Oakland Mayor's Race: Police Are Mayor-Elect (?) Don Perata's First Focus

If first choice results hold under Ranked Choice Voting, and given his 11 percent lead, there's little reason to think otherwise, Don Perata will be Oakland's Mayor-Elect.

Mayor-Elect Perata got 35 percent of the first choice votes; the full results will be by Friday, but his lead's large enough to pull the top Oakland politicians, from Councilmember Larry Reid to AC Transit Executive Director (and former Alameda County Supervisor) Mary King to his party at Z-Cafe on 27th and Broadway.

But in apparent victory, Perata set up what will be his first political battle of his mayoral term: the reinstatement of 80 Oakland Police Officers.

Laying off 80 Oakland Police Officers this year was a controversial move to cut the City of Oakland's budget, and caused a packed City Council meeting where police officers listened to a community that didn't seem to like them very much. Not so Don Perata.

Asked on video to come by this video-blogger what his first move will be as Mayor, Perata, in a horse voice, said "I'm going to reinstate the 80 police officers."

But newcoming District 4 Oakland City Councilmember-Elect Libby Schaaf wasn't so fast to rubber stamp Perata's desire. At her celebration party at Monahan's in the Oakland Hills, Schaaf said that Oakland Police and public safety are very important, but she's not ready to do it "without the money." Schaaf's very concerned to know where the money will come from to take that action.

And that frames the politics of money for Oakland. In an environment of scarce resources, paying for service ideas is much harder, and the Oakland City Council much more skeptical of any idea, even the reinstatement of 80 police officers, without a plan for paying for it.

Stay tuned.

San Francisco Voters Turn Down Hotel Tax Increase In Prop J

San Francisco businesses breathed a sigh of relief today as voters rejected Prop. J Tuesday, turning down a 2 percent increase to San Francisco's hotel tax. If Prop. J passed, the hotel tax increase would have affected businesses throughout the City, not just hotels.

"Small businesses, local restaurants, San Francisco hotels and the Chamber of Commerce all want to thank the voters of San Francisco for rejecting Proposition J that would have harmed the City’s number one industry from rebuilding after the recession and offering new jobs and new opportunities," said Kate Ryken from Economic Recovery SF, a coalition of San Francisco business organizations that opposed the measure.

Prop. J would have hiked San Francisco’s current 15.5 percent hotel tax by 2 percent, making the City's hotel tax the highest in the nation at 17.5 percent. The spike would have made San Francisco unaffordable for many potential visitors, meeting and conference planners, and would have resulted in the loss of more than 2,000 union jobs in S.F., according to the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce.

"We are pleased that San Franciscans voted NO on Proposition J. This ill-conceived initiative would have not only cost the City millions of dollars in visitors and meetings and conventions spending which translates to decrease in revenue for the City and job loss,” said Patricia Breslin, executive director of Hotel Council of San Francisco. “This is an important time for San Francisco. Our businesses are just starting to get their economic footing again and Prop. J would have halted their progress."

Indeed, increasing taxes is not the right decision at any level right now. The economy, from a jobs perspective, is just too weak at this point in time.

Stay tuned.

John Boehner And GOP Will Attack Health Care And Debt Limit - Stupid Idea?

GOP Ohio Rep. John Boehner (photo at left) And GOP Kentucky Senior Senator Rep. Mitch McConnnell appeared before the press just a few minutes ago, saying they has a "pleasant conversation" with President Obama, but that they planned to work to repeal the Health Care Bill, and (perhaps) not extend the Debt Limit. Are these stupid ideas?

The reason Republicans won the House and gained (as of this writing) six Senate seats is not just because the unemployment rate is so high, but that it's been consistently high for three years now. It's just gotten worse after the credit crunch of 2008.

Still, victory in an election can make the most sober person drunk with stupidity, and that was the case with John Boehner and Mitch McConnnell Wednesday morning.

"This is a repudiation of the policies of this administration," Rep. Boehner said. But Rep. John Boehner got it wrong. The problem is that people want a laser focus on job creation. The passage of the Historic Health Care Bill was great, but what was lacking was a continued focus on the economy. Perhaps getting out of Afghanistan - or reducing our presence - and cutting the defense budget are the two jobs President Obama has now. That's where the jobs money is.

Then Obama must push to use that money for a manufacturing subsidy program so American small business can hire people.

Big Government Is Not The Problem

For the GOP to say "big government" is the problem is a joke. The massive credit crunch forced government spending Worldwide. The problem is that many people in America, particularly the "white, no college" demographic, either can't get it, or because of a lack of education, doesn't know how to under the problem.

