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Let’s Set the Record Straight …

Posted by Greg Woodard on March 26, 2018

Walter Myers recently posted a story on this site titled “Personal Thoughts on Scott Baugh’s Run for the 48th Congressional District.” In the article, Myers makes many inaccurate statements, and in my opinion, inaccurate comments or implications about myself and Scott Baugh. I am the person appointed to the 71st Assembly District Central Committee in 2011 who Myers said “had not been involved in or served in the party in the slightest.” To set the record straight, he are the actual facts:

  1. I was appointed in January 2011 to replace Jack Anderson, not John Williams as Myers states. John Williams was not on the Central Committee in 2011 as he had finished 10th in the 2010 June election. That means that Myers could not have been Williams’ alternate in 2011 since he was not on the Committee. Jack Anderson was from Mission Viejo and he moved out of California following his June 2010 Central Committee election, opening a spot of the Committee. Scott Voigts, a friend and fellow conservative, approached me and asked me if I was interested in seeking appointment in Anderson’s place. Voigts knew of my conservative roots, and I was from Mission Viejo (as Anderson was). Voigts believed Mission Viejo needed representation on the Central Committee because of the size of the city in the district. With Voigts’ help, I launched a mini-campaign where I went to the sitting Committee members and made my pitch for why I should be appointed (the sitting members were to vote to appoint Anderson’s replacement). Apparently, I made a better argument as I won on a close vote over Myers. I also ran for election in 2012 and won a seat to remain on the Central Committee, finishing 6th out of 22 candidates (Myers finished 17th out of 18 candidates in his race that year).
  2. I was involved a bit more in the party than Myers states. At the time of my appointment, I was involved in the Republican party on several fronts. I was active in the CRA. I helped defeat a ballot-box initiative in Mission Viejo that would have severely restricted landowners’ ability to develop their land. I attended several fundraisers for local and state candidates. I was active in local influential political groups like Family Action PAC and Atlas PAC. I was also involved in the campaign for a Mission Viejo City Council candidate. While I do not care how Myers styles my political experience, I think most would agree that this qualifies as more than not being involved “in the party in the slightest.”
  3. Contrary to Myers’ implication, Scott Baugh had nothing to do with my appointment. I did not even meet Baugh until after I was appointed. As I said, I took the time and effort to explain to the sitting Committee members why I felt like I should earn their vote. I did enough to warrant the appointment over Myers.

Those are the facts, that cannot be changed or modified, no matter how hard Myers tries. These are my opinions on the rest of Myers’ post:

  1. Myers’ intimation that Baugh is racist is sad and unsupported, based on my experience. I was on the Committee when the Lincoln Club and OCGOP teamed up for an outreach to registered Democrat Latinos in Santa Ana. Baugh consistently lauded the program and made sure to recognize all of us who walked precincts at the Committee meetings. Over the years, I came to know Baugh better. He consistently offered me support and advice, and without his leadership, the party would never be in the place it is now. His fundraising and support for true conservative candidates cannot be challenged. I am glad that the party continues under the excellent leadership of Fred Whitaker, and I hope that outreach to all voters, regardless of color, gender, etc. will continue to be one of the party’s primary efforts going forward.
  2. Myers’ ad hominem attacks on Jon Fleischman and Marcia Gilchrist are irrelevant and odd. Fleischman has been one of the most staunch conservatives we have in the party and Gilchrist was always pleasant during the time I served with her on the Committee. Myers’ singling out of these two smacks of pettiness and has no place in his post, or anywhere else for that matter.
  3. Myers is better than his race-baiting post. Following my appointment, I met Myers a few times at Family Action PAC meetings, and other meetings. I found him to be a pleasure to talk to, and dedicated to bringing more minorities into the conservative fold. That makes his remarks on race all the more disappointing. According to Myers, he should have garnered the Committee appointment over me simply because he is black and I am white, not based on our conservative credentials. This is not a conservative view as we believe people should be judged based on their merits, not the color of their skin. His passive-aggressive attack on Baugh is equally troubling. Myers takes pains to state he is not branding Baugh a racist, but the implication in his post is clear. Again, that is not the way conservatives should act. True conservatives care about smaller government, lower taxes, national defense, the rights of unborn babies, etc. Race is not an issue because true conservatives are color-blind. I have seen nothing from Baugh to indicate that he is anything but a true conservative.

