The 80th Assembly District in California is one of the best pickup opportunities this year, and we have just the transformational candidate to make it happen. Manuel Pérez is a hands-on, no bs, Harvard-educated community organizer from the heart of the Coachella Valley, a direct, unapologetic progressive with experience in building a just and healthy society.  He won’t promise loyalty in Sacramento in exchange for support, he’s getting his mojo the time-honored way:  walking precincts, meeting with more union review committees, and he just participated in a podcast on Calitics.  

I’ve been posting on this race since last May, and have yet to compile the best quotes nor list the endorsers adequately.  Let’s kick it off with the  California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO:

Art Pulaski, Executive Secretary of the California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO:

Manuel Perez knows first hand the struggles of working families and will be a champion of healthcare, education and creating new jobs in the State Assembly.

What Folks Are Saying About Manuel Perez, Democrat for the 80th Assembly District:

(Update, CA Federation of Teachers’ just chimed in)

Marty Hittelman, President of the California Federation of Teachers:

Manuel Perez is a real education champion – he’s a former classroom teacher, earned a Masters in Education from Harvard University and serves as a school board member helping struggling schools to succeed. Manuel fights every day to give kids the educational tools they  need to succeed in life and in the workplace.

Steve Clute, Former California State Assemblyman:

(Perez) has the heart – corazón – and passion to truly represent the people.

Fred W. Lowe, Business Manager/Secretary Treasurer for Laborers’ Local 777:

He is a strong and clear voice for the communities he serves, and is willing to fight for fundamental rights; fair pay; fair treatment and justice; protections and security for our families; access to health care; better education and better working conditions for the residents of the 80th Assembly District.

Harvard Graduate School of Education, announcing Manuel Perez as a recipient of the HGSE Alumni of Color Achievement Award:  

Mr. Perez is being recognized for his work, which addresses issues of race and education in ways that offer new frames of thought and practice, and evidences a commitment to promote meaningful strategies to affect change and to improve educational opportunities for people of color.

David Dayen, blogger at Calitics, Hullaballoo, and The Right’s Field:

This is someone who hasn’t waited around for higher office to make a difference in his community; he’s rolled up his sleeves and dived in.  As a director for the Borrego Community Health Foundation, he’s created one of the first diabetes resource centers in the desert region and has delivered health services to underserved regions.  As a researcher for the California Institute for Rural Studies, he put together a groundbreaking study on women’s reproductive health issues in Imperial County, where women have little opportunities and resources to manage their own health.  With Promotores, he’s part of a group of community-based leaders devoted to teaching  about health issues and making sure people in the community get the facts about programs at their disposal.  As a schoolteacher he started his school’s first ever Chicano Studies program designed to allow students to learn history from their perspective.  With the Eastern Coachella Valley Social Change Collaborative, he identified farm workers living in the area and trained them to be community leaders themselves.  Believe it or not, he’s only 34.

…

Manuel Pérez is not only a perfect fit for this district, providing an opportunity to retake this seat and get us closer to 2/3.  He represents a new generation of Hispanic-Americans who are dedicated to working for change from the bottom up.  He would bring to Sacramento a unique set of skills, as someone who can build coalitions and train a group of leaders far into the future.  There are primary candidates on the Democratic side for this seat who appear to be very nice.  I don’t think anyone combines the résumé and the hope for the future more than Manuel Pérez.

Joe Murillo, President,  Coachella Valley Unified School District Board:

(Perez) likes to see improvement. He is not a man for the status quo.

Partial List of Endorsers:



California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO

United Domestic Workers

California Teachers Association

SEIU State Council

Laborers (LIUNA)

