UC Merced welcomed First Lady Michelle Obama to its first graduation. The campus is still developing, with the first class fairly small. The whole campus is about one-tenth of its expected size, but this is already becoming an economic engine for the region, and holds promise to be an anchor in a region that desperately needs the development.
It wasn’t enough to make 5 of the 6 regional congressman to show up. The one who did? Democratic Representative Jerry McNerney. 4 of the 5 apparently had something better to do. Interestingly, Bush Dog Dennis Cardoza wrote the legislation that began UC Merced, but apparently has other commitments. Devin Nunes had some big-time duties of being the idiot-in-chief:
A fifth, Visalia Republican Devin Nunes, says he is skipping the ceremony because he is unhappy with President Barack Obama and the majority Democrats in Congress.
“The president’s wife is coming to the Valley, and just five miles away you have tens of thousands of people out of work because of the policies of the Democrat Party,” he said. “I’m not going to go there and make nice.” (Fresno Bee 5/15/09
Shorter Nunes: I’m putting my political extremism over the people of my district.
Skipping right past the fact that he is unclear on English usage, let’s focus on the insanity of this statement. This is a major milestone for bringing some sustainable economic development to the region. Nunes is all up in arms regarding the water issues, but frankly Devin, it’s best we start getting used to low water.
In Nunes defense, he has already called on Schwarzenegger to resign over water issues too. He’s an equal opportunity idiot. But to pile on, he also goes ahead and says there is no drought to anybody who will listen, calling it “man-made” because we won’t exterminate the remaining fish in the Delta by turning on the pumps to divert the water. And oh, yeah, Devin, the coastal communities need water to drink too.
Using this event to make an unrelated political statement is offensive to the students who worked to build the community of UC-Merced. But, Nunes has never been one to avoid offense, has he?
wow, what a bunch of tools. talk about a huge middle finger to merced.
is that it would seem like the first-ever commencement at a new UC institution in their region would be something that any politician from either party would clamor to attend. But apparently, not Republicans.
I find it weird that Rep. Cardoza, who is my congressman, didn’t show up to this historic event. I wish that a more progressive politician would primary him. Our district, which is D+4, could afford a real democrat.
What can I say about him that wouldn’t get me kicked off this site which seems to be frequented by folks with touch of class and/or civility. Since I would find it impossible to tell you what I think of Nunes and his posturing… as not only my “representative” but someone who claims to have “grown up” in the same small town I did… while remaining civil… I’d best simply not say anything at all about the man.
I was told by a local elected official who was invited, that to be part of the event and meet with the First Lady, individuals had to be at the location 5 hours before the event and couldn’t leave before the event ended. It was done this way for security reasons (obviously).
But if UC Merced is such an important part of the Valley and had to be built at the huge expense it entailed, then waiting a while seems like they least these Congressman could do.