Monday, May 22, 2006
Mansoor's Stealth Launch
It was interesting to find, upon returning from a short
vacation, that as-yet-unannounced candidate for re-election,
Mayor Allan Mansoor, has apparently launched his campaign. What
else would you call his little speech during the "council member
comments" portion of the last City Council meeting on May 16th
and his Community Commentary in the Daily Pilot on Sunday?
Without yet officially announcing his campaign, the mayor has used his bully pulpit to get a running start on the field as he regaled us verbally and in print about his accomplishments during his tenure on the City Council. He should be extremely grateful to the editors of the Daily Pilot for their decision to publish his commentary, which was obviously ripped right from his pending campaign brochures. That kind of publicity would have cost him some big bucks if he had already announced his decision to run again.
In his commentary Mansoor took exception to Parks and Recreation Commissioner Byron de Arakal's recent observation in the Daily Pilot that the up-coming election would be a one or two- issue race - the lighted fields and immigration. The mayor went on to take credit for many things during his tenure that were already in the works when he was elected in 2002. He referred to the term "improvement", which is straight out of his Westside Improver's handbook. You know The Improvers, that knot of angry, frustrated westside residents that gave us Chris Steel in 2000, Mansoor in 2002 and Eric Bever in 2004.
Mansoor cites as an "accomplishment" the closure of the Job Center - a facility that served the needs of this city well for nearly two decades after is was created by a cadre of city leaders who really understood what it means to serve the entire city, not just a vocal few.
Mansoor neglected to mention his ham-handed attempt to cross-designate Costa Mesa law enforcement officers as immigration screeners among his "accomplishments". No wonder. His plan, which no law enforcement leader in Orange County thinks will do the job, has ripped this city apart and has made it the poster child for intolerance. His re-election will likely result in more of the above.
Neither did he mention his recently rebuffed attempt to saddle the property owners of this city with a billion dollar price tag to place all utilities underground throughout the city. His willingness to place that kind of burden on our neighbors and their children doesn't surprise me, since he apparently is no longer a property owner himself. It's that old "if it doesn't hurt me, it can't be bad" attitude that comes through in so many of his decisions.
His position against lighting two more fields at The Farm Sports Complex is not surprising. While most rational, involved people are attempting to find adequate playing fields in this city, including lighting two at The Farm, Mansoor and his cronies are working the other end of the equation. Obviously, their idea is if you get rid of many of the soccer-playing kids (read that Latinos), then we won't need more soccer fields. Hence, the mayor's plan to have the CMPD trained by ICE as immigration screeners.
I thought it was interesting that Mansoor chose his commentary as a place to launch an attack against Planning Commissioner Bruce Garlich, an assumed candidate for City Council in November. I suspect he chose Garlich as a target because he came within 44 votes of defeating Mansoor's pal, Bever, in 2004. Of those individuals assumed to be running in November, Garlich is far and away the strongest candidate. His record of public service, community involvement, proven leadership and a clearly-demonstrated track record of working across a broad constituency to make Costa Mesa a better place in which to live, undoubtedly makes Mansoor and his anointed running mate, Wendy Leece, more than a little nervous.
I will not attempt to speak for Garlich on the issues Mansoor posed. He's certainly more than capable of doing that himself, at a time that suits his campaign best. I will say this, though. Presently, based on Garlich's qualifications, experience and maturity, there is no better candidate poised for the race. His presence on the City Council will return some sanity to the process and help insure that all stakeholders in our city - property owners, residents and business owners alike - will get a fair hearing and fair treatment by the city government.
In the meantime, I fully intend to keep my eye on Mansoor and his pals. They've shown us through the use of what one observer calls "Government by Ambush" that you can't turn your back on them for a minute.
5:51 pm pdt
Without yet officially announcing his campaign, the mayor has used his bully pulpit to get a running start on the field as he regaled us verbally and in print about his accomplishments during his tenure on the City Council. He should be extremely grateful to the editors of the Daily Pilot for their decision to publish his commentary, which was obviously ripped right from his pending campaign brochures. That kind of publicity would have cost him some big bucks if he had already announced his decision to run again.
In his commentary Mansoor took exception to Parks and Recreation Commissioner Byron de Arakal's recent observation in the Daily Pilot that the up-coming election would be a one or two- issue race - the lighted fields and immigration. The mayor went on to take credit for many things during his tenure that were already in the works when he was elected in 2002. He referred to the term "improvement", which is straight out of his Westside Improver's handbook. You know The Improvers, that knot of angry, frustrated westside residents that gave us Chris Steel in 2000, Mansoor in 2002 and Eric Bever in 2004.
Mansoor cites as an "accomplishment" the closure of the Job Center - a facility that served the needs of this city well for nearly two decades after is was created by a cadre of city leaders who really understood what it means to serve the entire city, not just a vocal few.
Mansoor neglected to mention his ham-handed attempt to cross-designate Costa Mesa law enforcement officers as immigration screeners among his "accomplishments". No wonder. His plan, which no law enforcement leader in Orange County thinks will do the job, has ripped this city apart and has made it the poster child for intolerance. His re-election will likely result in more of the above.
Neither did he mention his recently rebuffed attempt to saddle the property owners of this city with a billion dollar price tag to place all utilities underground throughout the city. His willingness to place that kind of burden on our neighbors and their children doesn't surprise me, since he apparently is no longer a property owner himself. It's that old "if it doesn't hurt me, it can't be bad" attitude that comes through in so many of his decisions.
His position against lighting two more fields at The Farm Sports Complex is not surprising. While most rational, involved people are attempting to find adequate playing fields in this city, including lighting two at The Farm, Mansoor and his cronies are working the other end of the equation. Obviously, their idea is if you get rid of many of the soccer-playing kids (read that Latinos), then we won't need more soccer fields. Hence, the mayor's plan to have the CMPD trained by ICE as immigration screeners.
I thought it was interesting that Mansoor chose his commentary as a place to launch an attack against Planning Commissioner Bruce Garlich, an assumed candidate for City Council in November. I suspect he chose Garlich as a target because he came within 44 votes of defeating Mansoor's pal, Bever, in 2004. Of those individuals assumed to be running in November, Garlich is far and away the strongest candidate. His record of public service, community involvement, proven leadership and a clearly-demonstrated track record of working across a broad constituency to make Costa Mesa a better place in which to live, undoubtedly makes Mansoor and his anointed running mate, Wendy Leece, more than a little nervous.
I will not attempt to speak for Garlich on the issues Mansoor posed. He's certainly more than capable of doing that himself, at a time that suits his campaign best. I will say this, though. Presently, based on Garlich's qualifications, experience and maturity, there is no better candidate poised for the race. His presence on the City Council will return some sanity to the process and help insure that all stakeholders in our city - property owners, residents and business owners alike - will get a fair hearing and fair treatment by the city government.
In the meantime, I fully intend to keep my eye on Mansoor and his pals. They've shown us through the use of what one observer calls "Government by Ambush" that you can't turn your back on them for a minute.
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