California Nurses Association

AFSCME

California Medical Association

Former Congressman Esteban Torres, 34th Congressional District, California

Congressman John Conyers Jr. 14th Congressional District, Michigan

Congressman Raul Grijalva, 7th Congressional District, Arizona

State Senator Gloria Romero

Joe Coto, Assemblyman and Latino Caucus Chair

Steve Clute, Former Assemblyman and 80th AD Candidate, 2006

Tony Cardenas, Former Assemblyman, current Councilman City of Los Angeles

Paul M. Rasso, Candidate, 64th Assembly District

Victor Carrillo, Supervisor, Imperial County Board of Supervisors

Ray Castillo, Former Mayor, El Centro

Joel Perez, Former School Board Trustee, El Centro Elementary School District

George Nava, Council Member, City of Brawley

Chuck Valenzuela, Former Mayor and Treasurer, Brawley

Joe Murillo, President, Coachella Valley Unified School Board

Eduardo Garcia, Mayor, City of Coachella

Steve Hernandez, Council member, City of Coachella

Tim Brown, City Manager, City of Coachella

Steve Brown, Assistant City Manager, City of Coachella

Carlos Campos, Attorney, City of Coachella

Jackie Lopez, Executive Director, City of Coachella Chamber of Commerce

Carlos Ortega, City Manager, City of Palm Desert

Mike Wilson, Councilmember, City of Indio

Maria Machuca, Former Chair, Mecca Community Council

Sal Alejo, Member, Mecca Community Council

Jennifer Baker, President, California Latino School Board Association

Alice A. Huffman, President, California State Conf. of the NAACP

Fred Lowe, Union Rep., LIUNA, Laborer’s Local 777

Jose Mejia, Director, Laborer’s International Union of North America

Antonio Tirado, Chairman of the Imperial County Democratic Central Committee

Michael Rosenfeld, Former President, CVTA

Richard Razo, Union Rep, CVTA

Bonifacio Hernandez, Union Rep, CVTA

Dale Wissman, Union Rep, CSEA

Don MacCready, CSEA

Joe Mota, Former Director, UFW

Juan Carlos Sanchez, DSCC Delegate & Community Organizer

Beth Caskie,  local Democratic activist / DSCC Delegate for the 80th AD

Ruben Gonzalez, President, Coachella Valley Voters League

Inez Cardoza Freeman, Volunteer of the Year, Democrats of the Desert

Amalia DeAztlan, Delegate, National Democratic Committee

Jose Carmona, Principal, Verde Group, Sacramento, CA

Rafael Aguilera, Principal, Verde Group, Sacramento, CA

Orson Aguilar, Associate Director, Greenlining Institute, Berkeley, CA

Hector Preciado, Health Policy Director, Greenlining Institute, Berkeley, CA.

Eric Reyes, Executive Director, Institute for Social and Economic Justice, Brawley

Jesse G. Enriquez, President, Hidalgo Society, Brawley

Lupe Quintero, CRLA Lawyer, Imperial

Jesus Perez, Former Candidate for Superintendent of Public Schools, Imperial County

Arturo Encinas, President, MAPA, Calexico

Bill Hodge, Union Rep, Calexico

Beatriz O. Zayas, Mana member at-large, Calexico

Danny Santillan, Grassroots Organizer, Calexico

Morris Reisin, President, Chamber of Commerce, Calexico

Ruben Gonzales, Former President, Clinicas de Salud del Pueblo, El Centro

Rodolfo Pinon, Grassroots Organizer, Blythe

Dan Figueroa, Grassroots Organizer, Blythe

Mike Figueroa, Grassroots Organizer, Blythe

Alfredo Figueroa, Grassroots Organizer, Blythe

Rosalio Plata, Businessman, Cathedral City

Fred Deharo, Former President, Coachella Valley Rotary, La Quinta

Maria Deharo, Director RCOE Migrant Education Program, La Quinta

Gilberto Salcedo, CEO Que Crees Magazine, La Quinta

Greg Cervantes, Tribal Issues Consultant, La Quinta

Martin Martinez, CVMACC Co-Founder & Community Activist, Indio

Nadia Villagran, Coachella Valley Housing Coalition, Indio

Mike Walsh, Coachella Valley Housing Coalition, Indio

Roger Larranaga, Azteca America, Indio

Claudia Castorena, Co-Founder Martha’s Kitchen, Indio

Gloria Gomez, Co-Founder Martha’s Kitchen, Indio

Carlos Gonzalez, Grassroots Organizer, Indio

David Skinner, Educator, Indio

Chris Cuahape, Grassroots Organizer, Indio

Tony Rubio, Grassroots Organizer, Indio

Edgar Zendejas, Grassroots Organizer, Coachella

Lee Espinoza, Executive Director, Coachella Boxing Club, Coachella

Sal Velasquez, Community Activist, Coachella

Mirna Flores, Executive Director, CET, Coachella

Maria Arcos, Executive Director, Senior Center, Coachella

Elvira Murillo, Executive Director, Vocation and Rehabilitation, Coachella

Abby Figueroa, Community Activist, Coachella

Juanita Godwin, Executive Director, Boys and Girls Club, Coachella

Emmanuel Martinez, Grassroots Organizer, Coachella

Jose Luis Huerta, Grassroots Organizer, Oasis

Anna Lisa Vargas, Grassroots Organizer, Thermal

Gina Chapa, Grassroots Organizer, Thermal

Roberto Palomino, Director, El Informador Newspaper, Indio

Leopoldo Trevino Sr. CEO, El Independiente Newspaper, Indio

Joe Beaver, Community Activist, Palm Springs

Freddy Nuñez, Grassroots Organizer, El Centro

Ron Amidon, Candidate for School Board, Calipatria

Dr. Gustavo Galindo, Professor & Grassroots Organizer, Calipatria

Antonio Ramos, Retired Probation and Grassroots Organizer, El Centro

Juan Arvizu, Probation Officer, Heber

Pete Salgado, Probation Officer, El Centro

Joe Arambula, Probation Officer, El Centro

Guillermo Niebla, Retired Probation Officer, El Centro

Alex Vasquez, Grassroots Organizer, Calexico

Jerry Grijalva, Grassroots Organizer, Calexico

Gilbert Grijalva, Grassroots Organizer, Calexico

Arturo Rioseco, Grassroots Organizer, Calexico

Margarita DeNecochea, Community Volunteer, Calexico

Guillermo Niebla, Community Activist, Calexico

Johnny Romo, Community Activist, Calexico

Last but not least, there’s a Binder poll out on the race, and it puts Manuel Perez as the strongest Democrat against the Republican opponent, beating him in the general.  May we see that come true this November.

XPosted 4/19/2008 1:32 PM PDT on MyDesert.com

…DoD Chairwoman Elle Kurpiewski announced that Carole Sumner Krechman had resigned from the DoD board and from her membership in the Democratic Club.

DoD represents itself as

“…the largest and oldest Democratic Club in the Coachella Valley, chartered by the State Democratic Party of California.”

