Here it is, our 7000th Diary. Wow! So, Open thread time:
• Joan Buchanan (AD-15) has a TV ad. Check it out:
• Shockingly, Tony Strickland is getting dirty in SD-19 against Hannah-Beth Jackson. He put out a mailer against Hannah-Beth's non-existent negative mailers saying he doesn't care. Put this together with his massive tobacco and oil company donations, and the push polls he has been doing, and you have one of the more disgusting campaigns we've seen for a while. He should be ashamed of the crap that's coming out of his campaign, but what do you expect from the former California director of Club for Growth?
• Dan Walters writes today about the prison crisis, which is not improving magically through lawmakers' collective decision to ignore it. J. Clark Kelso is extremely likely, in my opinion, to get the $8 billion he's seeking from a judge to fix the prison healthcare system, so just tack that on to next year's budget.
• Late Friday, unemployment statistics for August were released, and we're up to 7.7%, the third-highest in the nation (only Rhode Island and Michigan are worse). That's over two percentage points up from just a year ago.
• Karl Rove is coming to San Bernardino to headline a fundraiser with the local GOP. This is kind of perfect, since the San Bernardino Republican Party is kind of a criminal enterprise in its own right, too.
• Hey, big news from Gray Davis: he doesn't like the recall process! But, seriously, he makes decent points about good governance, which this state seems to think is a quaint process.
The most hotly anticipated State Senate election this year is in the 19th District covering Santa Barbara and Ventura County, between Democrat Hannah-Beth Jackson and Republican Tony Strickland. Though the two are almost polar opposites, the chunk of the district in Santa Barbara, where residents have long memories about the 1969 oil spill, makes it impossible for Republicans to win with their "Drill Now" message on energy. So Tony Strickland opted to run some ads that Al Gore might have run were he to be contesting in the district, highlighting renewable energy through wind, solar, algae, tidal and other forms. This is completely at odds with Strickland's doctrinaire Republican record, with votes against green building standards, minimum renewable energy standards, and even fuel-efficient tires. Strickland has taken money from Big Oil and stood with global warming denialists in the recent past. It's incongruous for him to carry a pro-environment message.
So I hooked up with the Courage Campaign and the California League of Conservation Voters to put together a little video highlighting this incongruity.
What's interesting is that the Courage Campaign's Web tool invited those supporters who received their email blast to spread the word, and they were so successful, both online political reporters at the Ventura County Star, the region's biggest newspaper, covered the video. More important, the Jackson campaign has been energized to fight back against some of Strickland allies' misleading ads on taxes, and in doing so buttresses the outside groups' take about Strickland's terrible environmental record.
So progressive groups are ensuring that Strickland gets away with nothing in this race, and in turn the Jackson campaign is fighting back as well and counter-punching swiftly and effectively. This is a growing success story in the 19th.
Tony Strickland has quite the history with the Club for Growth, a radical anti-government organization. The Club has a history of challenging moderate Republicans in federal and state elections throughout the nation. Strickland has been president of the California branch and is still fiercely loyal to the Club and its tactics. Unsurprisingly there are some Republicans who are a little less than thrilled with their nominee.
So, in the wake of the threat-induced "Democrats for Dreier", we have the "Moderate Republicans for Jackson." Of course, Hannah-Beth didn't use threats of withholding money from parts of the district to get these people to sign on to her campaign. You can check the details here. It lists some of their grievances with the former Assemblyman, beginning with the Club for Growth:
Moderate Republicans for Jackson was formed out of concern that Strickland is a man who is far removed from the beliefs and ethical standards held by the majority of people in our neighborhoods. Tony Strickland is an extremist. He was the founding president of the California Club for Growth, part of the ultra right-wing National Club for Growth which has made it a mission to destroy the political careers of moderate Republicans.
They go on to mention a laundry list of problems they have with Tony. From his accepting $85K in tobacco money for this campaign to his abysmal voting record on the environment.
Hannah-Beth Jackson has a long road until the general election, but this can't hurt. You can find her on the Calitics ActBlue Page. Full release over the flip.
