When they said eternal vigilance is the price of liberty I’m not sure California’s Citizens Redistricting Commission was what they had in mind.

 

A few days ago I wrote about how a bunch of Republican operatives were busy submitting maps to the Commission while doing everything they could to reveal their true backgrounds and intents.  Yesterday they were back again with another set of maps that supposedly were about maintaining communities but really were about maintain Republican legislators. 

 

Presenting maps on behalf of the Coalition of Suburban Communities for Fair Representation was Scott Wilk who introduced himself as a member of the Santa Clarita Community College District (SCCCD) Board of Trustees.  Wilk left out some notable parts of his biography, like that he is a current elected member of the Los Angeles County Republican Central Committee, former District Director for Republican Congressman Howard P. “Buck” McKeon, former Chief of Staff for Republican Assemblywoman Paula Boland and former Republican candidate for Assembly District 38.

 

Sound like someone whose maps would ignore impacts on parties, candidates and incumbents as Propositions 11/20 mandates?  I guess it was just a coincidence that the plans used some often convoluted shapes to make sure every Republican legislator found a district to land in. 

 

By the way, I do not mind Republicans submitting maps to the Commission.  They have the same rights to participate as anyone else.  I do mind when they hide who they are in order to try and manipulate the process.  And I really mind the hypocrisy of someone standing in front of the Commission and saying how important it was to take the redistricting process away from the Legislature when they are submitting maps designed to protect Republican legislators.