According to the DoD website, Sumner Krechman served the club and its members as Vice President & Chair Fund Raising.  Sumner Krechman is also a member of the Riverside County Democratic Central Committee…

…Sumner Krechman, Kurpiewski, and others have been contacted by this writer for comment, but to date have not responded.***

***Elements of this post that had been reported by and confirmed independently by multiple members of DoD who attended this meeting, have been redacted at the request of the DoD executive and boardmember(s).  Oh, the pressures exerted on a free and ‘unfettered’ press.  Now I know why The Desert Sun reporters do not report on the doings of the Bono Baxely Mack posse.

(XPosted 4/19/2008 8:33 AM PDT on MyDesert.com in BluePalmSpringsBoyz blog.)

…Pettis has the support of all of the Democratic Clubs that have endorsed to date, the most active union leadership and membership, and the community.

Pettis has thus far been endorsed by the Desert Stonewall Democratic Club, the Inland Stonewall Democratic Club, the Palm Springs Democratic Club, the Pass Democratic Club, the San Diego Democratic Club, the San Diego Democratic Women’s Club.  He has been endorsed by former-Brawley Mayor Orbie Hanks, Cathedral City Councilmember and Candidate for Mayor of Cathedral City Paul Marchand, former-Cathedral City Councilmember Sarah Digradi, former-Coachella Mayor Juan DeLara, Coachella City Councilmember Gilbert Ramirez, Desert Hot Springs City Councilmember Karl Baker, El Centro City Councilmember Sedalia Sanders, Palm Springs City Councilmember Ginny Foat, Palm Springs City Councilmember Rick Hutcheson, former-Rancho Mirage City Councilmember Jeanne Parrish, and former Candidate for the 80th AD Bonnie Garcia.

He also has the endorsement of such local Democratic Party activists as Roger Tansey, Vice-President, Bob Silverman, Treasurer, James Reynolds, Secretary, Greg Gonzalez, Steering Committee, Donald W. Grimm, Ph.D, Public Relations Committee Chair, Richard Oberhaus, Steering Committee, and other Desert Stonewall Democrats as well.  Pettis enjoys the support from Chuck McDaniel and Will Pieper, Co-Chairs of the Desert Hot Springs Democratic Club, from Sandy Eldridge and David Pye, Co-Chairs of the Palm Springs Democratic Club, and from Jacqueline Atwood, President, and Betty McMillion, Vice-President of the Pass Democratic Club, and Arnie Kaminsky, President of the Sun City Democratic Club.

Pettis has the active endorsement and support from the major local unions including the American Federation of State, County, and Munipal Employees, the Building Trades of California, the California AFL-CIO, the Cathedral City Professional Firefighters, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 440, the Riverside/San Bernardino Counties Central Labor Council, the San Diego/Imperial Counties Central Labor Council, and Teamsters, Joint Council 42.

More below the flip…

Finally, Pettis clearly has the support of a clear majority of Democratic activists and our friends in the District.  In the most recent electronic filing, the figures released by the State demonstrate that Pettis both outraised and outspent ALL of his Democratic opponents combined.  He also has more monies in his campaign treasury than any of his opponents…

…Pettis has the voter registration on his side with Democrats now outnumbering Republicans by more than 15,000, not including the Decline to State voters in the District.  Steve Clute, underfunded and poorly organized, barely lost to Garcia in 2006.  Pettis has the funds and the local Democratic organizational support…***

***Elements of this post that had been sourced from members of DoD who are also leaders in the local Democratic activist community have been redacted at the request of these individuals for the purpose of preserving Democratic Unity.

Posted 4/17/2008 10:26 PM PDT on MyDesert.com

Earlier this week, The Desert Sun and its online edition, mydesert.com, detailed the California Fair Political Practices Commission complaint against the Perez campaign for the 80th Assembly District for unfair practices during the California Democratic Party convention in San Jose.  For the entire article, refer to FPPC Complaint Alleges Candidate Skirting Campaign Advertising Disclosure.

The California Fair Political Practices Commission confirmed that someone had filed a complaint against 80th Assembly District Democratic candidate Manuel Perez accusing him of failing to disclose who paid for his campaign advertising.

The complaint was filed by Greg Rodriguez, Democratic activist and candidate for the Palm Springs Unified School District, against the failed Coachella School Board trustee April 4, 2008.  Seems that Rodriguez has had enough of local failed school board officials and soiled campaigns.

“It’s obvious some people want to manipulate rules and don’t want to follow them,” said Greg Rodriguez, who filed the complaint. “I think everybody needs to be scrutinized by the rules they follow.”

More below the flip…

Rodriguez is a candidate for the Palm Springs Unified School District board and a Sen. Hillary Clinton delegate to the Democratic National Convention in Denver later this summer.  Pettis, a Cathedral City Councilman and former-Mayor Pro-tem, is the leading candidate and leading fundraiser of the four Democratic contenders for the 80th AD.

According to The Desert Sun,

Perez says he’s complied with the law.

“It’s one thing or another,” he said. “We’ve got more important things to do like walk the streets and talk to voters.”

Apparently one of the more important things that the Perez campaign has to do is voter intimidation in the Coachella Valley.  Perez’ Campaign Director, Amalia Deaztlan, was reported to intimidate one of Pettis’ Latino supporters and endorsers at the Democrats of the Desert Annual Banquet on Saturday, April 5, 2008, harshly pinching him in a manner usually applied by Latino adults to recalcitrant children, telling him after he refused to switch his allegiance from Pettis to Perez, “You are no longer one of us!”  In addition, Perez supporters have attempted to intimidate Pettis bloggers and diarists with threats and accusations.

