Posted onFullerton 2010

CRA Forum: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

by 16 Comments on CRA Forum: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Which is which? You decide.

On Saturday Ed Royce and the CRA hosted a forum for Fullerton city council candidates. I’ll spare you the agony of redundant and predictable answers to the not-so-relevant questions on illegal immigration, gun rights and abortion. As expected, all of the candidates stuck to the party line.

So let’s get down to the two major issues where the candidates diverged and that actually affect Fullerton: Public employee pensions and redevelopment abuse. Candidate positions were carefully filtered into the following matrix:

Pension Reform
Committed to serious pension reform No commitment to pension reform
Redevelopment / Eminent Domain Rein in redevelopment abuse and eminent domain powers. Bruce Whitaker
Greg Sebourn
Barry Levinson
Use tax dollars to fund developer projects through redevelopment and allow eminent domain for taking private property when “necessary.” Marty Burbank Roland Chi
Don Bankhead
Pat McKinley

The candidates split into two camps, with Don Bankhead leading his team of big-government RINOs who’ve never met a redevelopment boondoggle that they didn’t like. That’s not really surprising, given that Bankhead and McKinley benefit from the current system through enriched government pensions.

On the other end of the spectrum, a few candidates acknowledged Fullerton’s most serious problems and promised to take action and fight taxpayer abuse.

Overall Bruce Whitaker dominated the forum with his calm, well-reasoned responses. Barry Levinson took some good shots at Bankhead, for which he was reprimanded by the moderator but applauded by this blog. Greg Sebourn also targeted the current bureaucracy with facts and figures which caused Bankhead to become visibly aggravated. Roland Chi spoke well but avoided making any strong statements. Marty Burbank and Pat McKinley both wore funny hats and stumbled through their answers. Aaron Gregg was a no-show and Tony Fonte was a colorful guy but it was hard to follow his responses.

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Posted onBehind Closed Doors

Spitzer For Supervisor?

by 15 Comments on Spitzer For Supervisor?
The laugh's on you!

The dynamics of OC politics may have changed when DA Tony Rackaukas fired his supposed successor, Todd Spitzer, last week.

The guy with a million bucks in the bank had the DA heir apparent rug pulled out from under him, and now may be contemplating something that a lot of people will very well fear. And loathe. Another coupla Spitzer terms as an Orange County Supervisor.

Yes, indeedy, Spitzer was the Third District Supe from1995 through 2002 and drove everybody bonkers. Well, he may figure that controlling the DA’s budget and jerking the DA around at every opportunity is much more fun than being DA.

Of course this would be a major bummer for the Lewis/Pringle/Campbell troika that is grooming Orange’s dishwater mayor, Carolyn Cavecche to replace Uncle Bill.

Which is which?

Spitzer for Supe in 2012? Stranger things have happened!

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Posted onBehind Closed Doors

Chevron Sues Fullerton Over Coyote Hills

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Last week Pacific Coast Homes, a subsidiary of Chevron Texaco, filed suit against the city of Fullerton for it’s recent denial of the West Coyote Hills development project.

Down boy

The suit was preceded by a claim for damages of “$1,000,000 plus” in which Chevron says Fullerton is responsible for breach of contract, breach of good faith and fair dealing, violating the civil rights act, and a few other things expressed in legal mumbo-jumbo beyond the vocabulary of this blogger.

If you feel like wading through it yourself, here is the claim and the complaint:

View the Coyote Hills lawsuit

So it looks like Chevron is attempting to apply pressure prior to bringing the project back in front of what will likely be a more favorable city council in 2011. I’ve also heard that the suit was preceded by Chevron making no-so-veiled threats towards a councilmember regarding future re-election possibilities. That’s just not very nice.

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Posted onFullerton City Council Candidates

California Land Surveyors Association Endorses Sebourn

by 21 Comments on California Land Surveyors Association Endorses Sebourn

This just came over the transom:

Fullerton, CA – The Board of Directors of the California Land Surveyors Association (CLSA), a statewide organization with 2200 members, voted unanimously to endorse Greg Sebourn for Fullerton City Council.

CLSA was established in 1966 advances the interests of the profession of Land Surveying, to maintain the highest possible standards of professional ethics and practice, to encourage uniformity of practices and procedures, and foster public faith in and understanding of Land Surveyors and their work.

CLSA represents Land Surveyors, in public or private practice, whether they are employees or proprietors.

“I have observed Greg as an effective Board member and team player with sound judgment when working through difficult issues that involve our profession,” says Aaron Smith, CLSA President. “Greg has been an active member of the Orange County Chapter, CLSA and currently serves as co-chair of the State CLSA Trig Star Program, which is an annual high school mathematics competition that acquaints high school students, career guidance counselors and high school math teachers with the use and application of trigonometry in the real world.”

Mr. Smith stresses, “Greg’s involvement has demonstrated his dedication to carrying out duties assigned to him in a professional manner.”

“I am humbled by the endorsement from the CLSA,” says Fullerton Council Candidate Greg Sebourn, “The CLSA serves with distinction of dedicated professional land surveyors that shapes our local communities by making our neighborhoods a better place to live.”

