Posted by Chris Nguyen on April 2, 2012
Since it is now April 2, I can now clarify that Emami only wrote three April Fools’ Day posts:
Again, those three are the sole April Fools’ Day posts.
All other posts outside of those three posts are legitimate OC Political posts.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged: April Fools' Day, Chris Emami | 3 Comments »
Posted by Brenda Higgins on April 1, 2012
On Thursday evening March 22, the Orange County Jewish American Bar Association hosted a discussion of the case of the Irvine 11. The discussion involved District Attorney Tony Rackaukas and Defense counsel Jacqueline Goodman. The discussion was moderated by Dean Erwin Chemerinsky.
In 2010, Isreali Ambassador Micheal Oren came to Orange County to speak at UCI. In the course of the Ambassadors speech, 11 Muslim students, in an orchestrated fashion, stood up at intervals throughout Mr. Oren’s speech. The students were ultimately prosecuted for the conspiracy to disrupt the speech. Ten defendants were convicted, one defendant was dismissed prior to trial. They have been widely referred to as the “Irvine 11” in media accounts of the incident.
The discussion at the OCJBA was for the most part, civil and polite. Ms. Goodman drew an audible response of displeasure from the predominantly Jewish audience when she referred to the students as something tantamount to heroes. Mr. Rackaukas would have been far more effective and persuasive had he not sidestepped some of the pertinent facts of the investigation and by omitting his periodic eye rolling during Ms. Goodman’s comments. Of course, this attorney in the audience would have preferred much more input and not just moderating from the distinguished Dean. Dean Chemerinsky did remind the audience that the students and the club that they belonged to were disciplined by UCI administration but that the terms of such were confidential and could not be disclosed.
Notable commentary from the District Attorney included emphasis on the importance of drawing a “line in the sand” and sending a clear message that this behavior will not be tolerated in the OC. He stated more than once that we had to “start somewhere” as he defended questions of selective prosecution of this misdemeanor matter. When questioned about the dismissal of One student, while the remaining Ten defendants went to trial, the DA vigorously asserted that ALL defendants were offered the “same deal”. It was quite surprising that the DA failed to mention the additional costly litigation occasioned by the inappropriate conduct of his staff, which ultimately lead to the one defendant being dismissed. Ms. Goodman quickly reminded him of the attorney-client privileged emails that were obtained by the DA’s office which lead to three Deputy prosecutors and one investigator being removed from the case. Only after the court ruling that these high ranking deputy prosecutors and an investigator must be removed and screened from the trial prosecution team, was the deal reached to dismiss the one defendant.
A pretty significant legal event, and dramatic move by the trial judge, yet not even mentioned by the District Attorney.
Both attorneys spoke wistfully about how they each were the champion of free speech on their side of the case. Ms. Goodman, in spite of the tangible hostility in the room, gently pointed out the difficulties of trying a case with Muslim defendants, on trial within weeks of the 10th anniversary of 9/11, and argued that it was the defendants whose free speech was violated. She confirmed that they were organized, argued that they did not in anyway terminate the speech of Michael Oren, that they harmed no one and were for the entirety of the demonstration, peaceful and non-violent. Mr Rackaukus argued that the students intended to and did in fact “shut-down” the speaker and deprived the other students in the room, the right to hear all of what the Isreali Ambassador had to say, and deprived the Ambassador of saying what he came to say.
Neither attorney mentioned the fact that Micheal Oren did in fact end his speech early. There is no indication whether it was due to the disruption of the Muslim students, or the fact that he had Lakers tickets and went directly from UCI to the game.
There was also no discussion of state action. In order for there to be a violation of anyone’s right to Free Speech, the government must have taken some action to interfere with or violate someone’s Free Speech. In this situation, the only “state-action” is the action of the DA in prosecuting the 11(actually 10) students. The students are not government officials. While their behavior was not necessarily “approved” of by UCI (a state school), i.e. they had given proper prior notice to the administration of their demonstration, and their behavior made them ultimately subject to discipline. Was that “state-action” for the University administration to take action against the students who were speaking out, expressing their views? There was no state action on behalf of the students, their conduct not sanctioned or directed by UCI, and there was no effort by UCI to terminate Oren’s speech at the behest of these students.
Interestingly, there were about 100 professors from UCI, including Dean Chemerinsky as well as several Pulitzer and Nobel prize wining professors, who petitioned the DA to NOT proceed with the prosecution of the students. Their argument being that the action of the DA in the prosecution of such activities that occurred on campus would have a chilling effect on other students exercising their right to protest in the future. The staff in that letter emphasized the open forum and environment encouraging expression on college campuses. No one at the OCJBA discussion mentioned that the staff at UCI opposed en masse the prosecution of these students.