The problem, simply, is we don't have enough money is our system to get to businesses to produce jobs, and we're not creating enough new businesses to employ people.  And that's a Worldwide problem.  If the GOP doesn't get that over the next two years, their gains will be lost in 2012.

Stay tuned.

Oakland Mayor's Race: Don Perata, Then Tuman, Kaplan For Mayor

Today marks the end of a long and exciting Oakland Mayor's Race. This blogger has talked extensively on and off camera with all 10 of the candidates, created over 300 minutes of video interviews, and read a lot of information on all of them. Former State Senator Don Perata who will be the best choice for Mayor. The simple reason is, for all of the issues lobbed at him, Perata is a leader who gets things done.

That written, political newcomer Joe Tuman is the second choice, followed by At-Large Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan. This was tough, because for a long time, Perata's run for Mayor was a surprise in that a higher office seemed the more logical direction - like Senator. But Perata, for some years now, has expressed desire to be Mayor of Oakland, got an early start, kept his focus, and never looked away. Perata followed the advise then-Oakland Mayor Elihu Harris gave to me more than once: make sure they're always talking about you. And everyone has. Meanwhile, Perata has been above the fray, talking about the need to support Oakland's police and bring leadership back to the Mayor's Office.

In Oakland, Perata has a lot of chits to cash in. When I left the City of Oakland after The Super Bowl, it was Perata who's support for me never wavered. Perata, from the time I was a columnist for The Montclarion to my work for Oakland, has never once turned his back on me. And that's true for a lot of people.

What swayed my vote to Perata was that others like some at the Welstone Democratic Club, were talking about Perata helping "big developers like Phil Tagami" as if that's a bad thing. First, Phil, who's a friend, is not a "big developer" but a hard worker. Second, I knew Phil when he was working in real estate and struggling to make it. Phil's an Oaklander who worked his way up, while some of the same people who are now in the Welstone Club were working for Oakland City Council people, and in some cases sleeping with them.

I'm sick and tired of Oaklanders pulling other Oaklanders who've made it down. It was the comments from those who were doing this, that was the final issue for me. Before that point, I'd considered Rebecca for a long time, and still feel she would do a good job as Mayor. But Rebecca doesn't have quite the gravitas that Perata has. Indeed, Joe Tuman has more. Moreover, Joe really get that people are upset with the Oakland Parking Problem. He will work to stop predatory parking, and I don't think Rebecca will do that.

Tuman is a surprise. A 29-year Oaklander who really has groomed himself into "Citizen Joe," a man who can lead Oakland. I've had hours of conversations with Joe and continue to be impressed with his grasp, not just of the issues, but of the structure and culture of Oakland leadership - that's rare.

Finally, I give a special tip of the hat to Green Party Candidate Don Macleay. As I wrote last week, Don's campaign effort has grown and matured and he's developed a "man of the people" brand, that had he started a year ago, could have pushed him into the Mayor's Office. Don's a good man who's an Oakland treasure.

Rand Paul Wins: Kentucky Elects Man Called "Wacky, Kook" As Senator

Rand Paul, the ophthalmologist son of Rep. Ron Paul, is projected to win the Kentucky Senate seat, beating Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway in today's election race.

In picking Paul over Conway, Kentucky selected a person considered too racist and extremist to represent them, and called "wacky" and a "kook" by others.

A person, Rand Paul, who said that the 1964 Civil Rights Amendment should not apply to the private sector. A person who, more than once, has made statements indicating his outright misunderstanding and at times incredible stupidity with America.

Kentucky, Rand Paul is now your wacky Senator:



This would not have happened were it not for the terrible shape of an economy that's growing, but not producing enough jobs to make a difference for middle America. The unemployment rate is 10 percent in Kentucky. That problem has brought out a terrible element. The Rand Paul supporter who seems to advocate violence against women:



While that is not the fault of Rand Paul, it is the fault of Rand Paul supporters, who probably feel their actions were justified in the end because their candidate won.

Sick.

Oakland Mayor's Race: Arnie Fields Hates Jerry Brown

Arnie Fields is, from this bloggers view, the unofficial Mayor of Oakland. The block of 7th Street that runs next to the BART tracks and contains the BART West Oakland Station, is marked by "Fields For Mayor" signs, all over the place. Only a billboard for "Marcie Fields For Mayor" provides a momentary break from the "Fields For Mayor" images. That, and Fields owns the popular Revolutionary Cafe that's in the middle of the block at 1612 7th Street, which also has his signs.