Created with a ballot initiative in 1974, The Fair Political Practices Commission was created in a 1974 ballot initiative to investigate campaign violations of the Political Reform Act and imposes administrative penalties.

The FPPC will notify Rodriguez in writing by Friday whether the department will investigate or not, said Roman Porter, a department spokesman. Porter would not speculate on the merits of the complaint.

“One advantage of having a formal complaint signed under penalty of perjury is to reduce frivolous complaints,” he said.

State law requires disclosure on campaign advertising when advocating for or against a candidate or ballot measure.

Perez supporters created and distributed fliers advertising the Perez candidacy at the CDP convention in order to attempt to revoke the party endorsement of Pettis for the 80th AD which he obtained with over 70% of the Democratic Club votes at the Moreno Valley confab.  Perez supporters created the advertisements without any FPPC-required denotations as required for the mass production of campaign materials.  Perez supporters to date have not reported exactly how many fliers were created for distribution.  Under FPPC regulations, mass-produced advertisements are often regulated when created in numbers of 200 or greater.

Manuel Perez, Vice-President of the failed Coachella Valley Unified School District and Candidate for the 80th Assembly District, and his campaign, have allegedly fun afoul of campaign ethics with campaign violations in two campaign scandals, according to my mydesert.com blogger source at Palm Springs Village Fest.

First, someone who volunteers for the Perez for Assembly campaign, was allegedly using her office computer to mail out campaign materials for the Perez campaign.  My source is in possession of an original piece of email from the campaign worker.

Now, as anyone who has worked in an office environment in the past 15 years knows: “Do not use your office computer for personal use, otherwise your job is in jeapardy!”  Well, not only did this employee apparently use her office computer to produce mass emailings for the Perez campaign, but she worked for the County of Riverside!  Not only is her job in jeapardy, but she violated State of California campaign law in her endeavors.  The Perez campaign has not addressed to what extent it was involve in the production and distribution of the fliers.

My source eventuall contacted Roy Wilson, Supervisor in the County of Riverside and a newsreporter at The Desert Sun, Nicole Brambila.  According to my source, Wilson has conducted an investigation and found that two, count them, two Perez campaign workers and/or volunteers have been using County of Riverside computers to do campaign work for Perez.  When the Perez campaign found out that its skullduggery had been found out, it cried ‘Mudslinging!’ and ‘Republican talking points!’  Seems that the Perez mouthpieces went apoplectic.

Wilson instructed County supervisor(s) to conduct an investigation and to act accordingly.  In addition, thousands of County employees received emails from the County reminding them that it is against the law to use County computers, offices, etc. to conduct campaign work.

Second, the Perez campaign mass-produced and distributed campaign materials that omitted the required by law disclaimers that are required one each piece of campaign materials.  Bethcaskie, blogger shill for the Perez campaign was observed handing out hundreds of the illegal fliers at the California Democratic Party convention in San Jose.  Greg Rodriguez, local Democratic activist, filed a complaint with the FPPC on Monday, March 31, 2008.

Seems that the Perez campaign has in disarray without adequate leadership and direction, unable to direct and/or manage its volunteers and/or staff.  An organized and well-directed campaign would not make these kind of mistakes, first not instructing their workers to not use office computers, let alone County resources, to further the campaign, and second, not vetting the campaign materials for irregularities and illegalities.

The Perez campaign response to the allegations is to label Rodriguez and other Pettis supporters as ‘mudslingers’ and adherents to ‘Republican talking points.’  Seems that the Perez campaign loves to see itself as the victim.  Not a pretty sight that.

What is going on over at the Perez campaign?

The Desert Sun and its online edition, mydesert.com, detailed the California Fair Political Practices Commission complaint against the Perez campaign for the 80th Assembly District for unfair practices during the California Democratic Party convention in San Jose.  For the entire article, refer to FPPC Complaint Alleges Candidate Skirting Campaign Advertising Disclosure.

The California Fair Political Practices Commission confirmed today that someone filed a complaint against 80th Assembly District Democratic candidate Manuel Perez accusing him of failing to disclose who paid for his campaign advertising.

The complaint was filed against the Coachella School Board trustee April 4.

“It’s obvious some people want to manipulate rules and don’t want to follow them,” said Greg Rodriguez, who filed the complaint. “I think everybody needs to be scrutinized by the rules they follow.”

More below the flip…

Rodriguez is a Greg Pettis for 80th Assembly District supporter, a candidate for the Palm Springs Unified School District board, and a Sen. Hillary Clinton delegate to the Democratic National Convention in Denver later this summer.  Pettis, a Cathedral City Councilman and former-Mayor Pro-tem, is the leading candidate and leading fundraiser of the four Democratic contenders for the 80th AD.

According to The Desert Sun,

Perez says he’s complied with the law.

“It’s one thing or another,” he said. “We’ve got more important things to do like walk the streets and talk to voters.”

Apparently one of the more important things that the Perez campaign has to do is voter intimidation in the Coachella Valley.  Perez’ Campaign Director, Amalia Deaztlan, was reported to intimidate one of Pettis’ Latino supporters and endorsers at the Democrats of the Desert Annual Banquet on Saturday, April 5, 2008, harshly pinching him in a manner usually applied by Latino adults to recalcitrant children, telling him after he refused to switch his allegiance from Pettis to Perez, “You are no longer one of us!”  In addition, Perez supporters have attempted to intimidate Pettis bloggers and diarists with threats and accusations.

