When will the election be over? When all the votes are counted...

Isn't democracy great?  Americans made a resounding statement last Tuesday but there are still several campaigns for public office that will hang in the balance until every vote is counted.

Chuck Shultz at the Santa Maria Times reports that 20,000 votes were counted between Wednesday and Friday of last week. Some 85,000 are still left to be counted in the three county region that includes the 19th Senate District. Even though Los Angeles County only represents a small part of the district -- that is a lot of votes to count before we know who the winner is.

If that wasn't enough a "manual tally" of 10% of the vote is required by state law when there is a State Senate race that is this close.  here's what Schultz wrote in the Santa Maria Times:

The see-saw battle between Jackson and Strickland could stretch into late November or early December before election officials declare an official winner. That is due to a state regulation requiring a “manual tally” of each ballot cast in a randomly selected 10 percent of all precincts, for any race where the semi-official results on election night showed the top two candidates within a half-percent of each other.

I've heard from a reliable source that there are 4,000 vote-by-mail ballots and 6,000 provisional ballots left to be counted in Santa Barbara County.  Although there is no way of knowing where exactly these votes are from -- they could have a direct impact on the school board race where Ed Heron has extended his lead to 320 votes for the third seat and in Carpinteria where Kathleen Reddington is only 17 votes ahead of Steve McWhirter.

We'll stay on top of it here at BlogaBarbara but we may be still waiting for some of these results as we approach the later part of the holidays....

Strickland Gains with Conservative Ventura Vote

The BlogaBarbara Magic Voting Chart (well maybe not so much like CNN...) has changed. The Ventura numbers of ballots counted increased since yesterday to 191,394 from from 181,100. The almost 9,500 votes show a switch in the lead to Tony Strickland by 840 votes with 52% of the votes counted in recent days.

Will the provisional and day-of vote-by-mail ballots from Santa Barbara County carry the day for HBJ? Only time will tell but we would have to expect it ain't over until it's over on this one.

Update on HBJ/Strickland Race

There looks to be some 40,000 to 50,000 votes to be counted in this important State Senate District race wehre Hannah-Beth Jackson is currently just 108 votes ahead. Ironically, they are replacing Tom McClintock who is also in a yet to be decided Congressional race. He's just 400 votes ahead of Democrat Charlie Brown. More soon...

Only 108 Votes Separate Strickland from HBJ's Victory

We all knew this would be close -- but this close? Will there be a recount? A 108 vote victory is the difference between Hannah Beth Jackson and Tony Strickland.

In another tight race, Ed Heron leads Charlotte Ware for the third seat by on 241 votes. Provisional ballots and dropped-off vote-by-mail ballots may decide that one.

New anti-HBJ Hit Piece Shows Ties to GOP

These scans of a recent mailer were sent by an avid reader last night...thanks much for the scans and most of the text below. -- Sara

The "California Citizens for Ethics in Government” sent out this mailer which many Ventura County residents received yesterday. This new PAC has the same phone number as the Republican Party’s lawyer. They pretend it’s a real ethical research outfit and it’s the Republicans’ lawyer!!!!

They are telling us they “investigated” the charges and “Tony Strickland’s record is far more independent.” The PAC showed that it is funded by Indian tribes and Republicans in a late expenditure report.

This is the same lawyer who just issued a threatening letter with unspecified charges to the VCDCC and Vote Blue over voter fraud and it’s the same one who handled the VCRCC’s “membership mailer” case a year and a half ago.

A search at Call-Access shows the committee has the same phone number as:

Charles H. Bell, Jr.
Bell McAndrews & Hiltachk LLP
455 Capitol Mall, Suite 801
Sacramento, CA 95814

They also haven't filed any forms for this election:

FILER ID: 1311427

SUMMARY INFORMATION - CALIFORNIA CITIZENS FOR ETHICS IN GOVERNMENT (ID# 1311427)
CURRENT STATUS ACTIVE
This committee has not electronically filed a Form 460/461/450 for this election cycle. For further information, click on prior year displays to see if historical filings are available. Also check for late contribution filings if a major filing deadline has not yet occurred for this election cycle.

Hmmmm, when will it be too expensive for these groups to feel forced to file their pre-election campaign reports on time? Right now, the fees are so low they figure it's the cost of doing business....dirty business.