Mr. Sebourn says, “I have been tested in my profession as a Land Surveyor, who is ready to serve the people as the next Councilmember for the City of Fullerton with dignity and dedication, because the voters demand nothing less.”

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Posted onBehind Closed Doors

Rackaukas Fires Spitzer

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Oscar Wilde once described an English fox hunt thus:  the unspeakable in pursuit of the inedible.

While you ponder that pithiness, consider the firing the other day of junior grade deputy DA Todd Spitzer by his boss, District Attorney Tony Rackaukas. The Register reports, here.

Laugh now, cry later...

Supposedly Spitzer was trying to get some info out of the bad toupe wearing Public Admintrator/Guardian, John Williams. The latter thought it was improper, ratted out Spitzer to Rackuakas, who for the first time in his career actually punished a politician.

T-Rack & Williams. Is one of these men wearing a wig?

A politician? Yes. For Spitzer is a former County Supervisor, Assemblyman, and had put his DA-seeking career on hold, waiting for T-Rack to end his miserable legal misrule. And Spitzer has $1,000,000 in the bank.

Anyhoo, the plot thickens when we contemplate DA spokeswoman Susan Kang Schroeder, wife of OC political impresario Michael Schroeder, the guy who brought us Mike Carona. Ms. K-S has been rumored to be a challenger to Spitzer of the DA heir apparent title.

Just writing all this crap has made me exhausted and in need of a cleansing shower.

Ta ta, for now…

Say what?

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Posted onOC's Fourth District

Sheriff Hutchens and District Attorney Rackauckas Endorse Shawn Nelson

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This just came over the transom:

FULLERTON, CA – – Supervisor Shawn Nelson has garnered the support of Orange County’s top law enforcement leaders – Sheriff Sandra Hutchens and District Attorney Tony Rackauckas.

“Supervisor Nelson understands the vital public safety issues facing Orange County,” said Sheriff Hutchens. “He is working diligently to make sure safe homes, schools and neighborhoods are a priority of Orange County government.”

Shawn Nelson was elected in June to finish the term of former Supervisor Chris Norby. He is on the November ballot for a four year term. His opponent is the second place finisher from the June ballot.

Nelson easily won in June in spite of a record-breaking $1.4 million campaign from public employee unions promoting his opponents. He is a former Fullerton City Councilman and a youth sports coach. Shawn and his family reside in Fullerton.

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Posted onFullerton School Board

Another Republican Cuddles Up to the Union Machine

by 38 Comments on Another Republican Cuddles Up to the Union Machine

The other day Fullerton school board candidate and self-described “fiscal conservative” Janny Meyer joyfully announced her acceptance of the Fullerton teachers’ union endorsement.

Well, it's kind of a gray area.

This registered Republican must not be interested in GOP support, since that party has forbidden candidates from taking any union money.

But more importantly, Janny’s campaign is now backed by the very same teachers’ union that has repeatedly sacrificed your child’s education at the alter of paycheck protection. The result? Furlough days and increased class sizes, not good education.

It’s also the same union leadership that fights to protect bad teachers at all costs while refusing to allow schools to reward good teachers. They will boycott anyone who attempts to help parents evaluate teacher performance. They’ve instituted a system which puts young, energetic teachers up on the chopping block while coddling tenured teachers without any regard for job performance.

It makes my head hurt.

Of course, the union would love to pass a new property tax in Fullerton next year so they can keep shoveling money into this flawed system. Any idea how that conflict would churn in the head of a self-styled conservative who is also beholden to the union?

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Posted onMSM Falls on Face

Little Hoover Sucks Up County Pension Reform BS

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Does it blow or suck?

California’s “Little Hoover Commission,” a sort of State-wide Grand Jury, showed up at the County HQ on Friday to learn all about the wonderful work the County has done creating its scintillating 1.62 @ 65 pension option. Naturally, all the OCEA spokeholes started to sing out hosannas to the hard work of the union in developing this alternative – an option that promises to reward aging executives, and that so far very few people have signed up for. Wonder why not.

Supervisors Bill Campbell and Janet Nguyen actually had someone write an editorial rebuttal for them that appeared in the Register on Sunday and that discounted the idea of a mandatory defined contribution plan that would include everybody – even Supervisors like themselves.

Just keep saying the same thing, over and over again. Maybe you'll get another $140,000 this year.

Here is our old friend Norberto Santana of the Voice of OC(EA) in a typical report. Notice the snotty observation that Supervisor Shawn Nelson wasn’t in attendance at the commission meeting. Following Santana’s predictable lead, Kimberly Edds, a new writer with the equally worthless “Total Buzz” perpetrated by the OC Register, also notes Nelson’s “conspicuous absence,” here.

Hey geniuses: the meeting was attended by Supervisors Bill Campbell and John Moorlach. Nelson’s attendance would have constituted a violation of the Brown Act. But of course what’s the point of attending a dog and pony show that touts an option that’s really hardly more than feel-good window dressing?

And speaking of brown acts, the jerkoffs at the Liberal OC naturally followed along in praise of supposed innovation, and even included this image of Janet Nguyen pulling the wings off insects.


Well, let’s hope that real pension reform is on the way before the State of California breaks off and falls into a sea of red ink.

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