I did not win re-election to the Committee in 2016 and I am grateful for my 6 years’ served where I had the opportunity to help the party and make a lot of great friends along the way (many of the same singled out by Myers and I agree, they are outstanding people). It is sad that Myers has apparently been nursing these wounds so many years later. I just wish he had chosen to address them with Baugh personally, rather than use his bully-pulpit on here to make unfounded, and false accusations.

I have done considerable research to make sure my facts are accurate. However, I am far from infallible, so if I have made any mistakes, I welcome the opportunity to address them.

Posted in 73rd Assembly District, Mission Viejo, Republican Central Committee | Tagged: , , , | 1 Comment »

Lake Forest Recall Petition Fails To Qualify For Ballot

Posted by Greg Woodard on June 2, 2016

There will be no recall election in Lake Forest for Council members Scott Voigts, Dwight Robinson, and Andrew Hamilton.  The Orange County Registrar of Voters today rejected the recall petitions for failure to meet the required number of valid signatures.  The Registrar found that the number of required signatures to qualify for the ballot for each candidate fell over 1,000 signatures shy.

It was earlier reported here that the recall group’s second effort also failed.  Although the group served Voigts, Robinson, and Hamilton with recall papers after a City Council meeting, the group did not submit the proper paperwork to the Lake Forest City Clerk.

The recall group attempted a third time to recall just Voigts and Hamilton, but the group failed to properly submit recall papers to both the Council members, and the City Clerk.

The recall group’s efforts cost Lake Forest at least $85,000 to verify the signatures, but the additional $100,000 – $125,000 cost of a recall election was avoided by the failed recall petitions.

 

Posted in Lake Forest | Tagged: , , | 1 Comment »

Before The Ink Is Dry On Their First Effort, Lake Forest Recall Group Serves Second Set Of Recall Papers On Councilmembers [Updated]

Posted by Greg Woodard on May 4, 2016

Lake Forest residents have been inundated over the past several months with signature gatherers, Council outbursts, and divisive rhetoric, as a group called Committee to Recall City Council Members Voigts, Hamilton & Robinson is attempting to recall City Council members Scott Voigts, Andrew Hamilton, and Dwight Robinson.

Two weeks ago, the group submitted approximately 8,200 recall signatures for each Council member.  The Orange County Registrar of Voters has not finished counting the votes to determine whether the group has met the requirement to force a special election in August, September, or October 2016.  Counting the votes alone will cost the city of Lake Forest at least $85,000.  If the recall is certified, the special election would cost the city at least another $100,000.

In a strange twist, although the Registrar of Voters has not said whether enough signatures have been gathered for the initial recall petition, the group served a second set of recall papers on Hamilton, Voigts, and Robinson after last night’s City Council meeting.

Andrew Hamilton, one of the recall targets, stated “Obviously, Adam Nick knows that the first recall didn’t succeed.  Why else would he have personally served me with another set of recall papers? That questions his ability to be looking out for taxpayers in Lake Forest when the Jim Gardner and Adam Nick-supported recall proponents knowingly submitted insufficient recall quantities of signatures.  This wasted $85,000 of taxpayer money due to their personal ambition.  What budget cuts are we going to need to make because of this?  We don’t need a perpetual recall in Lake Forest that continually wastes taxpayers’ money in spreading false accusations.  Adam Nick should stop his failed power grab and instead look out for the best interest of Lake Forest taxpayers.”

Jim Gardner, another current Council member who is supporting the recall, and has paid $30,000 to the group, said “I was told by the recall organizers that ‘the second petition was designed to show them [the Gang of 3] that we are not going away.  We will continue until they are gone.’  I think the recall supporters achieved enough signatures with the 8,100+ they already submitted, since they were verified by an independent agency.  But you can never tell what the authorities will say or do.  I was surprised  when the DA decided not to prosecute a resident who was accused of assaulting a recall supporter trying to gather signatures.  The video, just released, appears to clearly show the assault and eye-witnesses to whom I spoke also claimed that the assault was unprovoked.  So you can never tell what will happen, and I think the recall supporters are hedging their bets.”