Note: It turns out they filed a late report -- funded by the above mentioned Republicans and Indian Tribes. I guess I missed it the first time I checked. Still, you would have to really search to find the money trail.

A History of Dirty Tricks?

A reader sent the following images from a MySpace page claiming that this is State Senate candidate Tony Strickland -- one picture clearly shows him very happy that he had stolen a few lawn signs during a political campaign. It certainly looks like him.

Years later -- perhaps his tactics and techniques have gotten a bit more sophisticated with mailers which prey on Proposition 13 fears and call other candidates names.

Unfortunately, the lower level dirty trick of stealing lawn signs will always be around. Candidate wives even do it too (although the following might have been a misunderstanding).

I got this from a different reader about the race in Goleta (with an appropriate YABBADABBA):

I was at the Storke Drive-In dropping off signs for John to put on the pole and I was talking to the guys working on the driveway. They told me a woman in a Bronze Honda SUV had come and taken the signs on Tuesday. As we were talking, the van pulled up and I walked toward my car and the SUV. I was going to get paper to write down her license number. She got out of the car and I said I understood she had taken our signs. She said she had permission to have signs there and we didn't so she was removing them. I explained that John had given us permission and that she was stealing. She said she only checked on the Drive-In and across from Costco. She asked my name and I told her and asked hers. It was Don's wife Deanna Gilman. The guys told me afterwards that she had also taken down the signs at the gas station on Hollister. The guys wrote down her license for me. It is YABBADABBA. The guys will be working the rest of this week and Monday of next so we should be safe during the day.

John came by and I told him she said she was going to call him to check that we had his okay. Neither he nor I expect that to happen. I guess they don't have any help and have to do it all themselves.

They are talking about the property owner of the gas station on Fairview who also owns the old drive-in property across from Home Depot on Storke. Deanna Gilman should probably check before she chucks...

HBJ Endorsements Truly Impress

There are endorsements in politics you expect -- like the Daily Nexus endorsing the Democrat in the race.

There are also the random endorsements, or set of endorsements in this case, that you don't expect. I read in one of Ventura's main blogs, Making Waves, that Hannah Beth Jackson has received the endorsement of all 19 Ventura County school superintendents. Wow. That does not happen very often.

The Nexus endorsement put it perfectly, albeit sensationally, when they said:

Jackson looks even better when pitted against Tony Strickland. We fundamentally disagree with almost everything Strickland stands for. If he is elected, we’re moving.

Hannah Beth Jackson Endorsed by LA Times

From an email Hannah Beth Jackson's Campaign sent out last night...Sara

Today The Los Angles Times strongly endorsed Hannah-Beth Jackson for State Senate, stating:

"The Times has no problem making its choice. We wholeheartedly back Jackson. The environmental and education credentials she built up as a member of the Assembly will be put to good use in the Senate, and we're counting on her to help work through California's budget mess."

Lobbying firms paid by Ventura County Board of Education rack up big charges for taxpayers, show little results

A press release from the ventura County Democrats -- it's a little long but chock full of information. Afterwards, check out Strickland's donation from Wal-Mart on ElectionTrack -- do you think there was any relationship to the story below? -- Sara

The Republican-controlled Ventura County Board of Education’s (VCBE) contract to pay two out-of-town firms more than $396,000 to lobby on behalf of the Ventura County Office of Education (VCOE) has produced little more than additional bills for taxpayers and a possible partnership with a private Christian College in Indiana which could help build the college a new $8.5 million building.

Since 2007, the VCOE has enlisted the services of Anchor Consulting, LLC, of Alexandria, Va. and Capitol Venture, LLC of Sacramento. Each of these lobbying firms received $10,000 a month from the VCBE. The board majority originally voted to use money garnered from leasing educational broadband services to pay for the lobbyist expenses. Now it is using money in reserves.

According to an article in the Jan. 16 edition of Roll Call, Anchor Consulting dreamed up a plan for the VCOE to partner with another one of its clients, Grace College, an evangelical Christian college in Indiana, to obtain No Child Left Behind (NCLB) money to fund a project for at-risk youth in Ventura County.

“The biggest chunk of the budget would be a new $8.5 million building on the Grace campus that would be used to host VCOE at-risk youth for four sessions of a two-week summer camp,” the Roll Call article states. “Grace would continue to use the building throughout the year.”

