Democrats worry about Greens' SF momentum

[durutti]

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/11/23/GREENS.TMP

The officially non-partisan race for mayor of San Francisco has become a high-stakes battleground for the Greens and the Democrats, with both sides bringing in help from across the nation.

"Matt Gonzalez has a chance to become a Green and progressive mayor of one of the nation's biggest cities,'' said Marnie Glickman, national co-chair of Green Party. "Greens across the country can contribute to the campaign, raise money for the campaign or they can volunteer, and we're doing all three.''

Democratic leaders are uniting behind Gavin Newsom and promising to bring in whatever help he needs to win the Dec. 9 runoff election.

Former Vice President Al Gore will be in San Francisco to campaign for Newsom next month; Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Secretary of State Kevin Shelley and most other local Democratic officeholders have endorsed him.

"The mayor of San Francisco has tremendous influence,'' said Art Torres, head of the state Democratic Party. "We believe the Democratic Party stands for certain principles and we want to uphold those principles (in San Francisco).''

[Tinoire]

1. Maybe those Democrats should spend more time cutting their ties

to corporations and pandering to the rich so that they wouldn't have to worry about the Green's momentum.


ANYONE supporting Newsom has lost ALL my respect, regardless of the vote I cast for their Presidency in 2000.

Nothing like a few Props M & N & R to show you how far to the right these News Dems are.

[La_Serpiente]

2. Is is true that Gonzalez missed a debate

and do you think that will hurt him?

[Tinoire]

3. I think he did but to be honest with you

I am so anti Newsom that I haven't been watching. I should add that I'm not in SF, I'm in Silicon Valley and because I can't vote in this election am trying to not be fixated on that race so I can have a little free time.

HellHathNoFury is really the person you should talk to since she a a native, true-Dem, San Franciscan and is keeping a keen eye on this.

I'm only there on week-ends and for moral support.

I didn't know who this guy even was a few months ago when I was walking around SF with her and noticed all the defaced posters.

"Why are they defacing a Dem Poster?" I asked... Was shocked at her response and at my follow-up research.

If you saw all the homeless on the streets, it would break your heart. I have never, not even in the 3rd world 20 years ago, seen such misery.

What do you think about Newsom? Have you checked out his platform and read about Props M,N and R? It's really heart-breaking. The whole situation out here is heart-breaking but this started before Bush took office. My European friends were shocked and appalled at the number of homeless people they saw- I would be too ashamed to have them come back now because the numbers have at least doubled.

[Blitz]

37. He missed the debate

And the latest poll shows him eleven points down. Like I said before, bailing on an hour long debate and turning it into an hour long interview with Newsome, which will still be aired, was NOT a smart move:



Also, as a San Franciscan, I have to tell you that Newsome's campaign is hitting the phones very, very hard. I have yet to hear from the Gonzalez campaign. What is also not being widely reported is that Susan Leal (who got 8.48% of the vote in the general election) endorsed Newsome. With Alioto's endorsement, the fantasy of an anti-Newsome block developing has evaporated.

Here is a story on some of the latest development (Willie Brown suggests Gonzalez is a racist, Gonzalez calls Brown a liar, etc.):

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2003/11/27/MNGUO3BQH91.DTL

[Hell Hath No Fury]

40. He didn't miss the debate...

he purposely wouldn't participate because he didn't agree with the format.

KGO knew that -- you have to wonder why they went ahead and gave ol' Gavin an hour long freebie. They wouldn't have a horse in this race, would they?

There is to be a debate that Gonzalez agreed to in early December, it will be broadcast on CBS.

BTW, how do you feel about your boy telling blatant lies about about how Gonzales has a problem hiring minorities? Hmmm? That's some candidate you back there.

As for Angela's supporters -- I guess you didn't read the article in which many of them were feeling utterly betrayed by her because she had made promises she would never back Newsom.

Hell hath no fury, baby....