There was also an organization called Jewish Voice for Peace that implored the DA not to prosecute these students and opposed pushing this matter to trial. No one at the OCJBA discussion mentioned that either.
Mr. Rackauckus was adamant in his “start somewhere” comments that a message must be sent that this behavior is not appropriate in this county. He did not mention any prosecution of any other defendants under this theory of a misdemeanor conspiracy to deprive someone of their free speech rights. A diligent search for a similar case, prior to, or since this prosecution has yielded no results of any other such prosecution. This was the lone case.
I was disappointed at the lack of information that the District Attorney imparted. This was certainly a “home-field” advantage for him. An audience of lawyers, intellectual and presumably sophisticated legal minds, deserved a more fact intensive and analytical presentation from the lead prosecutor. Ms. Goodman mostly held her own. She overlooked the obvious bias against her association with the Muslim students and politely corrected the District Attorney when facts were omitted.
I have a visceral opposition to the anti-Israel views of these students, but I wonder what purpose is served by prosecuting them. I have learned as a trial lawyer, that trial rarely fixes anything, and generally drives warring sides further apart. The most sensible thing I heard that evening came from the closing remarks made by the OCJBA president, Jordan Steinberg related to the importance of dialogue. He pointed out that there is a facebook page entitled Isreal <3 Iran, with the profile photo of an Isreali father holding his daughter, the message being, “we don’t want to bomb you”. A simplistic approach to a complicated problem? Perhaps, but one that takes into account humanity. Apparent in the situation of the Irvine 11, it is always easier to villify anyone when they are nothing but an impersonal label.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged: Dean Chemerinsky, Irvine 11, Jacqueline Goodman, Jordan Steinberg, OCJBA, Tony Rackaukas | Leave a Comment »
Posted by OC Insider on March 30, 2012
Much time and effort has been exerted discussing Travis Allen’s political donations. I have finally had a chance to sit in front of a computer and pull up his donations.
By actually taking the time to look into his donations history, I have discovered that he has a long history of supporting conservative causes and candidates. His donations show that he is a dedicated conservative and freely gave his financial resources to fight for the cause.
Here are just some of the many donations he has made to Republican candidates and groups.
Mitt Romney $2,500
Orange County Central Committee $250
Rick Perry $350
New Majority $5000
Lincoln Club of Orange County $3,900
Dana Rohrabacher $1,050
NRCC $250
Ileanna Ros-Lehtinen $500
Jeff Lalloway $440
Emanuel Patrascu $360
OC Business Council $250
Harman for Attorney General $150
Overall, I have been able to find over $20,000 in donations to conservatives and only a couple grand in donations to democrats. The facts clearly show that he is a conservative, has donated 10 times more to Republicans and is actively involved with conservative candidates and causes.
Often when business owners run for office their opponents will dig up some contributions they have made to the opposite party and attack them for it. For example, Meg Whitman savaged Steve Poizner with some minor contributions he had made to Democrats. This did not make Meg Whitman a better conservative than Steve Poizner. She just had more money to waste on attacking Poizner. Unfortunately, her wealth was of no help to her in against Jerry Brown. She not only lost, but was also a drag on all the other Republican candidates in California.
When electing someone for the 72nd Assembly District, we should ensure that we do not elect another Meg Whitman by supporting the wealthiest candidate. We should elect the individual with the best history of being a Republican, supporting conservative candidates and fighting for our ideas. If being a lifelong Republican and having a conservative donation history is to be taken into account, Travis Allen is clearly the best person to represent and fight for conservatives.
Posted in 72nd Assembly District, Uncategorized | Tagged: Long Pham, Travis Allen, Troy Edgar | 2 Comments »
Posted by Former Blogger Chris Emami on March 28, 2012
Recently we have received a lot of comments recently on the posts written by anonymous bloggers “HBK” and “The Rock of OC.” The majority of these comments have been blocked as they are simply making accusations as to who the real identities of these two individuals are.
The policy we have here at OC Political is one that allows current elected officials, past elected officials, and anyone else we have invited to blog the right to use a pseudonym if they provide a legitimate reason. We would prefer that people use real names but in certain circumstances we will make exceptions and allow an individual to use a pseudonym.
Any comments claiming to reveal the identity of a blogger will be blocked, regardless of whether the guess is right or wrong. At the same time I would encourage our bloggers to keep it civil, especially those that are using pseudonyms.