Currently, no earmarks for the at-risk youth program have been placed in the re-authorization of the NCLB measure, which was stalled in the last legislative session.

“No Child Left Behind is underfunded as it is,” said VCBE Trustee Mary Louise Peterson, a critic of the lobbying contracts. “And we’re trying to take money away from a program that is underfunded to give to a private college?” she asked.

The board’s other paid lobbying firm, Capitol Venture, recently billed nearly $800 in expenses for a meeting with Wal-Mart executives to talk about a Regional Occupational Program, Peterson said. “We’re their only education client.” This bill was in addition to their monthly $10,000 fee, Peterson said.

How were these two firms selected?

VCBE member Chris Valenzano, a former legislative aide to Tony Strickland when he served in the Assembly, proposed in September of 2006 that the board consider hiring lobbyists, according to board minutes.


(more)

Records from the California Secretary of State indicate Joseph G. Yocca of Capitol Venture made a $1,000 donation to Republican Tony Strickland in October of 2006 during his failed race for State Controller. Anchor Consulting also made a $1,000 donation to Strickland’s race at the same
time. Strickland is now running for State Senate District 19, which serves Ventura County and portions of Santa Barbara and Los Angeles County.

Not long after, in February of 2007, according to board minutes, VCBOE member and Ventura County Republican Central Committee member Dean Kunicki said he was considering six lobbying firms for the County Schools Office. He did not provide costs at the time he presented his recommendations. In March of 2007, a majority of the board voted to pursue contracts with these two lobbying firms. No other firms were presented for the vote.

The $396,000 contract is one of the largest expenditures for educational lobbyists in the state. Only a handful of other county offices have hired lobbyists.

Capitol Venture was also involved in work on a failed bill authored by Assembly member Audra Strickland last year. According to the Ventura County Star, AB911, introduced on behalf of the VCOE, would have equalized the amount of money counties receive for students in Regional Occupational Programs. The bill would not have helped the local schools, former Ventura County Superintendent of Schools Charles Weis told the Star, “It would have taken money away from us.”

Recent online reports filed on behalf of the Ventura County Board of Education for the 2007-08 state legislative session show no lobbying activity reported in the second, third and fourth quarters. A report from the lobbying firms presented to the board blamed partisan politics for the lack of activity on behalf of the county schools.

Two candidates currently running for seats on the Ventura County Board of Education will bring much-needed change. Dr. Mark Lisagor is running for District 3, which serves Camarillo, Somis, Santa Paula, Fillmore, Piru, Meiners Oaks, Oak View, Ojai and Wheelers Springs. Dr. Ramon Flores is running for District 5, serving Oxnard, Colonia, Ocean View and El Rio.

“The unwarranted spending by the current board on dubious lobbyists with little or no accountability must stop. As a trustee, I will be an effective advocate for public education in Sacramento and our nation’s capitol,” Lisagor said.


Jan. 16 Roll Call article:
http://www.rollcall.com/issues/53_79/news/21585-1.html?type=printer_friendly

PR: Strickland 'Illegal' Mailing

This from the HBJ campaign -- there's more where this came from, I'll report on that story soon. I actually haven't gotten the mailer. If someone wants to scan it -- I'd be happy to post it. -- Sara

Strickland sends out illegal mailing in effort to trick voters

Strickland mailer designed to look like it is coming from Jackson.
Illegally fails to disclose actual sender.

Tony Strickland has reached a new low in his dishonest campaign against Hannah-Beth Jackson. Yesterday, voters in the 19th District received a mailing from Strickland’s campaign titled “Hannah-Beth Jackson’s Economic Plan.” Inside, the mailing contained Strickland’s predictable false charges about Hannah-Beth Jackson and taxes.

The mailing was clearly designed to look like it was coming from Hannah-Beth Jackson’s campaign.

The problem is that nowhere on the piece of mail is the actual sender (Tony Strickland’s State Senate Committee) disclosed. State election law requires the name of the committee to be prominently placed on the outside of every piece of political mail.

We know it comes from Strickland because it has his return address on the piece – postal regulations require a return address. The piece could not be mailed without one.

“Tony Strickland believes he can blatantly violate the law because he knows that the only consequence will be a fine, levied months after the election. Strickland has no regard for the law,” stated Jackson consultant Parke Skelton.

