY OF WESTMINSTER Member, City Council
Number To Vote For: 2
Completed Precincts: 64 of 64
Vote Count Percentage
* TRI TA 7,964 20.2%
* ANDY QUACH 7,076 18.0%
PENNY LOOMER 6,774 17.2%
KHOA DO 5,777 14.7%
ALIN HAMADE 5,725 14.5%
JOY L. NEUGEBAUER 4,298 10.9%
GINGER WAUGH-BORDEN 1,767 4.5%

* Indicates Incumbent Candidate, if any

Posted in Saddleback Valley Unified School District | Tagged: , | 3 Comments »

Michelle Steel in the Mail Again

Posted by Marion Morrison on May 17, 2014

The onslaught of mail from Michelle Steel continues.  Here is her ninth piece of mail received at this household.  She continues with a positive campaign.

Steel Positive 3 - 1 of 2 Steel Positive 3 - 2 of 2

 

Posted in 2nd Supervisorial District, Mail | Tagged: | Leave a Comment »

Kelly Hubbard and the War within the GOP

Posted by Walter Myers III on May 17, 2014

donnelly-with-Latino-woman-250x164In the same manner that he carelessly accused Assemblyman Allan Mansoor of calling a constituent a racist when Mansoor was simply defending one of his staff members who had been accused of being an illegal immigrant, Kelly Hubbard comes out with an article on the Orange County Tea Party blog condemning the Orange County Lincoln Club for a vote of “no confidence” in California governor candidate Tim Donnelly (due in part to his rigid stance on resolving the illegal immigration problem). Hubbard’s first hyper-intelligent lob at the Lincoln Club is that it is filled with “nothing but corporatist country-club [sic] republicans, who like to influence candidates to support their version of amnesty by bribing them with donations and support.” Well, I am a recent addition to the board of the Lincoln Club. I don’t belong to a country club (seeing nothing wrong with those who do as I’m happy for anyone else’s earned success), and I’m of mixed ancestry (specifically, African, Irish, German, and American Indian). So I don’t even fit the stereotype of “country-club” types and neither do many of the current members of the Lincoln Club. The Lincoln Club of today is made up of an increasingly diverse group of successful people of all backgrounds who share a belief in limited government, maximum civil liberties, and a strong defense to secure those liberties. Yes, the membership fee is higher than many other Political Action Committees, but those fees are used to fund candidates and to attract top talent to our many events so we can interact with not only political leaders but political activists as well such as James O’Keefe and Dr. Ben Carson.

Now I don’t want to disparage Hubbard, as I feel he is a person with good intentions, and I would strongly argue that he actually wants pretty much the same things as the Lincoln Club wants. So why he chooses to demonize the Lincoln Club over its immigration policy is beyond me. He goes on in his article to completely mischaracterize the policy as no more than a “3-point amnesty plan.” But what precisely is the meaning of the word “amnesty?” The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition defines amnesty as “a general pardon granted by a government.” So in a sense one could say the Lincoln Club policy advocates for amnesty because one of its provisions does forgive those who have come here illegally by providing them with legal status only. This is a policy paper, not legislation, and its provisions are far different from the actually amnesty legislation signed into law by President Ronald Reagan in 1986. The 1986 law provided a path to citizenship and was supposed to provide for tighter border enforcement. There were supposed to be tough employer sanctions. But as we all know, the border was never secured primarily due to poor funding, and the employer sanctions were so watered down they were effectively worthless. So illegal immigrants continued to come and reasonably concluded that it was worth the risk coming to America to work illegally, and employers continued to hire them on the flimsiest of paperwork. And now we have the same problem, only worse.

The Lincoln Club policy recognized the failings of the 1986 amnesty but unlike Hubbard, who wants a simple employer enforcement solution so illegal immigrants will self-deport, we didn’t feel self-deportation was either an effective or humane solution to the problem of illegal immigration. The Lincoln Club, led by committee Chairwoman Teresa Hernandez, deliberated for a good two years to produce the policy. It was a lot of hard work and wasn’t done at the Shady Canyon Golf Club sipping single-malt scotch while smoking cigars with agribusiness lobbyists as Hubbard probably envisions. It was a group of thoughtful people including representatives from the Hispanic 100 in a joint effort who had strong, sometimes diverging views on solving the immigration problem. And when the policy was done, there were no “bribes” as Hubbard puts it consisting of donations and support. We simply met with candidates and elected leaders explaining the policy and why we felt the specific sequencing was important to solving the problem, preventing us from landing in the same place we are twenty years from now as with the 1986 amnesty. The first item, border enforcement, was absolutely vital to the Lincoln Club policy, and was accepted unanimously by members of both the Lincoln Club and the Hispanic 100. Despite what Hubbard might think about “pandering” to certain groups as he has written elsewhere, the majority of Hispanics believe in protecting our border, and do not believe citizenship should simply be extended to those who have obviously broken the law. This is reflected in the Lincoln Club policy thinking.

