72nd Election
The 72nd State Assembly District that includes Fullerton was represented by Yorba Lindan pervert Mike Duvall who humiliated himself and his constituents by uttering anecdotes about his sexual activities with lobbists into an open microphone. Within hours of his resignation, Chris Norby decalred his intent to run in a special election to replace Duvall. Within days Linda Ackerman a non-resident of the district had also declared, not a t all embarrassed by the fact that she moved away ten years ago – to Irvine.
More On The Duvall Saga: The OC/Sacto GOP Angle
Posted by admin in 72nd Election, Repuglicanism on March 5, 2010
Mike Duvall
After my meeting with Mike Duvall the other day, I decided to see If I could learn anything more about the events of last summer that led to Mike’s ultimate resignation as the 72nd District State Assemblymen.
One of our good Friends happens to know a well-placed legislative aide who works in Sacramento and who, I was told, could help fill in some of the gaps. So I called this person.
According to this individual, it is not at all unusual for legislative staffers to request audio records of committee meetings; in fact it is a fairly standard practice. Thus, the fact that Jeff Miller’s aide requested a record of the meeting doesn’t signify any sort of prior conspiracy by Miller – or anyone else for that matter. My source logically pointed out that Miller, to a lesser extent, ended up getting painted by the same brush as Duvall.
Instead what this person says happened is that the embarrassing audio record did end up in the wrong hands – at least as far as Duvall is concerned. My source indicates that Duvall’s personal enemy Jon Fleischman did indeed come to possess a copy of the tape; and sometime between July 2009 and late August 2009 orchestrated the leak of the information to KCAL’s Dave Lopez and the OC Weekly’s Scott Moxley.
Fleischman. Painful public humiliation for Duvall is said to have been his motive.
Although Fleischman’s motives were said to be personal, others such as OC Republican power broker Mike Schroeder were also aware of the impending ambush, according to my source, although Schroeder’s motives for participating in Fleishman’s scheme in some way or other were not made abundantly clear.
Schroeder and Fleischman. Who else beside Fleischman knew about the impending storm?
As with my interview with Duvall, I can not immediately confirm the veracity of my source’s information, and the journalists in question will surely not reveal their source(s). Still, our insider is indeed well-placed to know what happened and I confer a certain level of credence to the story.
What is still unknown is what other high-level Republicans knew of the tape, it’s impending release, and the obvious political fallout from that release. If indeed Fleischman was the mastermind of the Duvall ambush, it is very hard to believe he would dare to do so without the consent of at least some of the OC Republican ruling party bosses – folks such as Schroeder, Dick Ackerman, and even Party Chairman, Scott Baugh. Why these party worthies would prefer, or even allow a public scandal instead of a quiet resignation by Duvall is something we may contemplate at our leisure.
However, as I noted yesterday, discussion of the Linda Ackerman candidacy on the integrity platform seemed to appear on cue, if way out of left field, before the ink had even dried on Duvall’s letter of resignation.
My Lunch With Mike. Mike Duvall, That Is
Posted by admin in 72nd Election, Repuglicanism on March 4, 2010
UPDATE: I HAVE POSTED A FOLLOW-UP STORY HERE, ABOUT THE SPECIAL OC ANGLE OF THE STORY.
It must be tough when just about everything anybody says about you is prefaced with the words “disgraced former assemblyman.” But that’s what Mike Duvall lives with every day.
On Wednesday I had lunch with Duvall.
Now, I’ve known Mike for a long time and thought that it would be interesting to hear his take on the events of last summer that led to his resignation and replacement as our State Assemblyman by Chris Norby. And he seemed eager to tell his side of the story.
Duvall has lost a lot of weight and looks pretty good. He attributes this to getting exercise and is benefiting from being away from the non-stop Sacramento smorgasbord provided courtesy of all those lobbyists. Well, I guess every cloud has it’s silver lining.
We met at Mike’s office and later moseyed on out for lunch. As our meeting progressed, Duvall shared his thoughts about what happened last summer.
Duvall said that he had become well known in Sacramento for “rocking the boats” of other legislators, and that fact may have been at the root of the events that transpired. He was known, he said, for his unorthodox attitude to Sacramento, even upon one occasion, introducing some of his biker buddies into the Capitol.