“This was not an inadvertent failure to put the proper disclaimer on the mailer, it is an obvious attempt to confuse voters,” Skelton continued.

This is the prevailing section of the State’s Political Reform Act:

§ 84305. Requirements for Mass Mailing.

(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), no candidate or committee shall send a mass mailing unless the name, street address, and city of the candidate or committee are shown on the outside of each piece of mail in the mass mailing and on at least one of the inserts included within each piece of mail of the mailing in no less than 6-point type which shall be in a color or print which contrasts with the background so as to be easily legible.

“We will be seeking legal remedies to ensure that this illegal election fraud is appropriately punished,” Skelton concluded.


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Has Strickland Gone Too Far? You Decide...

Got this in the mail today (click to enlarge)...wassup with the Republicans these days thinking they have to mislead people this much to win? It's one thing not to know who the Spanish Prime Minister is or even to blithely say you won't acknowledge a subpoena -- it's another to use imagery and wording like this. It's great that Nick got help from his Assembly Member but this is ridiculous and it is hard not to think he and his pet aren't being used. -- Sara

More Domain Redirect Politics, this time from "Democrats for Strickland"

Got the following from an avid reader -- pretty funny to read how big "D" Democrat Republican Tony Strickland is. -- Sara

Somebody poached the domain name of the phony Democrats for Strickland group.

http://democrats4strickland.com/

And you get another web page which then redirects you to this one:

http://www.democratsforstrickland.com/

Now spend some time looking at this one. It has a lot of bills posted on it that Strickland supported that would be really embarrassing if his "base" caught on.

One of These Commercials is Not Like The Other! What's the difference?

The other day, I did a post about Tony Strickland's attack ad which was paid for by special interests (California Taxpayer Protection Committee). Today, I present to you his ad and her ad. His ad makes false claims -- see below. Her ad shows her experience....





Here's info from HBJ's campaign refuting Strickland's ad:

The advertisement placed on local TV and cable stations by friends of candidate Tony Strickland is patently false in every factual claim it makes.

The ad cites a series of legislative votes cast by Hannah-Beth Jackson to “prove” three assertions. Let’s examine them one by one.

Claim: Jackson “voted to raise the gas tax.”

To support this assertion, the ad cited 5 bills.

AB16, 2003, Hannah-Beth Jackson author.

AB16 had nothing whatsoever to do with gas taxes. AB16 required that petroleum produced offshore be transported to shore by pipeline, not by barge, to help prevent oil spills. It affected only one petroleum operation in the state.

AB1058, 2002, Pavley

AB1058 had nothing whatsoever to do with gasoline taxes. AB1058 was one of Pavley’s landmark greenhouse gas emission bills, requiring the Air Resources Board to adopt regulations to comply with the state’s greenhouse gas reduction goals. Strickland, a global warming denier, voted against this important bill.

AB1706, 1999, Strickland

At least this had something to do with gasoline taxes. This do nothing bill would have required the California Energy Commission to report back to the legislature on ways to lower gas prices. It was an attempt by Strickland to answer skepticism about whether the oil companies would return any reduction in gas taxes to consumers, or simply pocket the extra profit. A vote against Strickland’s bill can in no way be called a vote “to increase gas taxes.”

AB1707, 2000, Kuehl

This is the most ludicrous citation of all. AB1707 was a bill to protect consumers from the release or sale of private financial information without their affirmative approval. Jackson supported this bill. Strickland, ever the slavish servant of his special interest contributors, opposed the bill. Needless to say, this bill had nothing whatsoever to do with gas taxes, or even petroleum

AB1740, 2001, Ducheny

This bill formally enacted the state budget for the 2000-01 budget year. It was 869 pages long, and did not raise gas taxes.

In fact, state gas taxes in California have not been increased since 1990. They have been constant at 18 cents per gallon for 18 years, despite inflation and the fact that gas prices have dramatically increased.

Claim: Jackson “voted to weaken Proposition 13 making it easier to raise property taxes.”

To start, Prop 13 is a state constitutional amendment, passed by voters, which cannot be changed, altered or “weakened” without a vote of the people.

But the ad nevertheless cites three bills to buttress this laughable claim.