As founder of the CALIFORNIA LIST I know all too well the importance of political positioning during an electoral cycle, especially when it comes to issues that matter to voters within your district. And if a particular issue is a hot button to the majority of your voters, your record had better be aligned with that voting bloc if you hope to win. This is what separates the committed legislator from the calculated chameleons. Senate District 19 is community of long-standing environmental activists and GOP candidate Tony Strickland has apparently donned his coat of many colors in his senate bid against Hannah-Beth Jackson.
Lately Strickland has been wearing a green coat of paint listing himself on the ballot as "Alternative Energy Executive," a title he dubiously earned a year ago when he co-founded GreenWave Energy Solutions. That does sound nice! After all, SD19 loves green and GreenWave Energy Solutions certainly conjures thoughts of eco-friendly energy solutions. So what is GreenWave and what has Strickland done in his tenure as co-founder, and more importantly, what has Strickland done for the environment before his eco-heroic rebirth?
HANNAH BETH JACKSON STATEMENT ON ATTACK OF PROTESTERS
Tuesday, June 20, 2008
On Tuesday, June 17th, a state employee on Assemblymember Audra Strickland's staff Joel Angeles attacked several participants of a protest of candidate Tony Strickland's acceptance of massive contributions from the tobacco lobby. Mr. Angeles' attack was provoked only by the protesters' desire to exercise their first amendment rights.
Had Joel Angeles been my employee he would have been fired on the spot. There is no justification for anyone, let alone a state employee, to deprive anyone of their free speech rights. A public employee on the staff of an elected representative is committed to protect the constitution on behalf of his employer, the State of California. Assemblymember Strickland has apparently suspended Mr. Angeles for a month. It is incomprehensible that someone with such a long history of service with Audra and Tony Strickland as Mr. Angeles would not understand the public's basic constitutional rights and the responsibilities of a public official. Audra and Tony Strickland should ensure that he has no future role in fulfilling their public responsibilities or campaigning for public office.
I have asked everyone associated with my campaign to respect our opponent's right to express their views, and believe that the public has the right to a full debate on the issues that face us in this election. The choice of who will represent the 19th Senate District next year is far too important to allow bullying or intimidation to disrupt the process.
Hannah-Beth Jackson served in the California State Assembly from 1998-2004 during which time she authored over 60 pieces of legislation that were signed into law by both Republican and Democratic governors, improving public education, increasing public safety, improving access to health care, protecting the environment as well as protecting the rights of consumers. She is the Democratic Party nominee to replace term-limited State Senator Tom McClintock in an open seat in the 19th Senate District, which includes large parts of Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties, and a small portion of Los Angeles County, and cities of Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Santa Clarita, Camarillo, Moorpark, Lompoc, Ojai and many others.
In what I can only describe as a shocking development, Jim Dantona, the moderate Democrat looking to notch a pickup in the Thousand Oaks/Simi Valley/Santa Barbara Senate seat held currently by Tom McClintock, has dropped out of the race, clearing the field for Hannah Beth-Jackson. This will allow Jackson to go up against Tony Strickland, in all likelihood, in this Senate seat which is rapidly becoming a bluer district. Here's his statement:
"Our polling shows I could defeat Strickland by as much as 10% and I would certainly do well against Jackson here in east Ventura County where polling indicates she is a relative unknown. But my intention was never to run against a fellow Democrat for this seat. I was running to bring leadership to this district that represented the will of the people, instead of the continual fringes of partisanship."
"Even with solid polling numbers, Jackson and I would have to spend a fortune against each other and that was never my intention. Tony has already put together a healthy war chest with no primary battle. The reality is that if we fight each other, we may as well hand him the Senate. I am a team player and I wish Hannah Beth only best in her race."
"As for me, business is very good and I am sure to be back and forth between Sacramento, Washington D.C. and Simi Valley. I am in negotiations with several companies in Italy and I've been asked to get involved in the Presidential elections, which I am very much looking forward to." (Dantona previously consulted for Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter)
"I will continue to work for the causes I believe in and I will always reach across the political aisle to garner support for our community."