Created with a ballot initiative in 1974, The Fair Political Practices Commission was created in a 1974 ballot initiative to investigate campaign violations of the Political Reform Act and imposes administrative penalties.

The FPPC will notify Rodriguez in writing by Friday whether the department will investigate or not, said Roman Porter, a department spokesman. Porter would not speculate on the merits of the complaint.

“One advantage of having a formal complaint signed under penalty of perjury is to reduce frivolous complaints,” he said.

State law requires disclosure on campaign advertising when advocating for or against a candidate or ballot measure.

Perez supporters created and distributed fliers advertising the Perez candidacy at the CDP convention in order to attempt to revoke the party endorsement of Pettis for the 80th AD which he obtained with over 70% of the Democratic Club votes at the Moreno Valley confab.  Perez supporters created the advertisements without any FPPC-required denotations as required for the mass production of campaign materials.  Perez supporters to date have not reported exactly how many fliers were created for distribution.  Under FPPC regulations, mass-produced advertisements are often regulated when created in numbers of 200 or greater.

Based on a post 4/13/2008 11:42 PM PDT on MyDesert.com by BluePalmSpringsBoyz

George Zander, Chair of the Desert Stonewall Democratic Club (DSD) reported today that the delegates from the 45th Congressional District were chosen and resulted in fabulous news for the local DSD Democratic Club.  Four local delegates and one alternate were chosen today at local cauci for Sen. Barack Obama and for Sen. Hillary Clinton to attend the Democratic National Convention in Denver this summer.  All four delegates and the one alternate are members of DSD and provide evidence re the strength of the club in local Democratic politics!

The Clinton caucus was conducted at the Cabazon Indian Reservation meeting room in Indio while the Obama caucus was held at the James O. Jesse Desert Highland Unity Center in Palm Springs.

According to Zander, the four delegates for the 45th congressional district included Ginny Foat, openly gay Palm Springs City Councilwoman, Greg Rodriguez, openly gay candidate for the Palm Springs Unified School District, and Kira Klatchko, former-candidate for the PSUSD, representing Clinton and Rob Simmons, openly gay Palm Springs Airport Commissioner, representing Obama.  Sandy Eldridge, openly gay Co-Chair of the Palm Springs Democratic Club is the Clinton alternate.

More below the flip…

The caucus results were:

Obama caucus – 228 voters total

Rob Simmons, 117 votes

No alternate

Clinton caucus – 231 voters total

Delegate Greg Rodriguez, 136 votes

Delegate Ginny Foat, 125 votes

Delegate Kira Klatchko, 99 votes

Alternate Sandy Eldridge, 53 votes

Needless to say, Zander was ecstatic at the results, indicating that it represents the strength of the local Democratic clubs and is a great achievement for the DSD Clinton and Obama activists.

XPosted 4/13/2008 10:48 AM PDT on MyDesert.com in blog of BluePalmSpringsBoyz

The campaign Director for the Manual Perez, Democratic candidate for the CA 80th Assembly District seat to replace the termed-out, thank God, Bonnie Garcia, stood in front of the monthly meeting of the Desert Stonewall Democratic Club (DSD) and had the temerity to mislead the 45 or so members and friends of the club about Perez’ stated positions on LGBT issues, particularly Marriage Equality.

Yesterday, April 12, 2008, the DSD under the chair of George Zander, conducted its monthly meeting at the Desert Pride Center from 10:20 a.m. until approximately 12:00 noon.  During the course of the meeting, candidates and their representatives discussed the progress and status of their respective campaigns.  Amalia Deaztlan, campaign director for Perez, spoke eloquently about Perez’ campaign until she claimed that Perez supported Marriage Equality.  Sources from DSD and the Pettis campaign inform this writer that the group erupted in incredulous comments.  

As stated previously in this blog, Perez has had a number of occasions to speak publically on Marriage Equality and other campaign issues before the Coachella Valley Democratic Clubs and each time has refused to state that he will vote ‘Yea’ on the State Assembly Marriage Equality Bill.  On other occasions, for instance at the Sun City Democratic Club meeting and elsewhere, Perez has stated that he is not part of ‘the Alternative Life-style,’ thus pandering to those whom he sees as anti-gay and anti-Greg Pettis, the leading Democratic candidate for the 80th AD and an openly-gay Cathedral City Councilman who clearly and unequivocably supports Marriage Equality and will vote ‘yea.’

More below the flip…

Pettis spoke to DSD about his full support for and plans to vote on the floor of the State Assembly for Marriage Equality, protection of students’ rights in the schools when faced with discrimination and hate speech based on their sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation, same-sex adoptions, domestic partnership in the face of inability to marry, and other LGBT issues.  Pettis drew clear distinctions between his clearly stated positions and planned votes and Perez’ equivocations and non-specificity regarding his voting intentions.

DSD members registered their disbelief during and following the presentations (e.g., GZ, RS, BCG, GP, RO, TT, et al.).  Perhaps the campaign director ought to check with the candidate on how wide his stance is on LGBT issues rather than making assumptions based on her own clear support for LGBT issues.

