A curious meeting of Rotarians, mayors and one congressman

[MindPilot]

But they did ask questions, just about as challenging as those asked by Jeff Gannon of the president. You would think the guests at the Rotary meeting didn't give a big hoot about their congressman and his selling of houses for enormous profits, rent-free boats, suddenly rich contractors and millions of dollars and stuff like that. According to the reports that leaked out, everybody behaved like proper North County Republicans.

Heck, they not only behaved, they gave him not one but two standing ovations when one would have been overkill and none preferable, given the circumstances. Then they serenaded the guy with a nice song based on "Anchors Aweigh." I presume it referred to the Duke's service in the Navy, not to his sailing on "The Duke-Stir," the boat he lived in rent-free.

Far from using a public forum to ask questions of a public figure on public matters, the Rotarians and other special guests treated their hero like the hero he had been 35 years earlier. Escondido Mayor Lori Holt Pfeiler again praised him for those acts.


http://www.voiceofsandiego.org/site/apps/nl/content2.asp?c=euLTJbMUKvH&b=312470&ct=1164949

[cascadiance]

1. I have an office mate who despises Cunningham now...

... but was earlier looking to campaign to get the Escondido mayor mentioned here to run for his seat. I sent him this article, noting that she didn't seem exactly in favor of replacing him at this time and was more supportive than most of him staying in office.

If she runs for his seat, we all as voters up here should remind voters of her "endorsement" of Cunningham at this Rotarian meeting indicated here. Ask her why she felt he should have stayed in office, knowing what we all do about Cunningham's shenanigans!

Here's another article in the Union tribune that mentions how the race for Cunningham's seat might go. It speculates what might happen if we were to wait for the 2006 election, or what might happen if he were to resign earlier too.

It notes that if he resigns late enough, the seat would remain "open" until 2006, but if he resigns before February next year, then a special election is mandated to replace him. It would be an open election (kind of like the recall election) with no primaries. That actually might help Democrats some, with the overload of different types of Republicans that have been entering races down here like the mayor's race, etc. (true moderate republicans, big business types, religious right folks, etc.). I think it would be important to put our efforts behind whoever we most likely think will win and vote in a large block for that person (much like we're doing currently with Frye - even though she's still needing to get over 50% of the votes at some point to become mayor). Currently this person is Francine Busby. We should confirm this is our choice or solidify around another choice soon, so that we can be prepared for such a special election if it should come up. It would be nice to have another Dem in this Republican area. I think the political dynamics of this area are starting to change more than some would care to think (with a lot of soldiers dying in Iraq, more immigrants from the Bay Area since 2000, redistricting since 2000, and a lot of people, both Republican and Democrat, that are getting fed up with corruption, etc.)

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/northcounty/jenkins/20050718-9999-1m18jenkins.html

Intrigue has early lead in campaign to replace Cunningham

UNION-TRIBUNE

July 18, 2005

Politicians, start your engines.

Now that a Duke, no less, has waved the green flag, you're no longer restrained by taste and good breeding. You don't have to hide your souped-up ambitions behind sympathy for the embattled leader of the GOP Racing Team.

Go ahead, race your engines. Peel out of the pits. Gun for the early lead.

Vroom-vroom!

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Sorry, but this is heady stuff here.

A wide-open congressional race comes along once in a generation in North County, a foreign country where things are done differently.

In these parts, congressional seats are the divine right of Republicans, the more conservative the better.

Maybe it's our rural Midwestern roots, which are deep. No matter how many bedrooms are planted in rows, no matter how much the Latino population increases, North County remains a reliable red state.

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