We thank you for your readership and look forward to continuing to keep our followers up to date on what is going on in OC, State, and National politics.
Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
Posted by OC Insider on March 22, 2012
Everybody will be glad to know that the City of Los Angeles has solved all problems in their City and is moving on to other important issues like stopping the evil KFI 640 AM.
RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, the City of Los Angeles has historically supported policies that
prohibit discrimination based on race, gender, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual
orientation, and disability; andWHEREAS, KFI 640 AM merged with Clear Channel Communications in 2000, making KFI 640 AM Clear Channel’s flagship AM radio station in Los Angeles;
WHEREAS, KFI 640 AM, averages approximately 1.5 million listeners during any given weekday; and
WHEREAS as noted in a recent L.A. Times article, a growing percentage of Southern California cities, including the Great City of Los Angeles, contain significant populations of at least two racial or ethnic groups; and
WHEREAS, February is National Black History Month; and
WHEREAS, on February 15,2012, KFI640 AM’s talk show hosts John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou of the “John and Ken Show” referred to pop music icon Whitney Houston as a “crack ho”, three days after her death;
WHEREAS, March is National Women’s History Month; and
WHEREAS, on February 29,2012, on the eve of Women’s History Month, KFI 640 AM’s syndicated talk show host Rush Limbaugh referred to Sandra Fluke, a Georgetown University law student, as a “slut” and a “prostitute” for testifying on Capitol Hill about women’s access to contraception;
WHEREAS, given Clear Channel Media Holdings stated view on the value they-place on diversity, it is our belief that corporate action must start at the top with KFI 640 AM; and
WHEREAS, Clear Channel Media Holding’s commitment to diversity is not being realized at its flagship station KFI 640 AM, where out of 15 on-air personalities, only one is a female and none of them are African American; and
WHEREAS there are not any African Americans currently working in KFI 640 AM’s newsroom as full-time producers or engineers, or as outside paid contributors, fillin hosts, or other on air personalities; and
WHEREAS, when you have an absence of African Americans and other minorities in the workplace, it is easy to become desensitized to what other groups find intolerable which ultimately fosters an environment where negative comments can go unchecked and corporate guidelines and policies are no longer being enforced; and
WHEREAS, a truly diverse work includes the hiring of Women, Blacks, and other minorities;
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that by adoption of this resolution, the City Council urges KFI 640 AM’s station management and Clear Channel Media Holdings do everything in their power to ensure that their on-air hosts do not use and promote racist and sexist slurs over public airwaves in the City of Los Angeles; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the derogatory language used by some radio personnel has no place on public airwaves in the Great City of Los Angeles or anywhere in America; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a truly diverse work environment must include the hiring of a work force that reflects the diversity of Los Angeles which includes women, African Americans, Latinos, and Asians.
You can also view a copy here:
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Former Blogger Chris Emami on March 17, 2012
This political advertisement admittedly has nothing to do with Orange County or Republican politics, but I had to post it because it is hilarious. All I have to say is this political ad includes Brian Wilson (SF Giants), M.C. Hammer, will.i.am, and Willie Brown.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged: Ed Lee | 1 Comment »
Posted by Former Blogger Chris Emami on March 14, 2012
Reposted From Monday: This is the last day to enter the contest, It’s free and you can win a $40 gift card.
It is not a secret that I as well as the other two bloggers who are admins here are all a part of “Custom Campaigns” a local Orange County political consulting firm. It is that time of year again with “March Madness” upon us.
Since an office pool with three people would be no fun for anybody involved, we thought that it would be interesting to put together an office pool that includes the readers as well.
Did I mention that we are offering a $40 gift card for the winner of the pool, and it costs nothing to enter (technically I guess that makes it a contest and not a pool).
In order to receive the password to enter the pool you must leave a comment here with your real first and last name. Include your e-mail address as well (this is visible only to us), so that we can send you the password to be able to enter the pool.
Good luck and we look forward to having a great turnout for this so please feel free to invite others.
Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
Posted by Former Blogger Chris Emami on March 14, 2012
Tonight is when the filing period closes for races that went into the extended period. These races include:
CD 47
AD 69
AD 72
OCBE 1
Stay tuned to OC Political for an update after filing closes of who took advantage of this extension. Despite the fact that the filing period should not have been extended in AD 69 and AD 72.