Perez’ lack of support on LGBT issues forms the basis for the fact that not a single Democratic Club in the 80th Assembly District has endorsed for State Assembly, while Pettis enjoys the endorsements of the Desert Stonewall Democrats, the Palm Springs Democratic Club, the Pass Democratic Club, the Inland Empire Stonewall Democratic Club, the San Diego Democratic Club, Desert Hot Springs Democratic Club President Will Pieper, Desert Hot Springs Democratic Club co-founder Chuck McDaniel, Palm Springs Democratic Club co-founder Lisa Arbalaez, Palm Springs Democratic Club former Co-chair Robert Lee Thomas, Pass Democratic Club President Jacqueline Atwood, and Sun City Democratic Club President Arnie Kaminsky.  In addition, the Victory Fund, the Nation’s largest LBGT Political Action Committee, endorsed Pettis for Assembly.

Pettis also has the support and/or endorsements of most of the LGBT community leaders and activists while Perez has little to no support in the community.  Supporters and/or endorsers of Pettis in the LGBT community include U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, State Assemblyman Mark Leno, State Assemblywoman Carole Migden, Cathedral City Councilman and Candidate for Mayor of Cathedral City Paul Marchand, Desert Hot Springs City Councilman Karl Baker, Palm Springs City Councilwoman Ginny Foat, and Palm Springs City Councilman Rick Hutcheson.  Not a single LGBT current elected has announced support for or endorsed Perez for Assembly.

LGBT community activists supporing Pettis include Palm Springs Democratic Club Co-Chair Sandy Eldridge, Palm Springs Democratic Club Co-Chair David Pye, DSD Treasurer Bob Silverman, DSD Steering Committee Member Donald W. Grimm, Ph.D., DSD Steering Committee Member, Richard Oberhaus, DSD Steering Committee Member Lyn Worley, LGBT Community Activist Bill Cain-Gonzalez, LGBT Community Activist and Blogger Bond Shands, and LGBT Community Activist Steven M. Smith.  Very few if any LGBT community activists have announced support or endorsements of Perez.

Other Democratic leaders who fully support the LGBT community and who endorsed Pettis include Califorrnia Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi, California State Controller John Chiang, former-State Controller Steve Westley, State Board of Equalitzation Boardmember Judy Chu, State Senate President Pro-tem Don Perata, State Senator Christine Kehoe, State Senator Sheila Kuehl, State Senator Darrell Steinberg, State Assemblyman Mike Eng, State Assemblyman John Laird, State Assemblyman Lloyd Levine, State Assemblyman Ted Lieu, former-State Assemblyman Paul Koretz, former-State Assemblyman Fran Pavley, former 80th Assembly District Candidate Mary Ann Andreas, Riverside Mayor Ronald Loveridge, Riverside City Councilwoman Nancy Hart, West Hollywood Mayor John Duran, West Hollywood Mayor Pro-tem John Heilman, former Coachella Mayor Juan DeLara, former Brawley Mayor Orbie Hanks, El Centro City Councilwoman Sedalia Hanks, El Centro School Board Trustee Diana Newton, and Palm Springs School Board Trustee Meredy Schoenberger.

Pettis enjoys widespread support in the LGBT and LGBT-friendly communities because of his clearly stated positions and his commitment to vote ‘yea’ on Marriage Equality.  Perez equivocates and has never stated in a public forum that he supports Marriage Equality and will vote ‘yea’ on the measure when it again hits the State Assembly floor for a vote.

LGBT community members and activists know equivocation when they see it.  LGBT members also know not to trust someone who does not fully commit to the issues in advance, knowing betrayal is not a pretty face to behold.  Ask Perez tomorrow on the Calitics podcast why he will not commit in public to vote ‘yea’ on Marriage Equality.  

LGBT Californians and our supporters cannot afford Perez’ equivocations on Marriage Equality and other LGBT issues.

Based on a Post 4/11/2008 6:02 PM PDT on MyDesert.com in BluePalmSpringsBoyz blog

My first exposure to Statistics was in undergraduate school. One of our textbooks was Huff’s “How to Lie With Statistics.”  (Before you question my Statistical knowledge, I also had two semesters, six credits, of Statistics in my Master’s program, and another two semesters, six credits, of same in my doctoral program.)  Oh, the perils of using statistics in either a naive manner or purposefully misrepresenting these little guys.  Seems that bethcaskie, aka soyinkafan, the former a new blogger to mydesert.com has intimate knowledge of this text and put it to good use in her first posting re the Binder Poll recently released. Shame on bethcaskie for her misleading blog title and for the loose interpretation of the Binder Poll.

Bethcaskie entitled her piece, dramatically claiming that Manuel Perez, Vice-President of the failed Coachella Valley Unified School District board and Democratic candidate for the CA 80th Assembly District, leads in the Binder polling. Then she articulated that Perez and Greg Pettis, Cathedral City Councilman, were actually tied in the poll! How then is Perez ahead? This is a shameful misrepresentation of the facts.

More below the flip…

According to Pettis campaign officials, the actual Binder Poll shows Pettis ahead of his nearest Democratic challenger by 7 percentage points amongst likely primary and general election voters.  Is this the same poll that bethcaskie referenced?  Seems a little askew.  In the Pettis campaign press release, Petts has 22 percent of the total vote and his nearest Democratic challenger has only 15 percent.  Supposing that it is Perez with the 15 percent, and this is a hasty assumption since I do not have access to the polling date, this is hardly either a statistical tie or a manifestation of Perez leading in the poll, even should he be the second-place finisher.

