Newsom and Alioto-Pier: Bending the Rules to Get By
by Paul Hogarth‚
Jul. 29‚ 2010
Last night’s meeting of the Democratic County Central Committee (DCCC) had its share of drama, as members debated whether Mayor Gavin Newsom – the party’s nominee for Lieutenant Governor – could be seated as an ex officio member (and thus, have a vote next month in the Party’s crucial endorsement process.) A legal opinion said that he could not, but the DCCC finally relented by voting to change the rules. It won’t be that easy, however, for Supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier – who last week won a lawsuit to run for a third term. City Attorney Dennis Herrera filed an appeal of the trial court ruling yesterday. Although the Charter says appointed Supervisors who served more than half a term are counted (for term limits purposes) as a full term, Alioto-Pier wants the first three years that she served in office (after being appointed by Mayor Newsom) not to count. If allowed to stand on appeal, this legal interpretation would allow future mayors to make political appointments who would get special treatment under the City Charter.
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Obama's Fleeting Progressive Promise
by Lincoln Mitchell‚
Jul. 29‚ 2010
Frustration with the Obama administration from the left due to the failure of the administration to embrace and implement a progressive program seems to be increasing. It is now clear that while Obama is a far better president than his immediate predecessor, an extraordinarily low bar to be sure, he will not be the progressive leader for which many had hoped during the campaign. His governing style has been largely centrist with a preference for compromise over bolder, riskier decisions. The two most common explanations for Obama's moderate governance are that critics on the left are not being fair to the president and holding him to standards that are too high or that the US is a center-right country, so left-of-center leaders like Obama are inevitably going to encounter obstacles.
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Burn the Koran Day
by Tommi Avicolli-Mecca‚
Jul. 29‚ 2010
The same creepy Gainesville, Florida folks who gave us the “no homo mayor” campaign (to protest an openly gay candidate for mayor) and who claim that queers hate good ol’ American free speech because they “don’t want to hear the truth about their perverted lifestyles,” will now present “International Burn a Koran Day.” To commemorate the ninth anniversary of the tragedy that befell the Twin Towers in New York, the Dove World Outreach Center, a Christian denomination (it calls itself a New Testament Church, whatever that is), will take a match to the Muslim holy book this September 11.
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Lessons of the UNITE HERE-SEIU Deal
by Randy Shaw‚
Jul. 28‚ 2010
The July 26 settlement between UNITE HERE and SEIU ended a divisive conflict that badly hurt the labor movement. It hindered cooperation between SEIU and the AFL-CIO, and divided labor activists and unions. Millions of dollars were squandered over Bruce Raynor’s tantrum at being denied the right to be an international union president for life. While the agreement paves the way for closer cooperation around immigrant rights and November’s elections, the once close relationship between SEIU and UNITE HERE is unlikely to be restored anytime soon, if ever. Ultimately, the deal reminds the entire labor movement that grassroots and worker power, not high-priced consultants, robocalls and mailers, is the key to success. The SEIU-UNITE HERE conflict also shows the peril of veteran labor leaders quietly deferring to destructive decisions by top union officials, a lesson that was supposed to have been learned from activists’ experience with Cesar Chavez and the UFW in the 1970’s.
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Supes Pick Their Battles for November Ballot
by Paul Hogarth‚
Jul. 28‚ 2010
Many progressive measures that raise revenue and/or reform City government have been talked about in recent months – but voters won’t get to weigh in on them this November. Last night was the deadline for Charter Amendments and tax measures to qualify, and the Board of Supervisors faced a cold, harsh reality. Throwing everything on the ballot was asking for trouble. A measure to raise the real estate transfer tax for multimillionaires is on the ballot, but hiking the parking tax and a clever business tax idea won’t be. Along with the Hotel Fairness tax (which qualified through petition signatures), both taxes on the ballot will target a revenue source on the rebound – without hurting everyday San Franciscans. Two Charter Amendments had failed to make the cut last week, and last night Muni Reform bit the dust – after David Chiu touted an agreement with Newsom and the MTA to restore service cuts. No doubt progressives are upset, but Chiu was just being pragmatic. “Split appointments” are good public policy, but we ain’t living in the Willie Brown Era – when voters understood the Mayor has too much power.
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Whitman Snubs African Americans and Black Media
by Harrison Chastang‚
Jul. 28‚ 2010
Hope you were able to TiVo that campaign ad Meg Whitman ran during the primary with her endorsement from former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Because if Whitman continues her strategy of avoiding African Americans, that may be probably the only time you'll see the former EBay CEO around many other African Americans between now and November election.
African Americans are unhappy with Whitman's decision to skip this Saturday's candidate's forum at the San Francisco Christian Center on black and Latino issues sponsored by the California Foundation. The event, billed as the California Gubernatorial Faith Forum, will not be a debate - but an event where each candidate for Governor and Lieutenant Governor will separately answer questions from an audience of mostly African American and Hispanic church members.
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SEIU-UNITE HERE Settlement Reached
by Randy Shaw‚
Jul. 27‚ 2010
After an 18-month battle that began with SEIU believing it could affect a hostile takeover of its once close union ally, the two unions reached a settlement yesterday almost entirely on UNITE HERE’s terms. SEIU’s raids on UNITE HERE split the labor movement just as Barack Obama took office, undermining labor’s key goals of securing the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) and comprehensive immigration reform. The settlement represents a major breakthrough for new SEIU President Mary Kay Henry, who accomplished what Andy Stern could not. It represents an even bigger victory for the rank and file members of UNITE HERE, who rose to the challenge posed by SEIU’s attacks and reaffirmed their ability to struggle “one day longer” than their adversaries.
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Why Bother Bidding?
by Matt Gonzalez‚
Jul. 27‚ 2010
How Fred Bekele won a parking garage contract in San Francisco, only to have it taken away
In the summer of 2007, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (MTA) hired consultant Barbara Chance to address multiple issues concerning the city’s management and award of public contracts for city-owned parking facilities. The MTA was concerned that, among other things, the city was not maximizing the revenues it could derive from parking facilities, and that locally owned businesses were being denied entry into the competitive world of public parking contracts.
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How Netroots Nation Will Get You Out of Your Underwear
by Ben Zolno‚
Jul. 27‚ 2010
As I settle into my airplane seat to type a retrospective of the faces I came to know this past weekend at Netroots Nation, these same faces distract me now -- 12 inches in front of my face. The TV in the headset in front of me was just flashing Lawrence O’Donell on Ketih Olberman, who two days ago stood next to me in an impromptu, close-up magic show at an after party. Now the Rachel Maddow Show is on, featuring Xeni Jardin – just two days ago we were getting massages, side by side at an expo booth. Name dropping? Star stuck? No. Quite the opposite.
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98% of Rome’s Priests Are Gay
by Tommi Avicolli-Mecca‚
Jul. 27‚ 2010
The Pope must be having a lot of sleepless nights these days. Especially now that Panorama, a magazine owned by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, has just published an exposé on the secret lives of Rome’s gay priests.
July 29, 2010