Arnie Field may not win the race for Mayor of Oakland, but Fields is certainly a force in Oakland. Arnie Fields is an energetic, friendly, and knowledgeable Oaklander who's primary reason for running for Mayor is his anger with former Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown, who he describes as a "kook." This blogger reminded Fields that that "kook" was about to become Governor of California - or so it looked - and Fields said "I hope not." Arnie Fields blames Jerry Brown for making Oakland into what he says is "Gotham City."

That gives you some idea of the kind of conversation Fields and I had and is in the video above.

Arnie Fields Real Estate Guy

There are people who don't take Arnie seriously, but in meeting and talking with him at length, especially off-camera, that's a mistake. This effort has been as much for the objective of eliminating the stereotypes people in Oakland have about the candidates, and in Fields, I've succeeded. Arnie Fields is a married father of three children between the ages of 13 and 21 (two boys and one girl to "even out the testosterone in the house" as he said), who specializes in rehabilitating properties in Oakland. Arnie grew up in Oakland and eats, sleeps, and drinks the culture of our city.

He says that prior to 2000, there was "a house for everyone in Oakland," but Jerry Brown's 10K program - which caused the construction of market rate high density housing in downtown Oakland - took out that era of reasonably priced homes and made Oakland a place where such inexpensive single family home ownership is not longer possible.

Talking With Arnie

Arnie Fields talks started with a kind of introduction to the block of West Oakland he built. Pointing to a neighboring clothing business, he said "People come all over to buy her clothes, she's the best in the Bay. Come and visit her." Arnie says they brought in a bike shop and "the Berkeley Liberation Radio, which is right around the corner, on Peralta" as well as the Revolution Cafe.

Fields says the City of Oakland was trying to demolish the entire block; they saved it, he says, when he and his wife created a historic district. He blames Jerry Brown for getting rid of the old Lincoln Theater, and essentially trying to erase the culture and infrastructure of West Oakland. Arnie says it's wrong for the City to try and destroy its historic structures. Fields forcefully says Oakland has "the largest stock of historic buildings in the country."   Fields says the housing stock in Oakland is "almost 80 years old."

As you can see, Fields has so much to say and has done so much in Oakland, it's hard to keep him on the basic topic of running for Mayor of Oakland, but I did succeed. But it's also why Fields does not perform well in forums: his mind is all over the place, and forums can't pin him down by the way they're ran.

Arnie Fields Is Fighting Corruption

Arnie Fields says his run for Mayor is to root out corruption. In our talk, he pointed directly to the Community and Economic Development Agency and repeated what's become a common theme: that CEDA is corrupt and using fees on building owners to help the City of Oakland pay for services outside of its department responsibilities in areas like building permits and enforcement. If elected, Fields would kick out much of the CEDA management.

Fields also says he will "get rid of the blight ordinance" which he says causes buildings to be slated for demolition and have gotten rid of the inexpensive housing in Oakland. He says that Oakland's population has decreased because of these actions by about 10 percent. (Now, in 2010, Oakland's population is at 399,484, in 2005 it was at 395,274, which is a net increase. Sorry Arnie.)

Arnie Wants To Cut The Fat

Fields asserts that as Mayor he's going to cut 500 CEDA code enforcement officers that he will reduce to 250 positions. Arnie's more interested in shifting money from CEDA to public service, but overall he doesn't have a plan for reducing the deficit. "I want. We're going to become pro-business...cut the red tape," he says, "and eliminate the tax liability" Oakland has at present.

Fields wants to restore Oakland's old buildings to pass on affordability to Oaklanders.  "Before Jerry Brown showed up, you were able to rent a house in Oakland for $600 to $700 a month," he says, "the whole house."  

Fields As Mayor

Fields says his Mayor's office is going to be "a beacon of love and hope" for all.  He will thin down the Mayor's staff and be at all of the council meetings.   "We are going to have a zero-tolerance for litter" in Oakland.

Fields Supports BB

Arnie Fields supports Measure BB because he says "We need more education."   He also says he will push for a 100 percent high school graduation rate.

Fields Will Not Sue The A's

Fields does not want to sue the Oakland A's.   He wants to work with the A's to make them see the benefits of being in Oakland.

You can learn more about Arnie by visiting his website Fields4Change.com and watching the video.

Stay tuned.