AB94, 2003, Chu

Prop 13 limits property taxes to 1% of assessed valuation with an exemption for public indebtedness approved by voters before July 1, 1978. In 1982 the California Supreme Court ruled (Carmen v. Alvord) that public employee pension obligations approved by voters before July 1, 1978 constituted “indebtedness” and 26 jurisdictions around the state were given the authority to set a somewhat higher property tax rate to meet that obligation. AB94 granted an extension to allow those jurisdictions to cover their voter approved pensions. Jackson’s yes vote did not weaken Prop 13 in any way.

AB822, 1999, Mazzoni

This bill was very similar to AB94, except it affected only public pensions in the city of Oakland, and imposed the additional requirement that the rate be approved by a 2/3rd vote of the electorate.

AB81, 2002, Migden

AB81 resolved an arcane jurisdictional dispute involving whether local county assessors or the State Board of Equalization should perform property tax assessments on large electrical generation plants. Until the passage of energy deregulation in 1996, electrical generation plants had always been assessed by the BOE. Deregulation shifted that responsibility to county assessors. The BOE reasserted their jurisdiction and the whole issue wound up in the state legislature. AB81 had nothing to do with Prop 13. The big utilities preferred dealing with the less experienced local assessors. Strickland toed their line and voted No.

Claim: Jackson “voted to increase the car tax.”

The ad does not cite a specific bill, but credits this claim to the intentionally vague “August 2003 Gray Davis Budget Vote.”

In 1998 the car tax (Vehicle License Fee, VLF) was reduced from its historic 2% rate to .65% as a way of returning a budget surplus to taxpayers. Funds from the VLF, which were channeled to local governments, was “backfilled” by the state to prevent local services from being cut. The VLF program included a provision that ended the reductions if the state did not have the funds to make the “backfill” payments to cities and counties. In 2003 the state faced unprecedented budget shortfalls.

Here is how the respected Legislative Analyst’s Office explained it:

Vehicle License Fee (VLF). The budget assumes that the VLF will increase from the current effective rate of .65 percent to 2 percent beginning October 1, 2003. As a component of the VLF reductions that were enacted in 1998, current law provides that the state "backfill" (and thus make local governments whole) the difference between the lower VLF rate and the 2 percent rate, unless the state has "insufficient moneys" with which to make such payments. In June 2003, the Department of Finance made a determination that the state had insufficient moneys to provide any backfill to local government, and as a result of this determination, the backfill ended and the VLF will return to the 2 percent level in October 2003.

“Major Features of the California Budget” LAO, 2003

The decision to suspend the VLF reduction was made by the Department of Finance.

Strickland Begins Attack Ads Today

Here's a press release I received from an avid reader. It isn't even Labor Day yet! Coupled with Olympic ads for the last week -- Strickland's strategy seems to be more for the airwaves than in the neighborhoods. -- Sara

It didn't take long. Supporters of Tony Strickland will begin airing a TV spot attacking Hannah-Beth Jackson in the highly competitive State Senate District 19 today. Public information on file at KSBY and KEYT broadcast television stations in Santa Barbara show that a group called the "California Taxpayer Protection Committee" will be airing advertisements attacking Hannah-Beth Jackson beginning 8/13.

They paid $52,750 for the time on these two stations.

The Committee has received over $125,000 in funding from large insurance companies this year. They have also received $20,000 from Howard Ahmanson Jr., a far right-wing activist who has poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into campaigns to elect extremist candidates.

Ahmanson told the Orange County Register in 1985, "My goal is the total integration of biblical law into our lives."

The most recent California Taxpayer Committee campaign filing can be found at:

http://cal-access.ss.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/Detail.aspx?id=1287571

The Committee is closely allied with the consultants who work for Tony Strickland. Strickland's general consultant Johnson/Clark has been paid over $112,000 by the Committee in recent campaigns. The firm placing the advertising for the anti-Jackson Independent Expenditure (Voter Strategies) is also placing the advertising for the Strickland campaign.

"Clearly, this is the opening shot is what will be a massive campaign by Tony Strickland and his corporate sponsors and extremist political allies to smear Hannah-Beth Jackson," stated Jackson consultant Parke Skelton. "Hannah-Beth Jackson has stood up to the insurance companies to protect consumers and homeowners. Tony Strickland has consistently sided with the big insurance companies and against the interests of our families."

