Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

California Politics Primer, please.

Collapse
X
Collapse
 
  • Page of 1
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts
Previous template Next
    #1

    California Politics Primer, please.

    Things are about to change in California politics, what with our Governor and Senators all about 170 years old.

    Therefore, can someone let me know what the consensus is on the runners and riders. Lots of people with SF connections on this board, so they should be able to help with the key candidates, I think.

    This is the feeble extent of my current knowledge.

    Incumbents...

    Jerry Brown, Governor, standing down in 2018 - everyone loves him and he's hugely successful and we're all sad that he doesn't have another 5 terms left in him

    Barbara Boxer, Senator, standing down in 2016 - From what little I know, she seems OK. Leftish by the standards of Democrat senators.

    Diane Feinstein, Senator, about 422 years old - Every time I hear anything uttered by her I get angered. She seems like the Democrat John McCain. Paranoid and hawkish and stupid.

    -

    Runners and riders

    Kamala Harris, current Attorney General of California. Likely to run to replace Boxer in the Senate. I know nothing at all about her. Is she OK?

    Gavin Newsom, current Lieutenant Governor of California. Not running for senate so therefore almost certainly expecting to be next Governor. I seem to remember seeing some criticism of him here before, but if anyone could flesh that out I'd be grateful.

    Antonio Villaraigosa, ex mayor of LA. Might also run for the senate seat. I remember him getting a good press in the UK when he was elected, but was that the usual fluff-about-the-recently-elected? Or was he an excellent mayor?

    Tom Steyer, very rich person. He's given lots of money to candidates who aren't idiots about climate change. Does this qualify him for anything? Might also go for the senate seat.

    Anyone else I need to know about?

    You can be pretty sure that nobody south of Orange County is going to have any impact on any of these races, given how weak everyone in our politics appears to be.
    Tags: None
    #2
    California Politics Primer, please.

    VIllaraigosa's tenure was a near-disaster. The shine really went off of him, but he seems to be a bit of an egomaniac, so I don't doubt that he thinks that he could run. He has a lot of personal baggage, having split with his wife while in office to date a reporter who covered local politics, and now he's dating a 31 year old (he's 61). When he was mayor, he alienated his labor supporters and clashed with teacher's unions in trying to "reform" LAUSD. He has a lot of negatives associated with him--he has the biggest name, but also more negative publicity.

    Gavin Newsom also seems like a kind of big self-promoter, very politician.

    Comment

      #3
      California Politics Primer, please.

      Newsom is an empty suit.

      Comment

        #4
        California Politics Primer, please.

        Newsom was District Supervisor for the Marina, and fit every stereotype that entails, except he's from Marin and not some state with a Big Ten University.

        That he's Lieutenant Governor now is staggering. He also completely stopped giving a shit about being mayor after the Olympics/49ers thing.

        Comment

          #5
          California Politics Primer, please.

          Thanks everyone.

          So far, it looks like none of the potential candidates for any of the upcoming jobs is worthy of any kind of cheerleading or support. Which is a little disappointing.

          Comment

            #6
            Bringing this back up from the dead, I was beginning to look at our primaries coming up in June. Now, of course, I don't get to vote. But I do get to nag people who can vote.

            So, what does OTF think?

            For Senate, I'm assuming Kevin de Leon is superior to Diane Feinstein, but Feinstein will win anyway. I know nothing about de Leon (apart from him being supported by the smug, self-important and annoying Tom Steyer), but Feinstein - in addition to being ancient - seems to be on the wrong side of most foreign policy stuff.

            For Governor, I just don't know where I want people to put their cross. I recalled everyone dislike both Newsom and Villaraigosa when I launched this thread, and I can't imagine that's changed now. Are there any candidates who are actually worth backing? Is there any chance that either of the two main candidates would be OK governors?

            Comment

              #7
              Cox, some Republican from San Diego, is around second in governor polls that I've seen, so I suppose that if we don't end up with Newsom and Villaraigosa going up against each other in November, then I'll have to vote for whichever one of them survives against Cox.

              Feinstein really needs to move along.

              The only candidate that really excites me is Gayle McLaughlin, who is running for Lt. Gov. on no party ticket. She's the former two-term mayor of Richmond, where she helped pass the first new rent control law in the state in 30 years, took on Chevron, and saw the homicide rate decrease by 75% in 8 years. Medicare for All is at the top of her list of issues. She's been endorsed by Our Revolution and the LA and San Francisco DSA chapters.

              Comment

                #8
                I've just looked Cox up. Of course he's from Rancho Santa Fe. He seems to basically be a comedy repeat candidate, desperate to waste his money on unwinnable elections.

                Comment

                  #9
                  Weirdly, and I didn't even know this until someone mentioned it on the Chapo subreddit, Feinstein is pretty decent on Palestine.

                  I don't know a bunch about de Leon but he seems pretty progressive, and a supporter of Medicare For All (one of my major shibboleths this year). Strangely, the Justice Democrats endorsed a high school teacher, Allison Hartson, with zero legislative experience over him, which strikes me as not a great look. Our Revolution local chapters also endorsed her but the national wisely stayed away.

                  The San Francisco mayoral race this year feels rather depressing. Jane Kim is the best of the bunch. Strangely my dad, who voted for Bernie, thinks London Breed is far too progressive to be mayor despite her being, by far, the most right-wing candidate with a chance to actually win. I feel like that says something about San Francisco politics.

                  Comment

                    #10
                    London Breed? What is it with Democrats and their names?

                    Comment

                      #11
                      London Breed sounds like a really terrible franchise name for an imported US sport. The London Breed Arena Football team, perhaps.

                      Comment

                      Previous template Next
                      Working...
                      X