Although he can not fully explain their motives, Duvall stated that he believe the likeliest scenario is that he was set up by a conspiracy involving Jeff Miller, the assemblyman from Corona, and his aide. He believes the whole thing was either orchestrated or exploited by Republican operative Jon Fleischman, likely in retaliation for the forced resignation of Fleischman’s wife, a former employee in Duvall’s local office. He claimed that Fleischman had become extremely hostile to him personally.
According to Duvall the “hot mike” on the day his comments were recorded was Miller’s, not his; that in retrospect Miller seemed to coach the conversation into its lewd direction; and that Millers aide almost immediately went to retrieve a copy of the recording. Duvall stuck to his story that his comments were not a true revelation of anything that actually happened, and in fact he was just repeating stuff told to him about another legislator altogether.
When I asked him what Jeff Miller’s motive was to cooperate in the alleged set-up, Duvall speculated that it might have been done, at least in part to take heat off of him from the KFI John and Ken team who had been mercilessly attacking Miller, and who subsequently appeared to have stopped their attacks.
What still remains a mystery, except to the participants, and not explained by Duvall, are the events that transpired between July 2009, when the recording was made, and late August, 2009 when the story finally broke. Almost two months passed.
I have previously wondered about the on the role of Ackerman, Inc. in events of July-September 2009, since on September 10th Linda Ackerman received and responded to an almost immediate communication from the Register’s Martin Wisckol about her possible candidacy – while she was vacationing in Europe. It struck me as very odd that Linda Ackerman’s name would suddenly occur to Wisckol out of the blue without previous coaching. Duvall couldn’t shed any light on that.
But when I asked Duvall if he thought his support for the OC County Fair last summer might have played a role in the motive of someone trying to get rid of him, he acknowledged the possibility.
Is Duvall telling the whole story? Was he really set up, or was it simply the case that his unfortunate comments, true or not, were exploited by political enemies after the fact? The passage of the two month period and then the sudden revelation has all the earmarks of an orchestrated attempt to get rid of him.
The story about a conspiracy to set him up certainly sounds plausible. But without any real evidence to support his claims, Mike Duvall is going to have a hard time convincing a skeptics of his innocence.
The Scott Baugh Manifesto
Posted by The Desert Rat in 72nd Election, Dead heads, Repuglicanism, Setting The Bar Low on January 23, 2010
Me 'n Ronnie say so!
Last week the OC GOP Chairman Scott Baugh addressed his cohorts at the periodic Republican Central Committee meeting.
His speech was much anticipated and much commented about the next day in such venues where anybody gives a damn about what Baugh has to say. I waited a few days to display my disdain for such antics.
It seems Mr. Baugh tried to channel some of the angry energy of the “Tea Party” movement to zap some life into his team.
Baugh unloaded on RINOs; on candidates who get the GOP endorsement and then take public union money; on the “slick consultants” who call the shots. It must have sounded pretty good to the true believers in the audience; but the Repuglican cadre that has turned Orange County into its own little plantation – people like John Lewis and Ackerman, Inc. must have rolled their eyes a bit. Electeds in the audience who gladly took money from police and fire unions were no doubt (quietly) offended and/or frightened, depending on their dispositions, and this includes just about every Republican city councilman and Supervisor in the County.
I’ve got four problems with Mr. Baugh’s manifesto.
First he coughed up a speech very much like it last year in the wake of the epic McCain disaster and a year of Democrat rule. Apparently not much came of that one; so why expect anything else from the ‘Pugs?
Second, he seems to have failed to address the virus of office seeking that infects the party and that has been manifested in the Ackerwoman and now Harry Sidhu strains. In fact, Baugh was a supporter of Linda Ackerwoman and her fraudulent campaign of deceit in the 72nd – which pretty much tells you all you need to know about him.
Third, the idea that a candidate can’t take the money of a public employee union and still represent the public interest is curious. By the same logic these folks would be unable to resist the blandishments of corporate lobbyists who donate to their campaigns. Hmm.