To the residents of Lake Forest, get ready for Round 2.

[Update] Apparently, the pro-recall forces have failed in their second bid to recall Voigts, Hamilton, and Robinson, as Robinson confirmed that the recall petition was not timely submitted to the City Clerk.  While that does not prevent the recall folks from taking a third shot, it does call into question their organization when they cannot meet one of the most basic requirements for a recall effort.

Posted in Lake Forest | Tagged: , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Democrats Move To Further Rig The Game At AQMD Following Significant Republican Win Last Year

Posted by Greg Woodard on March 9, 2016

With the election of Dwight Robinson to the South Coast Air Quality Management Board (“AQMD”) last year, the Board tipped to a 7-6 Republican majority, a rarity in any California public body with a range as large as the AQMD.  Robinson’s election also served to bolster the prospects for businesses in Southern California who hoped to finally be free from some of the most oppressive AQMD regulations that are forcing them to flee the state at alarming speed.  Never allowing the democratic process to get in the way of their agenda (Robinson was elected by a majority of city mayors in the Southern California region, and a majority of the population), the Democrats have thrown a legislative temper tantrum.  Senate President Pro Tem Kevin De Leon (D) will introduce a bill to enlarge the already 13-member Board by 3 members, adding one so-called public health expert and two environmental justice members.  All three new members would be appointed by the Governor or the legislature, both of which are safely in the Democrats’ hands.  It is not difficult to imagine how those three votes will be cast.  Of course, this will guarantee that the Board will flip back to the Democrats, and all will be right in the liberals’ ivory tower world, with them once again free to regulate businesses to death.

De Leon’s bill also removes the four-year terms of Board members and makes them replaceable at the will of those who appoint them.  This was not a problem when the Democrats controlled the Board and could pass any regulations they wanted, no matter how much they impacted local businesses (many of which have left the state due to the Democrats’ oppressive regulatory environment, coupled with Sacramento’s catering to the radical environmental lobby that controls many of the Democrats in the state legislature).  Suddenly, four-year Board terms are somehow distasteful to liberals.

While it is no surprise the lengths that Democrats will go to warp the system to get their way, it is surprising the speed at which they moved.  Apparently, running businesses out of the state (except of course all those “green” companies propped up by state and federal government subsidies), or out of business, must happen without interruption.

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged: , , , | 1 Comment »

Lake Forest Councilman Dwight Robinson Elected To The South Coast Air Quality Management District Position, Ousting Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido

Posted by Greg Woodard on November 6, 2015

In a coup for conservatives, the Republican party, and businesses throughout much of Southern California, Dwight Robinson defeated Miguel Pulido for the Orange County cities’ representative on the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) Board.  As reported by OCPolitical’s own Chris Nguyen earlier, having to win the majority vote of all Orange County mayors, both in the number of cities, and overall county population, Robinson garnered 21 cities and 54% of the County’s population, to Pulido’s 12 cities and 45% of the population.  Pulido was Orange County’s representative on the AQMD for over a decade.

Robinson’s victory is significant as it flips the AQMD Board from 7-6 Democrat to 7-6 Republican, which will have considerable impact for many Southern California businesses.

Of his victory, Robinson said, “I am very proud of the broad based support I had across the spectrum that helped secured the votes I needed.  I deeply care about air quality and the environment.  I drive an electric car.  I put solar panels on my house earlier this year.  Equally important to me are jobs and the regional economy.  Many of the things AQMD has been doing over the last decade have driven companies, jobs, and the middle class out of Southern California.  I am dedicated to making sure that AQMD balances sensible environmental stewardship with middle class job retention.”

The race was marred by infighting from Republicans and rumors of Pulido offering support to mayors and their cities in exchange for their votes.  The most curious (and in my opinion, disappointing) aspect was the battle that erupted between Irvine Councilman Jeff Lalloway and Mayor Steven Choi.  As reported here, Choi was unavailable for the vote so he originally designated Lalloway as his voting representative.  However, it was reported that Lalloway was planning on voting for Pulido, and Choi removed Lalloway and appointed Christina Shea to vote instead.  Shea voted for Robinson, giving a size able chunk of population to Robinson.  While Lalloway denied that he had made up his mind on who to vote for, his claim that the Orange County Republican party’s support for Robinson was a push by California Republican Party Jim Brulte to strong-arm local Republicans to vote lock-step with the party is curious given that the race pitted Robinson, a strong Republican conservative and pro-business candidate, against Pulido, an avowed liberal Democrat who recently admitted to six violations of the Political Reform Act.  Pulido also previously appointed his brother as a part-time consultant to the AQMD, a position that paid more than $35,000 per year.