[Blitz]

45. Are you calling Willie Brown my "boy?"

Because he isn't. Not in any sense. As far as I know, Newsom never said any such thing. As for Gonzalez, he DID miss the debate. He had agreed to it two weeks earlier and then complained about the format the day before, demanding that it be changed from what he had agreed to to meet his specifications. When ABC refused, he bailed. He also blew off a scheduled interview on the most listened to radio show in San Francisco and has missed other scheduled events to which he had committed.

Fury, shmury. Even the most furious people only get to vote once. When Gonzalez loses, and loses big, it will be a step forward for San Francisco and the necessary rejection of political extremism that the city has finally evolved out of.

[Terwilliger]

46. extremism?

What the hell makes Gonzalez an extremist? The fact that he isn't part of the well-oiled political machine crated by the same people that produced Willie Brown?

[Blitz]

49. I am less concerned about Gonzalez

Than his rather rabid supporters and the fact that a Green mayor would discourage business from coming to San Francisco and cause he businesses and many people that are already here to leave.

Of course, like I said, Gonzalez will lose and it won't be very close. San Francisco is not nearly as Green as many people think.

[Zhade]

47. Do you support that traitor Feinstein, too?

NT!

[Blitz]

48. Feinstein?

I agree with her on many issues, disagree with her on a few. Do you support that bigot Byrd?

[Hell Hath No Fury]

52. Read it and weep...

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2003/11/26/MNG0J3AKES26.DTL


San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown on Tuesday called mayoral candidate Matt Gonzalez a chauvinist and said he was driven to keep blacks from serving at City Hall.

"He's got some kind of defect in his head that makes him believe African Americans aren't qualified," the mayor told about a dozen black ministers gathered for a prayer breakfast in the Western Addition.

Gonzalez refused to respond to what he called Brown's attempt to use race and gender issues as a political weapon for Gavin Newsom, the other candidate in the Dec. 9 runoff for mayor.

"I don't want to start a war over issues like this,'' Gonzalez said.

Newsom joined Brown at the prayer breakfast. The mayor's charges echoed an attack Newsom made on Gonzalez at a debate last Sunday when he asked his opponent why "people you oppose for city commissions disproportionately come from the minority community?"


Gavin Newsom is a race-baiting liar. Period.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

53. I have just got to ask this....

Just how long have you lived here in the City? I ask this because your grasp of SF's politics and its "evolution" seems to be off.

For heavens sake, a few years ago we just elected the most progressive Board of Supervisors the City has ever had in it's history, with Newsom and Tony Hall being the most conservative. That should tell you a little bit about the direction our town is "evolving" in.

I should remind you that the election of that Board and rejection of the many Willie candidates was a direct response from the voters to the actions of our money-loving Mayor. Newsom is Willie's handpicked successor -- which may play well with the folks living in Cow Hollow or in those luxury condos down in the South of Market area, but doesn't with the average working class folks of SF.

[lightbulb]

Word

If you want support from Democratic voters, then act like a Democrat! Newsome is a conservative trojan horse, and most San Franciscans are smart enough to see through his grinning facade.

Gonzalez will be victorious in December, and this will be a loud shot across the bow of all Democratic pretenders!

[monobrau]

39. Quit supporting pimps like Willie

We can thank the democratic party machine for inflicting Willie Brown's sleaze on the city for the last 8 years. One of the biggest dissapointments in moving to the bay area was seeing what a whorehouse city hall was under the current administration. Take a ride down 3rd street to see just what kind of democrat Willie Brown is.

[AP]

42. Fortunately, the ones supporting him didn't have much of my

respect to bevin with.

Did Shelley say that he voted for Arnold (or was that someone else?).

[PROGRESSIVE1]

4. May Newsom loose!!! The DLC needs to be sent a message...

that we are not going to take this CRAP ANYMORE from these Republican-Wanabees!!!

:mad:

[dvddrone]

5. I second that emotion

Newsom. Feh. The man who brought us "Let's force the homeless onto an old barge in the Bay!" We have that inhumane freak the mayoral race. I'm leery of voting for the Greens, for obvious reasons post-2000. But Newsom, he's just a Republican in Dem-drag and I'd rather live on an old barge in the Bay myself, before I'd vote for him.