Finally, Baugh ignores the wider problem of Repuglicanism - the malady of being a Republican for fun and especially profit. Calling for ideological purity seems to ring hollow when it’s pretty evident that the game is being played for one’s own pecuniary interest. Will we ever hear Baugh denounce Curt Pringle’s 50 billion dollar high speed idiocy? Probably not. Baugh uses his own political connections to lobby here and there, including a highly lucrative contract awarded by fellow ‘Pugs on the Board of Supervisors to lobby in Sacramento.
So in the end, to quote the Bard, here’s what I see in Baugh’s address: a tale told by an idiot; full of sound and fury and signifying nothing.
Longshots Have Surprise Up Sleeve?
Posted by Joe Sipowicz in 72nd Election, Boohooism, Pam Keller, Sharon Quirk on January 18, 2010
Just keep going 'til you get to the bottom.
In today’s Register our old amigo Martin Wisckol cobbled together a piece about, well, hard to say exactly what it was about, but among other things it contained some gems from OC Democratic Party boss Frank Barbaro.
Of course it's all bullshit!
It seems Frank is having buyer’s remorse after the singularly humiliating asswhipping Fred MacMurray had laid down on him by Chris Norby in the 72nd Special Election. Now, it seems Barbaro is wishing Sharon Quirk had stayed in the race.
“If we’d have had Sharon Quirk, I think we would have had a different result,” said Barbaro, a model of perseverance and optimism already looking ahead to the reelection Norby will seek later in the year. “We might have some surprises for him in November.”
Might have some surprises? Hell, the Sun might collapse in on itself, too.
To surprise Norby in November means the Dems have to have a credible candidate on board almost any day now. But who? Galloway now claims to live in the district, but is tied up elsewhere; Quirk-Silva? Maybe, but the last bug out seemed a bit, well, unusual. Hey, how ’bout Pam Keller? Nope; running for re-election. Rosie Espinosa? See Galloway comment, above.
So the Dems got nothin’. Just whistlin’ in the dark. All Norby has to do is make sure the mike is off.
Election Night Parties For Chris Norby & Jane Rands
Posted by Travis Kiger in 72nd Election, Chris Norby on January 12, 2010
Chris Norby would like you to join him, his friends and supporters tonight for an election night party at Cherch Lounge in downtown Fullerton at 7:00 pm.
If hobnobbing with the Republican establishment isn’t your thing, you may also consider joining the Jane Rands campaign to hear election night results at nearby Frati Gelato, 8:00 pm.
Not sure where John McMurray is having his party tonight, but when we find out we will be sure to let you know.
Chamber Star: Norby Elevates Self to Statesman Status
Posted by admin in 72nd Election, Chris Norby, Statewide Stuff on January 11, 2010
Friends, we have just received this communication from our old pal Chamber Star, who, although absent of late, has returned to share some breaking news. Although we can’t vouch for it’s reliability, we reproduce the CS e-mail, verbatim:
Dear FFFF,
I have just learned that Chris Norby, the Republican candidate in Tuesday’s 72nd District Special Election has asked for, and has received, the endorsement of his primary opponent Linda Ackerman.
This is great news! It was a rough and tumble election and a lot of negative things were said on both sides; so it is especially gratifying to see old adversaries patch up their differences and move ahead in unity and harmony.
I know some people on this blog will criticize Chris. They will ask how can he possibly want the endorsement of someone who accused him of so many vile things? They will ask how can he possibly want the endorsement of an opponent that he accused of fraudulent residence and profiteering off her husband’s campaigns? They will no doubt argue that Norby won so convincingly that he does not need Linda’s endorsement at all.
To this I respond by saying that it’s politic to let bygones be bygones; to pull together for the common good; to work together! And let’s not forget that Norby has two more elections this year alone. Norby can only benefit from party unity both in gaining votes and fundraising.
It’s obvious that Chris is being guided by wise counsel and the kind of pragmatism that gets real results in Sacramento. He is following the course of the true statesman.
And I for one, say “Bravo!”