Posted in Orange County | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Did the Court of Appeal Put A Crimp In Governor Brown’s Drought Plans?

Posted by Greg Woodard on April 22, 2015

Everyone knows California is in a long-term drought.  And most of you on here know that Governor Brown recently issued an executive order requiring Californians to reduce their water use, and water agencies are tackling the task of making that happen.

Many water suppliers either currently have, or are planning on implementing, tiered rates to deal with the water usage cuts.  However, the Court of Appeal out of Santa Ana just issued a decision that could complicate matters, and may have far-reaching implications on any future use of tiered water rates.

In 2011, the city of San Juan Capistrano adopted a new water rate structure that created four tiered water rates, with substantially higher rates as the water use increases.  The Capistrano Taxpayers Association (CTA) filed a lawsuit challenging the tiered rates as violating Proposition 218’s limit on fees that a government agency can charge for services.

The trial court agreed with the CTA and held that the rates were not compliant with Proposition 218.

The Court of Appeal agreed and upheld the trial court’s ruling.  The Court of Appeal held that Proposition 218 requires water agencies to justify their tiered rates based on the costs of service for those tiers.  Agencies cannot use legislative, discretionary power to attribute percentages of total costs to the various tiers.  In addition, the agencies must have evidence to back up their claims that the rates are tied to the costs of service.

So what does that mean for the future of tiered rates?  The Court of Appeal specifically stated that tiered rates are not prohibited by Proposition 218. However, if agencies choose to institute tiered rates, they have to do so based on the actual costs of service for those tiers.  That means that agencies cannot implement tiered rates as a penalty.

 

 

Posted in San Juan Capistrano | Leave a Comment »

Andrew Do Announces His Candidacy For Soon-To-Be-Vacated Orange County Supervisor Seat

Posted by Greg Woodard on November 20, 2014

Andrew Do, former Chief of Staff for current Supervisor and newly-elected State Senator Janet Nguyen, has announced his candidacy for the special election for the First District Supervisor seat that will occur in early 2015.  Do is expected to face Democrat and perennial candidate Lou Correa (who is termed out of the 34th District State Senate seat that Nguyen is taking over).  Another potential candidate is Chris Phan, a Republican councilman from Garden Grove, who has already announced his intentions to run for the supervisor seat.

For Immediate Release

November 20, 2014

Contact: Dave Gilliard

Phone: 916-626-6804

Andrew Do to Run for Supervisor in First District Special Election

Nguyen, Bates,Walters and Royce to serve as Campaign Co-Chairs

Westminster, CA – – Today, Andrew Do announced his candidacy for Orange County Supervisor in the First District, where a special election will be called soon to replace Senator-elect Janet Nguyen.

Supervisor Nguyen, along with Supervisor Pat Bates, Senator and Congresswoman-Elect Mimi Walters and Congressman Ed Royce will serve as honorary co-chairs of Do’s campaign.

“I am honored that so many community leaders have encouraged me to run for Supervisor to follow in the footsteps of Janet Nguyen, who has done such a tremendous job for our communities,” said Do.

“The First District is the diverse and dynamic heart of Orange County, with many needs that are different from other parts of our county,” said Do. “I believe government can help meet those needs and can do so in a fiscally conservative and responsible manner that protects taxpayers.”

Do said his priorities will be to help create jobs, assist small business, rebuild the local economy, and improve roads, parks and other infrastructure. As a former Deputy District Attorney and in light of State prisoner early releases, Do will make public safety one of his top priorities. Do opposes tax increases and strongly supports Proposition 13.

“Too many of our neighborhoods and communities in central Orange County were neglected for far too long. We have made tremendous progress in correcting things over the last seven years and Andrew is committed to continuing and expanding on the work we have done,” said Supervisor and Senator-Elect Janet Nguyen.