The Lincoln Club believes that the three-point plan must be executed in its entirety, probably best in a sequential manner so we can ensure the success of previous components. Only once the border is secured shall the plan proceed to creating a guest worker program, even though that program would begin preparation phases concurrently, such as registering current illegal workers and setting up a functioning guest worker program similar to the guest worker Bracero Program that ran from 1942 to 1964. As a member of the committee, I actually felt the guest worker program was more important than the border enforcement because if you think about it, if there is a legal, safe means to come the United States to work, based purely on market forces of supply and demand, why would anyone come here illegally unless they were either stupid or engaged in criminal activity? So I lost on that argument, but that demonstrates how vital the Lincoln Club felt that unless the United States couldn’t or wouldn’t protect its border, then it wouldn’t get a guest worker program right either, so that was first priority. The third point is employer enforcement and support, using technology available today that makes it easy to track guest workers electronically and ensure employers that they are complying with the law. Of course, all points of the three-point plan depend on Congress doing the right thing for all three, and the Lincoln Club immigration policy committee was adamant this be done the right way so we don’t have the same problem we’re trying to solve now twenty years from now.

To close, and to the point of my title, I want to point out the tone in Hubbard’s piece, which is my biggest worry for the people who follow his articles and more importantly, the Republican Party itself. In a private communication, Hubbard intimated to me that in growing the party it shouldn’t exclude “the base.” What Hubbard doesn’t understand is this works both ways. As I wrote in my last post here, any candidate such as Donnelly needs the conservative base, the establishment, and Reagan Democrats to have any chance of winning the governorship in California. So Hubbard may argue that we need people like him who he calls the base (and as a social conservative/Tea Party advocate I include myself in the base), but I’m arguing that we need Republicans who do not represent “the base” as well. And from my view, much to my lament, is a party at war with itself, tearing itself apart while Democrats stand united behind more government control over our lives. So lobbing grenades from either side gets us nowhere, and on the Tea Party side Hubbard is one of the ringleaders in grenade throwing exercises, which should stop and could stop if they choose to stop. I don’t recall Hubbard reaching out to Allan Mansoor to get his perspective before leveling race-based charges, and I don’t recall him reaching out to Teresa Hernandez or anyone else on the Lincoln Club immigration policy committee to ask for more details or a better understanding. What we got was an uninformed hit piece. My hope is that in the future, Hubbard will be looking to understand first before he writes, and that he will be open to a rapprochement between “the base” and the establishment/country club Republicans he so likes to deride, not realizing that he needs them as much as they need him for the Republican Party to continue to survive in Orange County, the state of California, and indeed, the country at large.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged: , , | 3 Comments »

Petrilla and Bartlett Mailers Stir Controversy

Posted by Greg Woodard on May 16, 2014

Allan Bartlett over at Powder Blue posted two mailers he recently got a hold of (see below), one from Jesse Petrilla running for the 73rd Assembly District, and one from Lisa Bartlett running for OC Supervisor in the 5th District.  Bartlett maintains that the Petrilla mailer is deceptive because it contains a quote from OC GOP Chairman Scott Baugh and the OC GOP logo, implying that the party has endorsed Petrilla, which it has not.  The quote, which addresses the influence of public employee unions, is prominently displayed at the top of the mailer in which Petrilla purports to advocate for reforming government pensions.  In a comment on the Powder Blue posting, Mission Viejo activist Larry Gilbert, a Petrilla supporter, disagrees and states that the quote simply connects Chairman Baugh to the OC GOP. The OC GOP only allows endorsed candidates to use the party’s logo.  Petrilla is not endorsed by the OC GOP, and he did not ask for permission to use the party logo.