Which brings me to another question. Given that we must rid ourselves of as many Republicans as possible in '04 - what in the hell are we going to do with the rest of the Dem-drag crowd?

Elizabeth

[eablair3]

14. dem-drag? You mean like Diane Feinstein who voted for Repugs' Medicare

Wasn't that something? Diane Feinstein siding with the Repugs and their Medicare bill? I always thought she should just be a Repug.

[IndianaGreen]

17. Feinstein is also an unapologetic supporter of the war in Iraq

She is lower than a pile of dog shit!

[Zhade]

36. The DLC? They ARE Republican-wannabes!

NT!

[el_gato]

6. what a joke

Snip:

Art Torres, head of the state Democratic Party. "We believe the Democratic Party stands for certain principles and we want to uphold those principles (in San Francisco).''

end snip

what principles would those be? delivering votes for bush?
when i see dems actually stand for something maybe i'll believe in them again.

[schultzee]

7. We need the Greens to win to shake up the "neo-dems" who

stole our party through Clinton. I defend Clinton against the mean things the repugs did about his private sex lilfe, but he really screwed the core dems with his NAFTA, and de-regulation of the media. His de-regulation of the media is the reason we are being ruled by corportists now. He gave away our safeguards. I hate him for that.

[Zhade]

38. You and I are in complete agreement on that.

And believe me, I really WANT to believe Clinton was the best president ever. But he did too many (non-sexual) terrible things that remain oblivious to a lot of Dems.

Still, I have to admit, he had some big brass ones not to fully bend to the Right's (and DLC's) likely plans for him - which is why I think they went after him with such furor.

[schultzee]

8. Site for Matt Gonzalez? I want to make a small donation.

[aeon flux]

9. here

www.mattgonzalez.com

[Dr Fate]

10. This is where Greens can actually be effective...

...in local races that they can actually win.

I appreciate Matt's emphasis on local businesses, and I will consider him...

I am normally a partisan, hard-core DEM, but this may actually be a scenario where DEMS can be "taught a lesson"...

...my only fear is that it will embolden the hacks in the party to screw up larger races that they CANNOT win...

...thoughts???

...Convince me one way or the other...

[CreekDog]

11. Newsom is not the Democratic Nominee, he won no party primary!

In all likelihood, Newsom won with solid backing of the few Republicans in the city. After all, the Republican candidate in the race scored 2% of the vote --they can usually count on 10-20.

Most SF voters (50-55%) voted for a more liberal candidate, and you can bet that ratio is even higher among Democratic voters. Fact is, in San Francisco, a Green Party member may be the choice of Democratic voters, in this case he is the superior candidate. The Democrats should embrace him, he is running the campaign their candidate should be running!

Newsom is running as the classic business conservative. I don't think that's a winning strategy in SF, but if turnout is low, he might get in.

If Gonzalez wins, that doesn't mean Democrats are weak, it means that if they stick to their guns and run as progressives where they are strong, they can win.

[Polemonium]

28. I'd be more afraid of getting a punk for a mayor

Why not actually vote for the guy you believe in, identify with, is a progressive. Most greens I know are reluctanly coming over to the ABB camp. The greens will do what they will do but, failing to vote for the person who would best represent you, well it's just not democratic. Finally, I am sick of fear of stategic consequences being the biggest platform of the Democratic Party / Base. I think this strategic mumbo-jumbo, and fear of pissing anyone off, or the fear of doing the right thing has done more to hurt the Democratic Party than anything the Greens or any other handy scapegoat has done.

[Terwilliger]

33. yeah right

you're already "convinced" The only reason you're not slamming Gonzalez and the Greens is because you know that in this case, the Democratic party looks like Republicans to a city that voted over 80% against the recall. It tells you what you hate to hear the most: people truly do not accept the Democratic party's image as pro-business goons who are looking to corral all the big dollars for their party machine.

[Dr Fate]

54. I'm glad you can read my mind and accuse me of lying!!!

Fact is, I have not made up my mind. But I appreciate you accusing me of dishonesty on this- that took a lot of class.