I did not see this one coming, but I wish Hannah-Beth Jackson great luck in turning this seat blue and getting us closer to a 2/3 majority in the Senate. Hopefully Dantona will assist in that effort. And I'm excited that we'll get a real test to see just how this district is trending.
(The second in an occasional series of articles highlighting California legislative districts and candidates that could provide Democrats with a vital 2/3 majority.)
On the drive out from Santa Monica to Simi Valley, there's a moment when you know that you've left Los Angeles County and ventured into Ventura. Suddenly, the greenery recedes away, the canyon walls rise, and the scene becomes positively dramatic. If you let your mind wander, you could picture yourself in the middle of a John Ford movie backdrop or a national monument somewhere in Utah, despite being just 35 miles from downtown LA.
I was headed out to a fundraiser, driving along the 118 Freeway, which area transportation poohbahs see fit to remind you is named the "Ronald Reagan Freeway" about every 8/10th of a mile. Astonishingly enough, this was a Democratic fundraiser. For a candidate seeking a seat held by Tom McClintock, arguably the most rock-ribbed conservative in the entire state. And it's a seat Democrats can win. Things are changing along the Ronald Reagan Freeway.
Yesterday, a good friend of Calitics, and somebody whom I hold in very high regard, former Assemblywoman Hannah-Beth Jackson, announced that she was going to run for the 19th Senate District. The seat is currently held by Tom McClintock, who is termed out (unless the term limits measure passes). Ms. Jackson is a progressive. Pure and simple, there is no arguing that. Not only that, she is our kind of progressive. She founded SpeakOut California and has been reporting from the Capitol about issues that matter to us. She is one of us.
However, she is not the only Democrat in the race. On the other corner, we have political consultant Jim Dantona, whose prior experience includes losing an election for Ventura County Supervisor last year and staff work for Senate Pro Tem David Roberti. While he's not known as a progressive, he does raise the specter of a costly primary battle and would be a strong candidate in his own right. However, while Perata seems to be supporting Dantona, it looks like many of Ms. Jackson's former colleagues are supporting her bid for the seat.
The Republican candidate, Tony Strickland, seems all but certain at this point. It would be a tough matchup for either Democrat, but it's a winnable seat. I look forward to working with Ms. Jackson to help take back this seat and bring us that much closer to 2/3.
Tom McClintock is termed out in '08 and the race to replace him is heating up.
Tony Strickland is a leading GOP candidate, with McClintock staffer Mike Stoker also in the running. Since the eastern portion of the district is seen as key to victory, other names mentioned include Simi Valley councilman Glen Becerra. This promises to be a very ugly, expensive primary for the GOP.
Democrats are waking up to the possibility of taking this seat away from the GOP and adding to their current majority in the State Senate.
GOP registration advantage has been slipping and is now just over 4%, including many liberal republicans in Santa Barbara. The problem area of the district is seen as the GOP strongholds of Simi Valley, Moorpark & Thousand Oaks. We need a Democrat who can run strong in those areas.
Many Dems have been mentioned. Ventura Supervisor Steve Bennett, former Santa Barbara Assemblywoman Hannah-Beth Jackson and current Assemblyman Pedro Nava have said they're not running or are leaning that way. They're all from the Santa Barbara or the western part of the district.
My favorite possible candidate is Jim Dantona. We need to draft this guy to run!
He ran for a Supervisor's seat last year in the Simi Valley/Moorpark area, which only has 30% registered Democrats. He is credited with unseating the longtime Republican incumbent in the June Primary, but unfortunately lost the final in a bitter general election race to a well funded ultra-right candidate in November, by only 895 votes. In the end, Jim Dantona took 48.5% of the vote in a heavily gerrymandered GOP district. It's clear that he received strong support from voters across the isle.
Who is Jim Dantona? Currently a legislative advocate and small business owner, Dantona was Senate Pro-Tem David Roberti's Chief of Staff for 10 years in Sacramento. A former major league baseball player and single father of 3, he taught & coached elementary school for 5 years, and has been involved in philanthropic projects in his community for over 20 years, including establishing the organization B.A.D. - Baseballers Against Drugs.