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Charles Hart on March 13, 2012
In the winter 2012 issue of Santa Ana Green, a quarterly newsletter of the City of Santa Ana, the article “City of Santa Ana Moves Forward with Climate Action Plan” made the front page. The article proudly informs us that at the November 7, 2011 City Council Meeting, our Council unanimously approved an agreement with International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) Local Governments for Sustainability to develop a Baseline Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory and Climate Action Plan. Our Executive Director of Public Works, Raul Godinez II said that Santa Ana has taken a leadership role by being part of the Kyoto Protocol. You all remember the Kyoto Protocol that came from the 2007 United Nations Earth Conference that attempted to hamstring the United States and other developed industrial nations while allowing nations such as China and India to continue their development virtually unfettered.
This is such a terrible plan that even our liberal congress rejected it. Unfortunately the money behind the green movement has been successful in going around our federal government and striking deals with our state and local governments. In 2007, Santa Ana’s Mayor Miguel Pulido signed the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, which urges federal and state governments to enact policies and programs to meet the Kyoto Protocol target of a 7% reduction in emissions to below 1990 levels.
One of the first steps to the plan that our City Council agreed to is to identify and account for the sources of emission in Santa Ana from government buildings and facilities, as well as community wide. The plan is to identify and measure emissions from electricity, natural gas, water, waste and transportation. The City then plans to “Target improvements.” Of course this will be at the owner’s expense. In other words reduce your emissions or be fined or run out of Santa Ana. This Community Action Plan (CAP) claims it will produce positive benefits for the community such as improved air quality, reduced energy bills and traffic congestion. In fact our Council is studying ways and implementing the construction of more apartments in already congested areas near downtown without expanding our streets and parking, with the intent to pressure people out of their cars and into mass transit (our Mayor also serves on the Orange County Transit Authority). The City also supports “smart meters” that measure electronic emissions an allow remote shut downs if you exceed what the government determines to be a “fair amount”. If you go online to the United Nations website and read the Kyoto Protocol and Agenda 21 you will see just how invasive the “green movement” is upon our individual liberties.
Our City Council (including the RINO that claims to be a business friendly Republican – Carlos Bustamante) has committed $55,855 to participate in this CAP. That may not sound like much to government. But when our City has mismanaged money so badly that we have been forced to surrender our 128 year old Fire Department to the County Fire Authority, and has cut the number of Code Enforcement officers and incurred $25 million dollars in deficits, the $55,855 seems huge.
The only “green” our City needs to be pursuing today is the color of money. We need to bring businesses back into Santa Ana by NOT CAPPING their ability to produce revenue for our hometown.
Your fellow Patriot,
Charles Hart for Santa Ana City Council 2012
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Posted by OC Insider on March 13, 2012
Many have gotten the wrong impression of AD72 candidate Travis Allen, based only on a strategically timed blog smear over the weekend, timed to try to trip up Allen before the Republican Party’s endorsement confab last weekend.
Travis has been a life-long Republican, and a business owner in Orange County for more than a decade.
He has contributed thousands of dollars to Republican candidates, and tens of thousands to Pro-Israel causes throughout the country.
He has been a Member of both the Lincoln Club of Orange County and the New Majority.
For anyone who has ever met Travis, he is unquestionably a fiscal conservative – seeing both in his own business and with his clients the troubles of big government taxing and regulating too much.
For Troy Edgar of all people to try to attack Allen for having given some money to Democrats is especially rich – as Edgar was himself a Democrat for most of the past decade, only having opportunistically switched over just in time to run for City Council in 2006.
That’s right, for Bush v Gore, in the aftermath of 9/11, for Gray Davis v Bill Simon, for the Gray Davis Recall, for Bush v Kerry, and even up to the Primary of Angelides v Westly – Troy Edgar was a high-propensity Democrat voter. He didn’t even vote in the Primary for the man he is trying to replace. When Jim Silva was on the ballot against Diane Harman and Mike McGill in the Republican Primary in 2006, Edgar cast his vote in the Democrat Primary.
None of those pitched battles or moments in history could convince Troy Edgar to become a Republican, only his own selfish political interests of trying to obtain office in Orange County… Telling, isn’t it?
This race is just getting started. Troy Edgar has a liberal voting record that he has been trying to hide and a record of corruption that is hard to ignore. Of course then it makes sense for him to be slinging mud, trying to paint his opponent into a corner just as he was getting started. He sure doesn’t want people paying attention to his own past.
Unfortunately for Troy, voters will look past a single smear… and that clearly has Edgar scared.
Posted in 72nd Assembly District, Uncategorized | Tagged: Travis Allen, Troy Edgar | 8 Comments »
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