Then, bethcaskie claimed that with ‘education’ the voters dutifully voted for Perez’ candidacy to the detriment of Pettis’.  Just what ‘education’ meant, bethcaskie failed to enunciate.  Given the failures of Perez as Vice-President of the Coachella Valley Unified School District as board Vice-President, the threatened State sanctions due to CVUSD’s failure to meet the requirements of ‘No Child Left Behind,’ and the State placing CVUSD under trusteeship under Perez’ leadership, the Perez campaign is hardly the Great Decider in determining what ‘education’ might be.

Not a very clear argument for Perez being ahead in the polls since Pettis is clearly ahead in the poll amongst likely primary and general election voters, ahead of each of his Democratic rivals, and ahead of the presumptive Republican nominee, Gary Jeandron, another failed leader of another school district threatened with sanctions.  (Pettis leads Jeandron 41% – 39% amongst these likely voters in the Binder poll, according to the Pettis campaign staffer.)

How to Lie with Statistics? Ask the Perez campaign.

By Juan Carlos Sanchez

Senator Barack Obama has inspired me to become his District Level Delegate for the 45th Congressional District.   If you have the opportunity to vote in the CA-45 district level Obama caucus, I respectfully ask for your vote.

As a 26-year-old Mexican-born immigrant, product of Coachella Valley Unified School District and proud UC Davis alum, I’ve worked tirelessly to advocate positive and progressive change throughout our 45th Congressional District.  

After finishing the Coro Fellowship in Public Affairs, I returned to my hometown of Coachella to become – much like Senator Obama – a community organizer.  

As a Political Organizer for the Roth for Congress Campaign, I worked with local activist and emerging leaders with the simple yet powerful message of  “change.”  In my efforts to galvanize a new generation of voters – much like Senator Obama’s campaign – I used new media tools like MySpace, Facebook, and YouTube.  

I also helped organize what I proudly called Roth-A-Palooza, which took place at my parents’ Coachella ranch.  

The Press Enterprise devoted a front-page article on our grassroots work.  

Since, I’ve been appointed as a delegate to the California State Democratic Party, appointed as alternate to the Riverside County Central Committee, and served as the Political Chair of Democrats of the Desert.  I am currently the Inland Empire’s Regional Political Organizer for SEIU United Healthcare Workers – West.  

I am proud that my union local was instrumental in pushing SEIU State Council to endorse Senator Obama before the California Primary.  

My efforts included:

o Speaking at a Obama rally in Riverside

o Recruiting and participating in precinct walking in Riverside

o Phonebanking our union members

o Organizing and executing a GOTV campaign targeting our union members.

I thank you for your time and hope you consider voting for me as our pledged Obama Delegate.  If you have any questions, please shoot me an email.  See you all on Sunday!

Juan Carlos Sanchez

e:  [email protected]

Note: I work for the SEIU United Healthcare Workers – West but nothing in this comment should be construed as anything other than my personal opinion at the time of posting

On April 7th Dale Wissman blogged “AD-80: Party needs to focus on unifying, not early endorsements” on The Bayne of Blog’s California Notes and a copy was posted on MyDesert.com.

Sandra Stone, President of Democratic Women of the Desert, reviewed Mr. Wissman’s blog and found it filled with inaccuracies, misunderstandings and decried the apparent inexperience that produced such uninformed content. She has written a response that clarifies the process and corrects errors in Dale Wissman’s blog.

Shirley Walton, chair of the Riverside County Democratic Central Committee also reviewed Mr. Wissman’s blog and briefly wrote of her complete agreement with the response provided by Sandra Stone.

I’ve been asked to post both responses on each of the websites where the original or copies of Dale Wissman’s now exist.

To: Dale Wissman

Your commentary “AD-80: Party needs to focus on unifying, not early endorsements”contains many inaccuracies regarding the role of Democratic clubs, the endorsement and pre-endorsement process, and what is happening in the AD 80. Further, you couch your disruptive behavior at the convention in San Jose as being in the interests of democracy and fairness. Hogwash. You acted out of ignorance of the process and now you want to be admired for your adherence to your own unique sense of fair play.

You claim to have been “first-timers” and your inexperience may be what led to your misunderstanding of the process. Nevertheless, before you inaccurately decry the process you should have checked on your interpretation of the facts for accuracy. While many of the Democratic clubs in the Valley have members in common, the number of delegates allocated to each club for the pre-endorsement conference was adjusted for these overlaps. There was no “double or even triple credit” for the duplicates as you allege. This is something you could have found out with just a little work on your part. Yet, you assume this is what took place and label it “unfair”. I would say that you are the one who is being unfair here. You never mentioned that to get the endorsement at that conference, the candidates had to secure 70% of the vote – a pretty high hurdle if you ask me.

You bemoan the lack of Democratic clubs in the Imperial Valley and claim that “Democrats in the Coachella Valley have ignored Imperial County in past AD 80 races ….” You appear to be saying that the Democrats in the Riverside County Democratic Clubs are responsible for developing clubs in Imperial Valley. Right now, there is an explosion of Democratic Clubs in the east end of the valley – including in La Quinta and Indio. There is no reason why clubs cannot be developed in Imperial County, but, frankly, you and your fellow Democrats in the Imperial Valley must take responsibility for your own lack of organization and “disenfranchisement” as you put it. Now is the time for you to get busy on developing your organizations rather than wasting your time on parliamentary procedures that do nothing to further Democratic objectives either short- or long-term.