Andrew Do is a prominent central county businessman, attorney and Republican who currently serves as Supervisor Nguyen’s Chief of Staff. Previously, he has been an Orange County Deputy District Attorney and Garden Grove City Councilmember. Do has been elected to serve as President of the Asian Bar of California and as President of the Vietnamese-American Bar Association of Southern California. He was selected by the U.S. Department of Justice to represent Orange County at the National District Attorney Association Advocacy College at the University of South Carolina. Do received his J.D. Degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. He taught for three years as an Adjunct Professor at Cal State University, Fullerton and previously served as a Judge Pro Tem at Orange County West Municipal Court.

 

Posted in 1st Supervisorial District, Orange County Board of Supervisors | Tagged: , , | 7 Comments »

The Union In CUSD Repeats Lie About Candidate Craig Alexander In A Shameful Attempt To Smear Him As The Election Nears

Posted by Greg Woodard on October 31, 2014

I previously wrote about the Capistrano Unified Education Association’s (CUEA) lies about Craig Alexander and Julie Collier, but this is beyond the pale.  After the union falsely claimed that Alexander previously sued the school district, Alexander sent Sally White, CUEA President, a letter informing her that he had never sued the school district.  Sadly, the union does not care about the truth, as evidenced by a recent call sheet from the CUEA that again lies and says that Alexander represented Ellen Addonizio and Sue Palazzo in a lawsuit against the district.

Alexander was too nice in his attempt to reason with White, but her willingness to perpetuate lies for the sake of keeping power tells me that she deserves no respect.  No one should tolerate these shameful acts by the union, and I would encourage everyone in the Capistrano Valley Unified School District to vote for Alexander (Area 4), Addonizio (Area 6) and Collier (Area 7) and tell the unions that you are not putting up with their lies anymore.  And to the union members, I would ask you to do the honorable thing and contact the CUEA and tell them to stop lying and start addressing the only important thing – the education of the students in the district.

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

Lisa Bartlett, The Union-Backed Candidate In The Fifth District Supervisor Race

Posted by Greg Woodard on October 23, 2014

Robert Ming and Lisa Bartlett, both Republicans, emerged from the June open primary as the top-two vote getters for the Orange County Board of Supervisors race in the Fifth District.  Ming (who I am supporting) and Bartlett will face off on November 4 for the privilege of representing most of south Orange County on the Board.  I have known Ming for several years, and I can attest to his conservative credentials, and his character as a man.  I do not know Bartlett, so I can only form an opinion based on her actions on the campaign trail, and, in my opinion, they do not reflect well on her.

In June, Bartlett issued a press release called “Ming’s Dings” that was an attack on Ming and his supposed policies “dinging the taxpayer.”  However, as I previously reported, the release was riddled with false facts and errors.  Despite being called out on those false assertions, I have not seen any retraction from Bartlett.  In addition, while that first installment of “Ming’s Dings” promised subsequent regular reports of how Ming was supposedly dinging the taxpayer, I have not seen another installment.  Apparently, Bartlett could only muster that one attack on Ming’s policies, and even that attack contained false facts.

On September 2, Bartlett issued a press release, again using false facts to erroneously claim that she was fundraising at a 2-1 clip against Ming.  In fact, the true fundraising numbers showed a small difference between the two.

I know that candidates often embellish their mailers and take liberties with the way they portray their opponents.  But what should not be tolerated is outright lies, and Bartlett has twice shown that she apparently cares more about smearing Ming than getting the facts right.

Equally troubling is that the public employee unions seem to be spending a lot of time and effort on Bartlett.  I recently received a mailer from a local PAC in support of Bartlett that smeared Ming with the same false facts that Bartlett used in her “Ming’s Dings” hit piece.  The PAC has received $18,000 from the Orange County Employees Association and the Orange County Professional Firefighters Association, both public employee unions.  I reached out to Bartlett’s campaign for comment on whether her campaign had coordinated with the PAC on the mailer, or provided the PAC with the erroneous information, but she did not respond.

I recently learned that another public employee union, the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs has endorsed Bartlett.