Dueling Bedfellows: Moderate Republicans versus Conservative Democrats

A couple weeks ago, I did a post on the Democrats for Strickland web site. Today I heard about a new group called Moderate Republicans for Jackson. Many thanks to a dedicated reader for sending me the press release.

They claim to include former State Senator Cathie Wright, former Ventura Republican Chair Bill Larkin and a few other notables that are primarily Ventura County-based. Of course, Strickland's tobacco contributions were mentioned in the press release. Perhaps most interesting was comments about the California Club for Growth -- which we are told has a mission to kill the careers of moderate Republicans. Their website is located at http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/RepublicansforHBJ/

“Our group, 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,” Larkin said. “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.”

It seems both campaigns feel this race will be won or lost in Ventura County -- and they are probably correct. It also seems this race is more about who is more extreme than the other. At least we are seeing Jackson's supporters back their support up with descriptions of legislation she authored and exactly who supports her.

Strickland Fracas Brings Criminal Charge

Earlier this month we covered a Ventura County story involving the Chief of Staff to Assembly Member Audra Strickland playing the big heavy for Strickland's husband who is running for the State Senate. Criminal charges have been filed against Angeles and here's here's what those involved sent to the press...Sara

On June 17, 2008, approximately 55 men, women and children assembled at the Westlake Hyatt Hotel to protest a $50,000 contribution that the Ventura County Republican Central Committee received from the tobacco industry for the perceived benefit of Tony Strickland’s campaign for State Senate. Many of the protestors had lost family members from lung cancer. All shared a common interest that opposed the tobacco industry’s attempt to sway the local political process by making such a large contribution.

As we entered the only public access to the protest area along Westlake Boulevard, the group was challenged by Joel Angeles, Chief of Staff to State Assemblymember Audra Strickland, who warned us to turn back. “You are atheists,” he shouted. “You are not Americans – you are cowards.” And then came the ultimate threat. “If you step foot on this curb, you will go down.” He held his outstretched had in front of him in a manner known to signify “halt.” This conduct was memorialized in a photo that ran in The Ventura County Star newspaper.

Our group was stunned by hearing such untruths and un-American language. But, thinking that the agitator could not be seriously making such blatantly illegal threats, in the best tradition of American democracy we proceeded with our lawful demonstration. It turns out that we misjudged the intent of the public employee we faced, who had every intention of carrying out his threat.

Several members of our group, including Louis J. Pandolfi, a Simi Valley Republican and organizer of the protest; John (Jack) B. Phillips, a minister, senior citizen and Vietnam veteran from Camarillo; and Sandy Quiring, a recent high school graduate from Simi Valley; stepped onto the sidewalk and all three were promptly knocked to the ground by
Mr. Angeles. Ms. Quiring, thrown into the shrubs, sustained minor cuts to her arms and Mr. Phillips suffered a rotator cuff injury. Mr. Pandolfi immediately called 911 and summoned the Sheriffs.

The assaults and batteries were witnessed by not only dozens of citizens present at the event, but also by members of the press.

These were attacks not only on our persons, but also on our cherished American freedoms. Americans have long fought or lost loved ones in the struggles to establish and defend our Constitution and its Bill of Rights, including the one so blatantly violated on June 17th, 2008 – the right to express ourselves, by public protest, and to speak our opinions.

Jack Phillips, a 1962 Naval Academy graduate, was awarded the Bronze Star in Vietnam, following a family tradition of service to flag and country going back to the Revolutionary War. Sandy Quiring is from the newest generation of patriots. Sandy just graduated high school and is headed for a Political Science major in college, facing the future with wide open eyes and a desire to immerse herself in the great political process of our country.

Today, we have said we can not turn our backs on those who have given of themselves over the centuries to defend our Constitutional rights. Today we have said that a government employee who is paid hundreds of thousands of dollars per year to work for the taxpayers of our great state who are having so much trouble making ends meet, cannot get away with lawlessness in promoting his political beliefs. Women, men and children were prepared to peacefully demonstrate against the tobacco industry in the spirit of democracy.

Today, we have filed criminal complaints against Joel Angeles and we have demanded that the Sheriff’s Department investigate the allegations and forward that investigation to the District Attorney for prosecution. In filing these criminal complaints, not only have we presented to the Sheriff our victim statements, but we have also provided the Sheriff with Declarations from eleven witnesses who have prepared their Declarations of Fact under penalty of perjury.

