CA-37 - "Bipartisan" Meltdown in Compton
CA-37 - "Bipartisan" Meltdown in Compton
It is tragic the candidates presumed to be front-runners for U.S. Congress in the 37th congressional district were arguing on stage Thursday night and almost came to blows over race-baiting personal attacks. Thank God the Green Party candidate Daniel Abraham Brezenoff was on stage to state clear, unambiguous grown-up statements on the war, health care, and the failed "war on drugs."
The confrontation started when Laura Richardson said "No one can take our seat from us without fighting every bit of the way for it." On Friday, Richardson's campaign consultant, John Shallman, told the Long Beach Press Telegram that she said "our community" and not "us."
Well, I attended the event and heard Richardson say "No one can take our seat from us" and she did say "our seat" not once, but twice. But you don't have to take my word for it (memo to John Shallman: this is the 21st century -- Remember "macacca" Allen last year). An audio recording of the closing arguments has been posted on the web at: http://www.lbreport.com/news/jun07/37compt.htm.
I have also posted a two-minute mp3 audio file of the offending remarks at:
http://alexcathy.com/richardson-guillory.mp3.
Here is a partial transcrpt of Richardson's closing remarks:
Posted on LBReport.com, June 8, 2007
Congressional Candidates Face-Off in Compton
...This is about someone who says that no one can take our seat from us without us fighting every bit of the way for it. [applause] This is our community. This is our seat. And let me tell you something: why is it that with redistricting, Compton was removed out of the 55th [Carson-LB Assembly district]? We need people who want Compton, who will represent Compton and who will do everything humanly possible to make sure all of the people in our community are represented and taken care of."
Let's cut the bull. I am an African-American and when Black pols, pundits, and cranks slowly and deliberately say "our community"taking an hour to say "our" with emphasis, it's code for "race."
That's not all. After Richardson made her remarks it got really weird.
Republican L.J. "Bishop" Guillory, also African-American, seated next to Richardson on the dais, jumped into the fray. Guillory asked Richardson to "Stand up! Stand up!" When she stood up Guillory put his hand on her shoulder and said "I am the Republican candidate. I don't care what Democrat Party endorsed who... this is our choice... if we lose this seat you will have no more connection..." whereupon the moderator ruled that Guillory had violated the rules.
Why would a labor-endorsed Democratic assembly member accept the endorsement of a rich Republican wingnut like "Bishop" Guillory? Is this what Gov. Schwarzenegger means by "post-partisanship?"
This is one African-American who is sick and tired of Democratic and Republican politicians acting like a bunch of rowdy high school kids about "race" issues in America.
Redistricting: Democrat-Republican Gerrymander
What about Ms. Richardson's rhetorical question "why is it that with redistricting, Compton was removed out of the 55th?"
I do not know about Assembly District 55, but we do know that the City of Long Beach was chopped into three congressional districts as part of the general Democrat-Republican "bipartisan" gerrymander to guarantee "safe seats" for incumbents.
An article was posted on this subject:
Posted on The District Weekly, June 7, 2007
In The Not Seat
by Dave Wielenga
Long Beach hasn’t had a congressional district to call its own since 2001, when state legislators chopped up the city and parceled it out to districts based in Huntington Beach, Carson and Lakewood. The electoral surgery was self-serving, a bipartisan deal cut so incumbents would be re-elected. They were.
Orange County right wingnut Republican Dana Rohrabacher is serving his 10th term, his third since the 46th district was contorted through a Long Beach coastal corridor that includes about 20 percent of the city—significantly, the parts that pass through Long Beach State, the Los Cerritos Wetlands, Belmont Shore and the Port of Long Beach. Almost everywhere else was lumped in the 37th district of the late Juanita Millender-McDonald, a liberal Democrat from south-central Los Angeles who never faced serious opposition after taking office in a 1996 special election when predecessor Walter Tucker of Compton went to prison for corruption.