As a conservative, all the union money and the endorsement thrown at Bartlett concern me.  Public employee salaries and benefits are a huge County expenditure, and the unfunded pension liability threatens not only the current financial stability of Orange County, but also the future for my kids.  Ming has a plan to reduce the unfunded liability by benchmarking public employee salaries to those earned in the private sector.  Ming also is an advocate of transparency in the labor negotiation process.  Ming also wants to solicit private-sector bids for services that are not core government functions.

Bartlett claims to be concerned with government spending, but her campaign website is short on any specifics about crushing salary and pension debt.  Maybe that is why the Orange County Register recently endorsed Ming over Bartlett, stating “we found many of [Bartlett’s] responses to our questions more vague.”

The Register feels that Ming’s knowledge of fiscal management makes him the best-suited to the Board, and I would encourage the readers to vote for Ming in November.

Posted in 5th Supervisorial District, Orange County Board of Supervisors | Tagged: , , , , , , | 39 Comments »

Union Money Invades Mission Viejo Council And Fifth District Supervisor Races

Posted by Greg Woodard on October 17, 2014

On Wednesday, I received a mailer from Citizens to Protect Mission Viejo.  On the front, calling itself the “Mission Viejo Taxpayers’ Voting Guide,” it asked for support for current council members Dave Leckness and Rhonda Reardon, and council candidate Wendy Bucknum.  On the back, it contrasts Board of Supervisor candidates Robert Ming and Lisa Bartlett, offering false facts (more about that later) about Ming, while recommending Bartlett.  (As I have consistently stated, I am supporting Ming in November)

The mailer was large, in full color, and on good paper stock, so I wondered how Citizens was paying for this apparently city-wide mailer.  My search at the Secretary of State and County websites came up empty, but I hit pay dirt at the City of Mission Viejo’s website (some are questioning whether Citizens was required to file with the County given that they are supporting a county-wide candidate).  On September 30, 2014, Citizens received a $5,000 donation from the Orange County Employees Association, and on October 10, 2014, it received a $13,000 donation from the Orange County Professional Firefighters Association, both public employee unions.

When I see public employee unions getting involved with Republican candidates, I get curious as to how the candidates feel about union money being spent on their behalf, particularly such a large donation from two well-known public employee unions.  Union money contributed directly to Republican candidates is a red flag for most conservatives (and would violate the candidate’s GOP pledge to not take union money if they signed it), so unions backing a Republican typically will make a contribution to a PAC that will then send a mail piece out as an independent expenditure.  Often candidates claim they have no control of independent expenditures so they can disclaim any responsibility yet still reap the benefits of the mailer.  So, I reached out to Leckness, Reardon, Bucknum, and Bartlett for comment.

To their credit, I received responses from Reardon (who signed the pledge) and Bucknum, both of whom stated that they did not know about the mailer until they received it on Wednesday, and both also stated that they have not been offered or taken any union money.  After giving the candidates 24 hours to respond, I have not heard back from Leckness or Bartlett.

While I recognize that all candidates and their supporters embellish their mailers, outright lies should not be tolerated.  Curiously, the PAC’s mailer repeats the same lie that Bartlett previously made against Ming falsely stating that Ming approved a loan to the City Manager at below market rates, when in fact Ming only voted for the loan on the condition that it be at prevailing market rates. (here)  Unfortunately, I did not hear back from Bartlett to address whether her campaign provided any information, including the false interest rate, to the PAC for the mailer.

The PAC mailer also suffers from a lie by omission.  While touting Bartlett as a fiscal conservative by noting her efforts to balance the budget and reduce pensions, the mailer conveniently ignores the fact that Ming, too, helped balance Laguna Niguel’s budget ever year that he has been on the Council.

Union money has become all to prevalent in national, state, and local politics.  The unions extort dues from their members and use that never-ending supply to support candidates who they believe will further their cause.  I know Reardon and Bucknum personally, and I take them at their word that they did not know anything about the union-backed mailer supporting them.  I also know that Bartlett has been willing to use false facts in an effort to smear Ming, and has not retracted any of those false press releases, even when faced with undeniable evidence of the false facts.  Bartlett also failed to respond to my questions about the PAC mailer that uses the same false information she previously used.  I leave it to the voters to decide who to trust in November.

Posted in 5th Supervisorial District, Mission Viejo, Orange County Board of Supervisors | Tagged: , , , , , , | 13 Comments »

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