We have put our faith in the fair and impartial legal system in Ventura County, a system to which we have all looked to with pride for many years. Today, we ask that justice be done, not just for the victims of Mr. Angeles’ violence, but for the free speech and freedom of assembly rights in our Constitution, for which so many others have given their last, full measure.

We can do no less on behalf of the American democratic system.

Dems for Strickland? whaaa?

The Jackson/Strickland race for State Senate went into high gear in the last week or so. Many of us started to get phone calls, letters in the mail, etc. With these kind of elections there is often a "dirty tricks" element meant to move voters one way or another.

Democrats for Strickland looks to be just that kind of dirty trick and was sent to me under the guise of anonymity last night.

We're fiscally conservative, socially moderate Democrats and Independents who are tired of having tax happy, out of touch candidates forced on us, leaving us no choice but to stay home or vote for the guy with the R after his name. This election cycle has proven no different.

Amateurish in design and approach, the site goes on to call Hannah Beth -- "Taxin' Jackson" and name one of Strickland's attributes as someone who lives in Ventura County. It goes on to say "He's not going to be in a position to take away a woman's right to choose or install any offshore oil rigs by himself." Thank goodness for small favors! Still, making such statements is asking for willful suspension of disbelief.

A simple whois.org search shows the site domain ownership is masked for privacy/anonymity.

19th SD Race Gets Physical

The other day I pointed out that HBJ could take it to the hoop -- it looks like Strickland supporters are taking it to the street. This from the Ventura County Star describing a "fracas" involving Assembly Member Audra Strickland's Chief of Staff getting into it with a protester, knocking his hearing aid out and wrestling him to the ground.

Audra Strickland, R-Moorpark, announced she was placing Joel Angeles, her chief of staff, on "a one-month leave of absence without pay for what I view as a show of poor judgment," according to a written statement issued by her office.

Of course later in the article, she had to point out "most accounts show that Hannah-Beth Jackson's protesters were the aggressors."

Jackson put out a statement of which here is a part:

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.

PR, I mean...GreenWave Gets Award

It's not often that I receive a press release for a business from a politician and I am not sure I feel comfortable about that. Tony Strickland, VP of GreenWave and candidate for State Senate, has gotten a lot of flack lately for his ballot designation as an Alternative Energy Executive. I'm actually a fan of Chambers of Commerce in general -- but it's hard to get excited about a green company getting an award from a business organization so that a candidate can look legit. Good for Strickland for getting an award and being an entrepreneur of sorts -- but it shouldn't be used for political cover and I have to wonder whether the US Chamber of Commerce PAC has given his campaign contributions as of yet -- Sara

LOCAL COMPANY GREENWAVE ENERGY SOLUTIONS RECEIVES
2008 SMALL BUSINESS AWARD

Company Vice President Tony Strickland Accepts Award At
United Chamber Of Commerce Function

(Thousand Oaks) The United Chamber of Commerce held its annual awards breakfast this past Friday to honor a handful of Southern California businesses, each nominated by their local Chambers. The nominee from the Agoura-Oak Park-Conejo Valley Chamber was local company GreenWave Energy Solutions, an alternative energy company exploring ways to harness the power of the ocean’s waves and meet the increasing demand for clean, renewable energy.

GreenWave Energy Solutions was one of only thirteen businesses to receive the award from the United Chamber of Commerce which represents over 21,000 Southern California businesses and provides more than 387,000 jobs.

“GreenWave Energy Solutions is working to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and reduce gas prices, launch a cleaner, smarter energy future for California and I’m proud to be a part of that. Our company is committed to meeting the increasing demands for a cleaner environment and working toward reducing gas prices by providing a smarter, renewable source of energy.”, said GreenWave Vice President Tony Strickland.

In addition to the 2008 Small Business Award, GreenWave Energy Solutions also received awards and certificates of recognition from Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, the Los Angeles City Council, State Senator George Runner, Assemblymembers Paul Krekorian, Cameron Smyth and Audra Strickland as well as Congressman Brad Sherman.


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Strickland Fodder at The Star

The Ventura County Star Blog did a decent run through of why Tony Strickland is so different than Hannah-Beth Jackson as a candidate for the 19th Senate District. If anyone ever tells you there is no difference between the parties, you need only point to a race like this one.