Nowadays, with all the loose talk about "Our Seat" everyone conveniently forgets that just a dozen years ago "Our Seat" was held by "Our Crook" Walter Tucker. And thanks to Democrat-Republican "bipartisanship" part of the exteremely divesre city of Long Beach, California, with it's uniquely sensitive environment, is represented by the openly racist Republican Dana Rohrabacher who has said that global warming could have been caused by "dinosaur flatulence."
Daniel Brazenoff's Unforgetable Line:
The most unforgettable line the night of the Compton Meltdown was from Green Party Candidate Daniel Abraham Brazenoff:
I'm going to go rock the boat. OK? I'm going to raise the roof too. I'm tireless, I'm fearless and I know the issues. Look. I have the best preparation you could want for going to the United States Congress: I work in a psychiatric hospital.
Amen, brother.
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I can't help but notice the contrast between there being not a single comment on my post about the special election in California's 37th congressional district and the many posts generated by my post about intraparty factionalism.
Please understand: if none of the 17 candidates in the special election in June wins more than 50% of the vote, the top vote-getters of each party will compete in a runoff election in August. Thus, for example, if State Sen. Jenny Oropeza or Assembly member Laura Richardson is the top Democrat in June, then they will compete against the top Republican, the Libertarian guy, and our Green candidate Daniel Abraham Brezenoff in August.
The extreme bitterness which Richardson and Oropeza have generated with their reckless behavior means half the Dems are going to be pissed-off big time in August. The folks in Compton, Watts, and Long Beach will never vote for a Bush Republican, no matter how much they oogle his red stretch limo. Therefore, it is possible that Daniel Brezenoff by combining the independent vote with the disgruntled Democrat vote could be elected the first Green member of the U.S. Congress. Even if Danny doesn't win but gets, say, 30% to 40% of the runoff vote, this would be very, very big.
Yes Alex, I immediately understood the implications when I first read your post, but didn't post a reply. Thank you for bringing this exciting and vital race to everyone's attention. Maybe we should make a special effort to get $$ and support (ie. precinct walkers) to Brezenoff!!! That is if we can pause from our Factionalism long enough.
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I am amazed at the lack of support for our Green Party candidate in the 37th congressional district election and he got a little over 300 votes. Where are the LA Greens? Why haven’t they come out and work for this candidate? Where are the leaders in the LA Greens? Why hasn’t any of our long time Greens helped our candidate? This show by the LA Greens is simply a disgrace to our Green Party. Could this lack of support for a Green seeking elective office be a major reason for the downturn in Green Party membership?
Our Greens in LA have time to correct this horrible oversight and get organized and rally behind Daniel and show the people of California the Green Party is here to stay and will do a better job of representing our people no matter where s/he lives.
So, let’s keep a sharp eye on LA and see if the LA Greens are for real and doing something about our electoral politics. The ball is in their court.
Let's be frank. Race is and will continue to be an issue in America. California's 37th District is essentially hispanic and black and there are constant turf wars going on between them. Hispanics now outnumber blacks there but not in numbers registered or eligible to vote. It's a district where residents are simply tired of the failure of politics and understand the gerrymandering of districts are rarely in their best interest. It explains the low percentage of voters who go to the polls.
The opportunity for a Green Party candidate to be successful there and in many other urban districts, rests on the ability of the party to actively recruit minorities in the party and to recruit minority candidates. In my opinion, the party is seriously lacking in doing both.
I believe that Ms. Richardson's comment was indeed intended for the majority black audience, but blacks everywhere are concerned about representation that reflects their perspective and points of view. There are a myriad of problems in the Compton area, not least of which are crime and the injustice of the criminal system. Prison reform, immigration, public health, and the war on drugs should have been on the top of the agenda for anyone running for that seat.
No disrespect to Mr. Brezenoff but a qualified black candidate speaking to these issues may have lead to a huge Green Party victory. Still I wish him well and it appears that he does manitain some support. But Greens need to do a much better job of reaching out to minorities who are prime for listening to an alternative to politics as usual.