It Isn’t Easy Being Green
Posted by admin in 72nd Election on January 10, 2010
POST UPDATE
Because the entrenched duopoly of power has very little interest in anything other than their own interests they are not inclined to stray off their respective reservations. No matter how much they bash each other the worst thing would be to let anybody else through the clubhouse door. So the political dialectic gets a little, um, stale. And by stale we mean brain dead asshat mindless.
A couple of weeks ago we ran a post on the immeasurably clownish ballot statements of the Republican and Democrat in the 72nd Special election. Since the Green Party candidate, Jane Rands, did not have a statement on the ballot, we though we would oblige by sharing one with the Friends. So we asked Jane to send a statement along. And here it is:
Name: Jane Rands
Occupation: Systems Engineer
Age: 43
I do not accept lobbyist money because I am running to represent you and not the special interests. While career politicians pander for dollars, I speak honestly about solutions for a sustainable future.
California needs a new energy plan based on clean, renewable power. I support decentralized rooftop solar power to achieve energy independence and a cleaner environment.
We need health care without insurance company profits getting in the way of providing coverage for every Californian. I support Single Payer health care.
We need a long term solution to bring water to our cities without harming our natural environment. I oppose billions of tax payer dollars being used to pay back bonds for a peripheral canal intended to benefit agribusiness. Local water use policies and conservation should be the centerpiece of any state water plan.
Last year Prop. 8 took away constitutionally guaranteed rights for the first time in our state’s history. If the state is going to be in the business of sanctioning one’s chosen life partner the state should be fair and equitable.
Public transportation is cut while disproportional amounts of transportation funds go to widen streets and freeways that are soon again jammed with cars. Elect me for long term transportation solutions.
I am a lifelong Californian with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Cal Poly Pomona.
Find out more about my campaign at www.janerandsforassembly.com or email jane@janerandsforassembly.com or call (714) 325-5223. I look forward to hearing from you.
Please join me in campaigning for the California we all know we can have if we work together, not twenty years in the future, but now!
Just In Case You Wanted Anymore Proof…
Posted by Joe Sipowicz in 72nd Election, Chris Norby, Dead heads, Repuglicanism on December 14, 2009
…that former State Senator, State Assemblyman, and Fullerton City Councilman Dick Ackerman is a lying sack of canine excrement, we have it.
Hard to do this with any sort of dignity...
Okay, it’s been a tough fall for good old Dick what with the lil’ lady getting her posterior kicked in the AD 72nd election, and then with Ackerman’s own dubious behavior on behalf of the OC Fair Foundation miscreants coming to light. Some folks might be inclined to think we’re just piling on at this point (we are, of course). But this latest revelation is just so, um, revealing into the stack of prevarication masquerading as a former State Senator that, well, we just had to share it.
(First, thanks to the FFFF political research team, although it would have been useful to get this a couple of months ago – so no Christmas bonuses for you!)
Let’s let our old friend Matthew J. Cunningham do the wordsmithing. Here’s an excerpt from a Cunningham blog post away back in ‘06 when Norby was running for re-election as a County supervisor. Cunningham is describing a Norby campaign mailer. Too bad the links don’t work anymore but, you’ll get the gist all right:
But the most noteworthy aspect of this mailer: a big sloppy endorsement from Sen. Dick Ackerman! Norby and Ackerman have been mortal foes for years. They must have smoked a seriously potent peace pipe.
I never said that, did I?
So let’s get this straight. Ackerman warmly endorses Norby in 2006, after the Pam Mokler phony lawsuit jury verdict! But by 2009 he remembers that poor Pam Mokler is just a poor victim; and he conveniently remembers that the man he endorsed in 2006 is actually a serial sexual harasser from way back in the 80’s – as passed along and dutifully repeated by the Register toady Frank Mickadeit. What a guy!
Odd that Norby and his ace team of political consultants had forgotten what would have been an acutely embarrassing situation for their arch enemy Ackerman. Of course we couldn’t expect Cunningham to recall it either; or if he did to publish it.
Anyway, Friends, there you have the sum and substance of a completely worthless individual, Dick Ackerman, whose gastropodic slime-sheen reflects back on all the scum-suckers who endorsed his wife’s completely fraudulent campaign.
High degree of reflectivity...
But rest assured, Friends. We’re not done with Dick and his lackeys. Not by a long shot.
