Recall opponents step forward
A couple of my recent columns drew interesting responses from individuals currently and formerly active on the Yorba Linda political scene.
Two weeks ago I again opposed recalling City Council members Allen Castellano, Ken Ryan, Keri Wilson and Jim Winder. But I recommended anti-recall leaders abandon the anonymity they claimed was needed to prevent attacks from recall proponents.
An e-mail from city Traffic Commissioner Lee Snyder noted that he was uncomfortable supporting a group that wished to remain anonymous. “If I had the guts to put my name on their Web site, they should let us know who ‘they’ are,” Snyder sagely suggested.
I also received an e-mail from Chris Puentes, who said the anti-recall group wasn’t trying to be secretive, but “the behavior seen from many of the recall folks…has been pretty rude and nasty. It’s not difficult to understand why some folks would not want to subject themselves to the harassment and meanness that many…recall people have exhibited.”
Puentes identified the other anti-recall leaders: Debra Ann Afarian, Vince Hambright, Mark Mallars, Carey Puentes, Valerie Renz, Scott Russie and Eve Tibbs.
He said the group hired professional political campaign treasurer Betty Presley of Rancho Santa Margarita because members are “ignorant of the many reporting requirements of a political campaign. We’re not politicos, we’re just trying to do the right thing.”
We can expect the war of words between the pro- and anti- recall groups--including the school-yard chants of who’s nasty and who’s not--to heat up as the summer progresses.
Also, a column earlier this month describing six municipal ballot measures prior to the Right-to-Vote initiative brought an e-mail from former Mayor Anton “Doug” Groot.
Groot, a key low-density leader who served on the council from 1976 to 1980 and the Planning Commission for the previous five years, tactfully noted that I missed two advisory measures the council placed on the June 1978 ballot.
One measure asked voters if a future election should determine if the council should be elected from districts. It passed 4,192 to 3,807, but Groot said an election wasn’t held because three sitting council members realized they lived in the same proposed district.
The other measure asked voters if the council should schedule an election for a general obligation bond issue to purchase the Nixon Park property. It failed 4,927 to 3,310.
Groot might not be familiar to some residents today because he’s not among the handful of former mayors who allow their names to be trotted out at each election by developers and political consultants to appear on mailers supporting selected candidates and causes.
Instead, he happily divides his time between homes in Placentia and Rancho Cugamunga. Interestingly, Groot said he spent $700 on his victorious ’76 campaign, but about $10,000 four years later, when he lost re-election by 14 votes.
A FINAL NOTE
Occasionally, I receive requests for copies of back columns. Since only the past few newspaper issues can be found on the Yorba Linda Star Web site, and my columns are not otherwise archived, I’ve started posting them at http://jimdrummond.blogspot.com.
Please note that I do not blog on the site. It’s merely a free and easy way to post past columns. Perhaps some readers will want to check up on my many failed predictions.
Two weeks ago I again opposed recalling City Council members Allen Castellano, Ken Ryan, Keri Wilson and Jim Winder. But I recommended anti-recall leaders abandon the anonymity they claimed was needed to prevent attacks from recall proponents.
An e-mail from city Traffic Commissioner Lee Snyder noted that he was uncomfortable supporting a group that wished to remain anonymous. “If I had the guts to put my name on their Web site, they should let us know who ‘they’ are,” Snyder sagely suggested.
I also received an e-mail from Chris Puentes, who said the anti-recall group wasn’t trying to be secretive, but “the behavior seen from many of the recall folks…has been pretty rude and nasty. It’s not difficult to understand why some folks would not want to subject themselves to the harassment and meanness that many…recall people have exhibited.”
Puentes identified the other anti-recall leaders: Debra Ann Afarian, Vince Hambright, Mark Mallars, Carey Puentes, Valerie Renz, Scott Russie and Eve Tibbs.
He said the group hired professional political campaign treasurer Betty Presley of Rancho Santa Margarita because members are “ignorant of the many reporting requirements of a political campaign. We’re not politicos, we’re just trying to do the right thing.”
We can expect the war of words between the pro- and anti- recall groups--including the school-yard chants of who’s nasty and who’s not--to heat up as the summer progresses.
Also, a column earlier this month describing six municipal ballot measures prior to the Right-to-Vote initiative brought an e-mail from former Mayor Anton “Doug” Groot.
Groot, a key low-density leader who served on the council from 1976 to 1980 and the Planning Commission for the previous five years, tactfully noted that I missed two advisory measures the council placed on the June 1978 ballot.
One measure asked voters if a future election should determine if the council should be elected from districts. It passed 4,192 to 3,807, but Groot said an election wasn’t held because three sitting council members realized they lived in the same proposed district.
The other measure asked voters if the council should schedule an election for a general obligation bond issue to purchase the Nixon Park property. It failed 4,927 to 3,310.
Groot might not be familiar to some residents today because he’s not among the handful of former mayors who allow their names to be trotted out at each election by developers and political consultants to appear on mailers supporting selected candidates and causes.
Instead, he happily divides his time between homes in Placentia and Rancho Cugamunga. Interestingly, Groot said he spent $700 on his victorious ’76 campaign, but about $10,000 four years later, when he lost re-election by 14 votes.
A FINAL NOTE
Occasionally, I receive requests for copies of back columns. Since only the past few newspaper issues can be found on the Yorba Linda Star Web site, and my columns are not otherwise archived, I’ve started posting them at http://jimdrummond.blogspot.com.
Please note that I do not blog on the site. It’s merely a free and easy way to post past columns. Perhaps some readers will want to check up on my many failed predictions.
posted by Jim Drummond at 12:00 PM
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