Also interesting is that Petrilla’s mailer includes a comparison between Petrilla and two other candidates, Anna Bryson and Paul Glaab.  Petrilla attacks Bryson and Glaab as beholden to the unions.  However, Petrilla omits a third major candidate, Bill Brough, from the mailer (for full disclosure, I am supporting Brough in the 73rd).  That raises the question of why Brough was omitted.  Is it because Petrilla cannot attack Brough on union issues, is it because Petrilla sees Brough as his biggest threat and he does not want to give Brough any extra publicity, or is it for another reason?  Inquiring minds want to know.

Over in the race for OC Supervisor, 5th District, Lisa Bartlett has put out a mailer stating that she is the “The Endorsed Conservative Republican” with a letter from Congressman Darrell Issa prominently displayed on the front (more disclosure, I am supporting Robert Ming in this race, though I have little experience or knowledge of Bartlett).  The letter from Issa states that he is endorsing Bartlett’s campaign.  Allan Bartlett contends that the mailer is deceptive because it implies that Bartlett is endorsed by the OC GOP, which she is not.  I have to agree that this mailer is more deceptive than Petrilla’s in that it could lead some to believe that Bartlett is endorsed by the OC GOP simply by its vague wording.  (I will note that the other Republican candidates for the 5th District are also endorsed by many, meaning that they are also “endorsed conservative” Republicans, making her statement false on its face.  She should have put “An Endorsed Conservative Republican” or “The Issa Endorsed Conservative Republican” to be accurate.  I know I am splitting hairs here, and we are talking about mailers which often like to be vague and deceptive for effect, but it still fun to do.)

Both the 73rd AD and 5th District Supervisor races appear to be close.  It remains to be seen whether these mailers and their statements will have any negative impact on either Petrilla or Bartlett, or they are relegated to inside baseball status like so many other of these issues.  We are less than three weeks from the June 3 direct primary election, and it seems that the candidates are ramping up their mail and their message.  It should be a fun election season!

jessepetrilla bartlett

Posted in 5th Supervisorial District, 73rd Assembly District, Orange County Board of Supervisors, State Assembly | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

Flawed Editorial Endorsement for Steve Tye

Posted by Allen Wilson on May 15, 2014

Editorial

The San Gabriel Valley Tribune announced their editorial endorsement for Steve Tye in the 55th State Assembly contest.


The newspaper endorsement of Diamond Bar Councilman Steve Tye for State Assembly took me aback about few inaccurate facts of the editorial and requires me to set the record straight about Mr. Tye who has been my councilman for 9 long years.

Mr. Tye does not have a slight lead in the fundraising part of the campaign.  According to Mr. Tye’s campaign finance reports he has raised an anemic $130,497, which includes the $100,000 he loaned to his campaign.  It is critical to note that he only has raised $30,000, which is a far cry from the $250,000 to get past through the June Primary.

Yorba Linda Councilman Craig Young did flirt a run for State Assembly last year, but withdrew from the contest to focus the embattled efforts of a recall campaign against him that is underway pending verification of signatures from the Orange County Registrar of Voters.  Mr. Young name is not on the ballot as a candidate for State Assembly.

Mr. Tye was notably absent during the 2006 Measure L known as Library Parcel Tax that would have raised $34 Million from Diamond Bar Taxpayers until the last days of the campaign that he came out against the proposal.  Mr. Tye forgets in May of 2006 he made the motion to instruct staff to draft language to place the Library Parcel Tax on the ballot that cost taxpayers $50,000.

Mr. Tye lacks ability to comprehend that fees are taxes, because in September of 2010 as a Councilman he voted to raised fees across the board tied with cost of living for the next three years.  Mr. Tye was adamant that the fee increase proposal was according to city minutes “not a tax but a user fee”, “was a proponent for adding a fee for licensing a cat”, “it is appropriate if it costs $100 to issue a permit to have a water heater installed in his home that he should pay the $100” and “likes the idea of someone plans to add to his home he pays the fees for it.”

Mr. Tye claims he was mad about junkets, but never curtailed the $1,150 monthly defined benefits that he and his colleagues on the council enjoy that gives them the privilege of medical benefits and ability to participate in a generous CalPERS pension plan.

The editorial says that Mr. Tye was not sure what kind of legislation he would propose specifically.  Frankly, I have seen his actions up front, because his rhetoric along the campaign trail doesn’t match his record.  Mr. Tye love for fees, waste of taxpayers funds and grandiose defined benefits is a recipe for bigger government that Sacramento politicians has long been accustomed to.

Therefore, Mr. Tye doesn’t deserve to be promoted to Sacramento as the next Assemblyman from the 55th AD.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged: , , | 2 Comments »