The Ed Royce Endorsement
Posted by admin in 72nd Election, Chris Norby, Dead heads, Repuglicanism on December 14, 2009
On a very recent post commenter “Umbrella Alert” notes that Chris Norby’s use of the very very recent Ed Royce endorsement in his ballot statement is something of a “kick in the teeth” to folks who supported Norby when it counted. Now Norby doesn’t even need Royce’s bendable and character-free endorsement, but there it is.
Ackerwoman? Never heard of her...
Hard to disagree. This smells a lot like a “let’s all get together and forget the near past” orchestration - a past that included Royce’s warm endorsement of an unqualified carpetbagger who lied to the voters claiming to be a “businesswoman” and who spent two months slandering Norby’s reputation in just about the worst possible way. Remember that Ed?
No doubt Norby’s campaign consultants and lobbyists are telling Norby to climb into the Repuglican Clown Car. That’s where the money is. What’s next? A glowing testimonial to Dick and Linda Ackerman as life-long dedicated public servants?
Excuse me. I may just barf up my breakfast.
The Candidates Should be Ashamed of Their Ballot Statements
Posted by Mr. Peabody in 72nd Election, Boohooism, Dead heads, Repuglicanism on December 13, 2009
I was talking to a co-worker the other day about the 72nd AD Special Election Sample ballot that came out last week. He expressed a feeling of disgust about the statements of the two traditional party candidates. I asked him to write up a post on the subject and he obliged. Here it is. The images were added by yours truly.
The Republican and Democrat candidates for the 72nd Assembly District Election ought to be ashamed of their ballot statements. But shame, as we learned from the example of Mike Duvall, is an emotion with a real low threshold for most politicians.
Just damn glad to be here...
Let’s first examine Chris Norby’s ballot statement. He mentions how his opposition to higher taxes has earned him the endorsement of Tom McClintock and Ed Royce. Ed Royce? What kind of nonsense is this? A few weeks ago Ed Royce was supporting the lying, fraudulent, carpetbagging campaign of Linda Ackerman. And now Norby is bragging about the value of the endorsement from this empty little suit?
Norby touts his “vote” to place immigration agents in County jails to weed out illegal aliens. Why INS agents are needed to “identify” aliens is unclear and what, exactly they are doing in the jails remains a mystery. Well “whoop-de-do” as Archie Bunker once said. This is not an accomplishment, just pandering to the rabid anti-immigrant crowd, and Norby should know better.
Norby also takes credit for “spearheading” “improvements” to the 5 and 22 freeways as Chairman of the OCTA, even though both projects were in the works long before Norby showed up; and of course, the 22 was months and months behind schedule until the OCTA bureaucrats and the contractor worked out a massive, mutual face-saving change order that cost the taxpayers tens of millions of dollars.
So much for Norby.
Now, let’s take a look at the ballot statement of Norby’s opponent, Democrat John MacMurray.
Why don't they send donkeys to college? Because nobody likes a smart ass.
As a public school teacher should we expect more from MacMurray than a clumsy metaphor? Of course not! For MacMurray the awkward concept is the “three-legged table” supported equally by the three balanced legs of private sector, non-profit sector, and public sector. Everybody who has ever seen a three legged table please raise his hand. Apparently, John is worried about using the word “stool,” which is what his statement starts to smell like in the very first sentence.
I have great reservations about Mr. MacMurray’s invention of a “non-profit sector,” especially after the FFFF discoveries about how Fullerton’s Pam Keller has so effectively blurred the line between non-profit and public sector – so as to make the distinction in the mind of a liberal, non-existent.
MacMurray’s assertion that “we keep cutting support for our education system and cutting access to it” is obviously designed to generate outrage in the noblest liberal breast, but it’s a lie. Proposition 98 provides that a guaranteed percentage of the State budget goes to “education.” At least it goes to education spending. Any overall budget reductions are the fault of MacMurray’s spend-crazy Democrats in the Legislature who just can’t say nyet to the demands of public employee unions.
Cliches, lies, nonsense. Can’t we finally get an honest and intelligent ballot statement from the two candidates who are able to pay for one? Guess not. Not yet, anyway.
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