American Liberty in Jeopardy? You decide

Is our Liberty in jeopardy here in America? You decide for yourselves, or perhaps you have already decided with your vote.

A government of the rich, by the rich and for the rich is far more likely to continue with Republicans back in power. We should know for sure very shortly.

But what you may not know, is that the Democrats are not much better. How can the rich (and there are no poor folks in Congress) ever really understand the struggles and despair of the impoverished? Look at their priorities and it is easy to see how disconnected every member of Congress is from “main street America.”

Since early this year, Washington has left millions of unemployed workers without the money, in the form of jobless benefits, to pay their rent or mortgage and feed themselves and their families. These most unfortunate souls are known as the 99ers. Had the Democrats not been so arrogant as to assume the 99ers would vote for them no matter what, and instead passed the Tier 5 bill before they recessed (yet again) they (the Dems) would not be sweating bullets worrying about their jobs. Hey Ms. Pelosi - I’ll bet you are not laughing at the 99ers now.

This Summer, the Democrats refused to budge on funding Unemployment extensions using money from TARP or the Stimulus Package.

But, Wall Street bankers and hedge fund managers, saw a proposed $19 billion tax shifted from their assets onto working people. While the toothless financial reform bill passed by Congress earlier this year was initially to be paid for by taxing the institutions most responsible for the financial meltdown of 2008, the Democratic leadership caved to Republican objections, agreeing to fund it instead with money left over from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP)—funds that otherwise would have gone to decrease the US deficit. Instead, those billions in deficit reduction will be gouged out of programs that benefit the working class and the poor.

So Democrats refused to compromise to get badly needed UI benefits passed for hurting Americans, but they did compromise with Republicans to fund the so called Financial Reform Bill via those TARP funds. What is more important? Saving Americans from homelessness and starvation, or passing a weak Financial Reform Bill that barely makes a difference to Wall Street moguls, crooks and thieves?

Also let us not forget, while slashing funds for the jobless and the working population generally, Congress approved $33 billion to pay for the escalation of the nine-year-old war and occupation in Afghanistan, bestowing billions of dollars on a corrupt Afghanistan regime. Although there may not be oil in Afghanistan - there is reportedly over $1 trillion in untapped minerals in the earth there.

Taken together, these actions provide an unmistakable portrait of a government that is of the rich, by the rich and for the rich—one that is utterly unresponsive to the needs and wishes of the vast majority of the American people. The actions of the US Senate (the “millionaires club”), the House (where the average net worth is $650,000) and to some extent the Obama White House are determined by the interests of the banks, the corporations and the wealthiest one percent of the population, while the majority of the country, the working people, are abandoned to the mercies of the capitalist “free market.”

The Democratic House and Senate leadership have blamed Republican obstinacy for the defeat of these meager relief measures. The reality, however, is that both big business parties accept the doctrine of deficit reduction and agree that social spending—including the pittance offered to the unemployed—must be curtailed to that end. As for the Obama White House, it declined to make an issue of millions of workers being left destitute.

What is to account for the chasm that divides the interests of the working class majority from the policies of the two big business parties? According to the latest data released by the Congressional Budget Office 4 months ago, the income gap between the top 1 percent, America’s millionaires, and the rest of the population more than tripled between 1979 and 2007. During that period, the top one percent saw its after-tax income increase 281 percent, compared to just 25 percent for the middle fifth of the population.

No wonder the Democrats stand to lose the House and maybe the Senate as well. If and when that happens, the Democrats will have no one to blame but themselves. Had they passed Tier 5 they would be sitting pretty, confident of winning enough seats to safeguard their majorities in both the House and Senate.

No matter what happens as a result of today’s voting, Congress should NOT wait another 2 weeks to get back to Washington - as is scheduled. They should return immediately and get that Tier 5 Bill passed and extend the UI filing dates as well.

There is wide speculation that the lame-duck Congress will not be addressing the unemployment issues of Tier 5 or extending filing deadlines at all. If that proves to be the case, then there is little doubt that America will erupt into violent protests in towns across the nation - likely by Christmas.

Perhaps the Government is already aware of what is sure to come, as they seem to be preparing for civil unrest here on our own shores. They are already spending millions to arm the guards patrolling our unemployment offices.

According to RTTV News:

Twenty thousand additional U.S. uniformed troops, set to be trained by 2011, are to help as a response to the threat of a possible mass terror attack or civil unrest following an economic collapse. But despite assurances from the Pentagon, many Americans are worried by the prospect of seeing the military guard in the streets.