Putting concern over a relatively insignificant office over the extremely significant 2/3rds majority in the State Senate, CDP Chair John Burton opposes Maldonado's confirmation as Lt. Gov.:
"Why should they give the job to a Republican -- when there hasn't been a Lt. Gov. who's been a Republican since Mike Curb in 1978," said Burton, whose own history as a powerful State Senate Pro Tem -- and his current control of party money as the Dem leader in CA -- could give him clout with state lawmakers on the matter. "Why give his seat to another party?"
"They'll vote him down," Burton predicted confidently....
"There's a reason why some people are Democrats, and some are Republicans," he said. "And Democrats don't vote for Republicans."
Of course, in this case, Democrats don't actually have to vote for Republicans. They can do nothing. Maldonado would become Lt. Gov. and serve for a few insignificant months while either Dean Florez or Janice Hahn mobilize around the state to defeat him.
Meanwhile, Democrats here on the Central Coast organize to send either John Laird or Bill Monning to the State Senate to replace Maldonado, combining with a Democratic victory later in the year in SD-12 to reclaim two Democratic districts and attain 2/3rds in the Senate.
As a member of my county's Democratic Central Committee, as well as a member of the California Democratic Party Executive Board, this strikes me as a favorable deal for the Democratic Party. Dems don't actually have to vote for Maldonado, and can continue to rail against him and his right-wing views. Meanwhile, we do the on-the-ground work that Dems can and should do to win the Lt. Gov. office as well as 2/3rds in the Senate.
Ultimately, if we have to weigh the considerations against each other, it is far more important for Democrats to have 2/3rds than to have the Lt. Gov. office. The state legislature is at the center of Democratic fortunes in this state. Because it has been in Democratic hands for nearly 40 years, it is seen as the most obvious model of what the Democratic Party stands for and can accomplish in California.
If the Democratic majority is unable to implement its vision because they lack a 2/3rds majority, then that makes Democrats look weak and ineffective. This is particularly the case with a Democratic governor. One of the things that led to Gray Davis's recall in 2003 was the inability of the Legislature to agree on a budget, making Davis look like a weak leader.
Democrats need to think like a party and a movement - and not like an organization dedicated to advancing the career of any single individual. The California Democratic Party is stronger by stepping out of the way of Maldonado's confirmation and instead focusing on making the case to California's voters, whether here on the Central Coast or statewide, as to why Democrats deserve votes instead of acting like those votes, or any particular office, belong to us by divine right. |
