We could dive into financials and campaign committees but from the above info alone it should be clear that he’s running again in 2020. Now why do I think he’ll beat Ling Ling Chang?
Just when I was preparing to see a new chapter of shenanigans in Fullerton coming from our new council, instead from the realm of ARE YOU F^&$&ING KIDDING ME comes Doug Chaffee trying to slap Fullerton with one more bit of cronyism before he leaves to play at the county level.
Less than two short weeks ago the council voted, 3-2 (Sebourn, Silva & Whitaker vs Fitzgerald & Chaffee) against an unsolicited bid for a hotel on the parking lot near the train station at Santa Fe and Ponoma. Cooler heads prevailed and a more open, transparent and honest process was suggested.
Now Chaffee, who per the City Manager agendized this item, wants to crush that transparency and openness in his last meeting this coming Tuesday. To make matters more unpalatable the council/staff arranged the agenda to swear in our new council member (Zahra) and say goodbye to the ones leaving (Sebourn & Chaffee) AFTER they vote again on this hotel nonsense. For the uninitiated there is a vendor who wants to build a hotel and Fitzgerald and Chaffee want to hand it off to them without opening a bid process to interested parties. It’s cronyism and backroom dealing 101.
This is truly a slap in the face to both Ahmad Zahra and District 5 as this new development would be in their neighborhood and the first District 5 candidate will have no say on it because the agenda lets Zahra join council mere moments AFTER this hotel’s fate is already decided.
This coming back this quickly means one thing and one thing only – somebody got to Silva* as he’s the likely weak link on this issue.
For reference here’s what Silva said about the ENA at the last meeting at approximately the 3:30:12 mark:
“I think an RFP, or a bidding, would help the city I think, would help us get the best possible product. Competition drives, brings out the best in you. And I think having that can bring out the best in the current applicant and someone else.”
We’ll see if Silva still believes this on Tuesday or if all of the sudden competition is less important than craven cronyism. Even if it’s the case that Silva changed his mind, does he really think so little of fellow Democrat Ahmad Zahra that he’ll prevent him from voting on an issue that residents of District 5 have officially elected him to decide on?
This is just dumb, unnecessary, and silly. One can’t help but wonder if this is really Doug Chaffee being that tone deaf or if it’s really retribution for Ahmad Zahra winning a seat his wife coveted in the first place.
Because, and let’s be honest, if Paulette Marshall Chaffee won this election, Doug wouldn’t be preventing her from voting on Tuesday.
*it’s possible that Whitaker or Sebourn were flipped but they had stronger arguments than Silva and are more ideologically opposed to cronyism.
Today the City of Fullerton put out a Press Release stating that Fullerton Police Chief David Hendricks was resigning. They extolled the virtues of his employment and when I called to ask about the resignation I was told that I was making an assumption that the Chief was resigning owing to his current leave of absence and possible criminal prosecution.
Let us clear a few things up here for the record.
First and foremost the City, per their Public Information Officer, agreed to waive the contractual requirement that Hendricks give 45 days notice upon his written resignation. It allowed them to appoint Acting Chief Dunn as…. Interim Chief Dunn, a distinction without a difference, unless you happen to have a pension stored at CalPERS.
Second, despite the Chief being on leave for over 2 months, this was announced on a Friday when City Hall is closed. Want further details? Too bad, you’re gonna have to wait until Monday when everybody is focused on Tuesday’s Mid-Term Election. This is government document-dump obfuscation 101. You don’t release information in this fashion unless you’re trying to bury the news and avoid answering questions.
Why did the City agree to waive the 45 day requirement? Why was this done now being that we already have an acting chief? Why didn’t the city work to fire Hendricks for contract violation owing to the ongoing investigation? What is the status of that investigation?
No clue. No responses. No answers. Gonna have to wait until Monday folks, sorry.
Let this be an abject lesson that City Manager Ken Domer does not believe in transparency contrary to his public and private statements. I had high hopes for Domer, but alas he is proving himself to be just another bureaucrat working to keep the bureaucracy funneling money into his and his cohort’s retirements. Don’t expect our tired and constantly campaigning City Council members to ask any of these questions or work to make things more transparent.
Fret Not Friends!
We want answers and I’m sure you want answers as well and thanks to an anonymous source from the great beyond we have some details that the city will never tell us because reasons.
Here is the redacted (for privacy) and highlighted (by me) highlights of what really happened at that Lady Antebellum concert back in August and why our Chief decided to resign with no notice.
This morning, city officials issued a press release announcing Fullerton’s top cop had departed. Per Chief Hendrick’s contract, no disparaging remarks are included in the release, which summarizes some accomplishments in the short tenure of Mr. Hendricks.
— Improved Morale
— Improved Retention
— Improved Response Time
— Online Crime Blotter Reporting
— Homeless Support
— Streamlined investigations and documentation for complaints
Not a single mention as to why the Chief Resigned, namely any confirmation or denial that the Chief did in fact assault a uniformed female emergency response technician.
In any case, after collecting $60,000 on a paid vacation covering two and a half months after the incident, Fullerton taxpayers have yet another interim chief, no shortage of sign thieves, stabbings, shootings, double digit arrests every weekend downtown, and absolutely no answers whatsoever concerning what the hell happened at a concert down in Irvine involving two of Fullerton’s top brass.
Anyone know what to know a defining feature of shitty politician?
They never, ever, apologize.
Enter, Paulette Marshall Chaffee. Over the past week, FFFF’s crack investigative pool embarrassed Pilfering Paulette into suspending her campaign after posting not one, but two separate videos of Mrs. Chaffee taking down political signage and driving away with property that isn’t hers.
Hat tip to Sharon Kennedy at the Fullerton Observer for getting a statement from Chaffee:
“I have too much respect for the people in this community to put them through this clearly toxic campaign. therefore I have decided for the good of the community to suspend my campaign for Fullerton City Council District 5.”
Really? Too much respect?
Let’s consider that. Pilfering Paulette has “too much respect for the people in *this* community to put them through this clearly toxic campaign”, but not enough respect not to steal.
We just received word that the vehicle seen used by the Fullerton sign thief was discovered this morning parked in the driveway of the home of Fullerton Mayor, and 4th District Supervisor Candidate, Doug Chaffee.
Despite Mayor Chaffee living up the hill in the 2nd District, his wife Paulette recently moved south to the 5th district, where she also happens to be running a city council campaign. Why would the vehicle in question drive all the way down to South Fullerton to meddle in a different district’s election?
If you watch the video which was posted earlier today, you’ll see a mysterious figure stealing a campaign sign from private property near downtown Fullerton. Looking at the video it certainly seems to match the Grand Cherokee that was discovered at Chaffee’s house by an intrepid Friend.
It is sadly common for those running for office to try and silence their opposition but it’s hard to believe the wife of a sitting Mayor would be so brazen, especially with both of them running for office simultaneously.
This is petty theft and is a misdemeanor with a maximum punishment of either 6 months or 1 year in a county jail, and/or a $1,000 fine.
That’s a decent sized risk for the rest of us but I suppose the Chaffees are above such considerations.
** UPDATE **
A request for comment was sent to both campaigns with neither responding by the time of publishing.
Should anyone hear from the Chaffees, please let us know.