Strong on environmental issues, he's been outspoken against Waste Management's plan to triple the size of their landfill footprint in Simi Valley, and has consistently advocated for stronger action against Boeing to protect families & the community from the Rocketdyne facility groundwater/site contamination. This area's residents have been plagued by cancer clusters & a myriad of health problems for years. Dantona has been one of the few community leaders to consistently demand answers and action.
We need a strong candidate in this district who has proven he can appeal to voters across party lines, while maintaining Dem core values.
(Unfortunately, the two-party system dominates. A Green pulling votes could hand the election to a scary conservative, such as McClintock. - promoted by SFBrianCL)
So, we are holding a press conference tomorrow morning with Rep. Barbara Lee (D, CA-09). We are going to highlight the importance of supporting the Democrat in a close race where a Green is running.
Especially when that Democrat has a Progressive message and agenda, such as John Garamendi and Debra Bowen.
This is late notice, but I wanted to get the message out. We would like there to be as big a show of support as we can get. Unfortunately, it is being held during business hours, so that will be a challenge. It is being held at 9:30 tomorrow morning, but if you can make it please try and be there at 9:00AM to help set up.
The location is in Richmond, CA at 3431 D Macdonald Ave (at 35th). This is our West Contra Costa County UDC campaign HQ.
It's not a race that has been talked about much. However, both the GOP and the Dems have competitive primaries. It's true, check out how much money the 2 Dems, Joe Dunn and John Chiang, have raised. The 2 GOP candidates, Strickland and Maldanado, should also be up there. However, for some reason, Strickland isn't up. Maldanado, however, is trailing both Dems in fundraising...by a lot.
But the news today is from the GOP primary race, and it's funny! From the SacBee's Buzz:
In a heated GOP primary battle for state controller, former Assemblyman Tony Strickland last week claimed his opponent, state Sen. Abel Maldonado, can't keep track of his own money.
Strickland's staff plugged Maldonado's name into the controller's database of unclaimed private property and found Maldonado has about $2,000 he hasn't collected. Or, as Strickland put it in a news release, Maldonado is on "the list of people who have carelessly lost track of their money."
On the contrary, said Maldonado's staff. They said the senator has known "for over a year" that he has unclaimed property. ...Maldonado has been teaching people how to find their property in the controller's database and has left his own money in the pool so he can type in his name and show them how it comes up, Kise said.(SacBee 4/17/06)
I suppose if I was really interested in this race I could follow this up by trying to find an instance of Maldanado actually "teaching" people. Personally though, even if I were a Republican, I wouldn't be that concerned about this. Mostly because the Controller's job isn't to actually do the accounting work himself, but rather to set priorities for the staff (some of whom, you would hope, are competent CPAs). But if the Republicans really want to bash each other over this, I'm all for it. I'm all for negative attacks amongst GOP candidates, not so supportive when it's Dems attacking Dems...got that Angelides and Westly?
That being said, there is a lot for the GOP candidates to fight about. Strickland has been paying himself, and his wife (who took his seat after term limits struck). (Thanks CarlsbadDem and SDPolitics...see comment below)
Over a little more than five years, Tony Strickland and his wife, Audra, who replaced him as a member of the state Assembly, paid more than $138,000 raised by their supporters to businesses owned by them and a staffer living in their Moorpark home. An additional $20,000 in campaign money was deposited into a nonprofit organization run by Tony Strickland.
The Ventura County couple say they did nothing improper and that investigators have cleared them of wrongdoing.
Strickland, who as controller would manage and audit the state's finances, produced a June 2004 letter from Ventura County prosecutors saying they looked at the transfers and found no evidence of criminal activity. The district attorney's office review was set in motion by a citizen complaint.
***
The Stricklands' political opponents say a dependence on donors not only to win the campaign, but also to increase their income, is a clear conflict of interest, even if not illegal.
"How could people be so arrogant to blatantly transfer money like this?" asked Jere Robings, a Republican activist from Thousand Oaks. "It is obvious they are trying to circumvent the law," he said.(LA Times 4/13/06)
And perhaps that's what those GOP candidates should be concerned about, not some $2,000 left unclaimed.