You say that most of the 11 delegates who operated with you were also first timers. That may explain why you cannot comprehend why an endorsement prior to the primary makes sense. The voters at the pre-endorsement conference were the party activists – the ones who do the phone banking, walk the precincts, have the fundraisers, raise the funds and generally support the Democratic candidates. Those voters attended several candidate forums to see the candidates for themselves and make their own judgments about who could best serve the 80th AD. Over 70% voted for Greg Pettis. Yet, you and ten of your friends decided you didn’t like that outcome. By the way, how many candidate debates or forums did you attend?

Now that you have thrown a wedge into the election for the 80th AD, you say “it would behoove Coachella Valley Democratic Party activist [sic] and leaders to focus on unifying the Democratic and independent voters in all areas ….” Exactly what are you going to do to further this objective?

Sandra Stone, President

Democratic Women of the Desert

=========================================================

As chair of the Riverside County Democratic Central Committee (RCDCC) I want to first thank Sandra Stone and second, fully agree with her statement.

I have always found that uninformed statements like that of Mr. Wissman need to be corrected, and if he would take the time to help organize Imperial County and charter clubs, they would not only understand the process but help in the Democratic efforts to elect more Democrats.

Shirley Walton

RCDCC Chair

===================================================================

The following is a copy of the original blog by Dale Wissman.

AD-80: Party needs to focus on unifying, not early endorsements

Posted on April 7, 2008

By Dale Wissman

As first time delegates at the recent California Democratic Convention in San Jose, my wife Linda and I were two of the eleven delegates who banded together to ensure that the Party made no endorsement in the 80th Assembly primary race. There were some very good reasons why eleven scrappy delegates, the majority of whom were first timers, found it necessary to stand together (no matter which candidate they supported) to ensure that the Party made no endorsement in the AD80 race. Those reasons had everything to do with good old-fashioned democracy and fairness.

To understand the brouhaha, it helps to compare it to the current Democratic presidential race. Imagine the mess if the Democratic Party attempted to endorse Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama as the Party’s presidential candidate BEFORE any voters had a chance to cast primary ballots in their state. Do you think some people would see it as unfair if Barack was endorsed over Hillary (or vice-versa) without a primary vote? You bet. Do you think it would create conflict? Absolutely. Yet, that is exactly the scenario that played out in San Jose at the state Democratic Party Convention in the 80th Assembly. Under those circumstances, it’s easy to see why recent events in San Jose elicited such strong reactions from both the sides of the endorsement/no endorsement issue.

Here are some details. The Democratic Party’s endorsement of a candidate in the 80th for the primary election in June is, to say the least, complicated. First, a pre-endorsement conference is held where the vast majority of the 70 or so delegate votes come from Democratic clubs. Each club receives one delegate vote for every 20 members. Then, if no endorsement is reached, or if the endorsement is contested, about two dozen Party delegates (no club votes) make the decision at the state Democratic Convention. The vast majority of the votes for Greg Pettis at the March Pre-Endorsement Conference came from a few Democratic clubs in the Westside of the Coachella Valley. Some of those clubs share the same members. For example, the Stonewall Democrats share many members with the Palm Springs Democratic Club. Both those clubs share members with the Democrats of the Desert. That means, for the purpose of delegate votes, the clubs as a whole can get double or even triple credit for the same people. For some of the delegates, that didn’t seem fair.

Another red flag came from the fact that all of the clubs with significant delegates at the pre-endorsement conference are located in the westside of the 80th Assembly District. That is problematic, if only because most of the actual Democratic voters are in La Quinta, Indio, Coachella, Blythe, and Imperial County. Because there are fewer, and in some cases, no Democratic Clubs in these areas, there was significant amounts of disenfranchisement in communities outside of the western Coachella Valley when it came to the endorsement process.

This major disconnect in the Party, due to a lack of club development outside of the Western Coachella Valley, mirrors a bigger problem. Democrats in the Coachella Valley have ignored Imperial County in past AD80 races at their own peril. While better-organized Riverside County has faithfully voted to its democratic registration in each of the past three elections, Imperial County Democrats have not. Essentially, Imperial County voters have been King Makers by voting as much as 25 points off the Democratic registration numbers for the Republican candidate, Bonnie Garcia, who has won three successive victories against three very different Democratic challengers all thanks in great part to more socially conservative Imperial County Democrats who simply are not plugged into the strong Democratic organizations in Riverside County. The fact that Imperial County, and the Eastern Coachella Valley was being ignored once again, this time in the Democratic Party s own internal endorsement process, was a third red flag for some delegates.

Perhaps most disturbing for us, and many of the other eleven delegates working together in San Jose, was why the Democratic Party was even trying to endorse a candidate BEFORE the June primary election in the first place. It only makes sense that the Democratic candidate in the 80th Assembly District who gets the most votes in the June Primary should be the Democratic Party’s endorsed candidate. For all of the above reasons, eleven delegates, under a tremendous amount of pressure, voted their conscience in San Jose.

Now that voters in the 80th will be able to endorse the democratic candidate at the ballot box, it would behoove Coachella Valley Democratic Party activist and leaders to focus on unifying the Democratic and independent voters in all areas of the Coachella Valley, Blythe, and especially in Imperial County. Certainly, that is the game plan for Republicans, who have grown comfortable holding an Assembly seat in a district comprised of a Democratic majority.

Dale Wissman is an appointed delegate to the DSCC from the 80th Assembly District. He’s not a neutral participant for he’s one of 80th Assembly District candidate Manuel Perez’s significant supporters.