[w4rma]

12. If I thought I could trust the Green Party to act responsibly in close

elections, I'd root for the Green.

I don't trust the Green Party to act responsibly, therefore I hope the Green loses by a landslide.

[Iverson]

13. self-defeating, petty prejudice

You seem to be arguing that on the basis of party affiliation, and nothing else, you know ahead of time that you can't trust "the Green."

At some point, doesn't policy enter your calculations? As Gonzalez is a former Dem, does this mean by logical extension that your trust for him is now also former? Does your automatic apprehension about Greens mean that by definition the other candidate who wants to put homeless people on a barge in San Fransisco Bay is trustworthy?

Good grief!

[BlackFrancis]

22. what are you talking about?

The green party candidate is the frontrunner with his only competion coming from the Democratic candidate. There is nothing to "spoil" here! I can't think of any reason anyone with a serious progressive bone in their body in that city would want to vote for Gavin Newsom.

[Forkboy]

29. And you think some attacks on Dean are petty?

a truly sad post.

[Some Moran]

50. Maybe you should join your little boy Newsom and donate $500 to *

Traitor...

[Blitz]

51. Hey Moran

Come December 9, 2003 I'll head down to the Rincon Center to vote for Democrat Gavin Newsom for Mayor of San Francisco ... and you'll still be in Canada.

It won't be close.

[eablair3]

15. Hey AL GORE -- screw you

Gore is actually going to campaign for Gavin Newsom. I was just beginning to get a newfound respect for Al Gore, until I read that article stating he's actually going to come to SF to campaign for Newsom who is backed by big money, big business, developers and big corporations, not to mention the entire Repug apparatus in SF.

Dems teaming up with Repugs. What else is new?

[lostnfound]

31. You're right: that's so disappointing. n/t

[eablair3]

16. Latest Poll: Gonzalez Ahead in Race for SF Mayor

I posted this in a thread in GD earlier, but just in case some don't read there, this was on the CBS affiliate in SF on Nov 25:

Poll: Gonzalez Ahead in Race for SF Mayor

Manuel Ramos

Supervisor Matt Gonzalez is not used to being in the lead.

"I'm pleased. I'm flattered," the candidate for mayor of San Francisco said. "The end goal is to win on Election Day, so whenever you hear news like this earlier, you're not really sure."

A CBS 5 poll shows that if the election were held Tuesday, Gonzalez would get 52% of the vote in the race for City Hall. His opponent, Supervisor Gavin Newsom, would get 45%, according to the Survey USA report.

"All the polls have been all over the place, which suggests that this race is hardly over," said Newsom. "It's very much in play."

snip

http://beta.kpix.com/news/local/2003/11/25/Poll%3A_Gonzalez_Ahead_in_Race_for_SF_Mayor.html

[Iverson]

18. kick

Now that the smear campaign has kicked into high gear, this issue should be kept visible.

[dolstein]

19. Lovely, another Republican stooge

I'd put the odds of Matt Gonzales endorsing the Democratic presidential candidate at around zero. Like Nader, he'll ally himself with the Republicans in their opposition to the Democratic Party.

[Iverson]

27. incorrect

Nader did not ally himself with the Republicans.
There are Republican stooges in the SF drama, but Matt Gonzales is not one of them. Check your bed.

[Forkboy]

30. A shallow reading of the situation

not at all unexpected.

[Jack Rabbit]

32. A few points about California electorial law and culture

By Califonia law, all elections for municipal and county offices are nonpartisan. Techniclally, there is neither a Green nor Democrat running in this election.

Californians generally view such races as being nonpartisan. There may be a few San Franciscans who will vote one way or the other based on the known party affiliations of the two candidates, but most will vote for the man rather than the party. That's the way California political culture works.

There are extreme cases wher party affiliation may make a difference. For example, in both 1969 and 1973, Tom Bradley ran for mayor of Los Angeles as "the Democratic candidate." This was a dig at the incumbant mayor, Sam Yorty, who was also a Democrat, but only technically. Yorty backed Nixon over Kennedy in 1960 and tereafter continued to infuriate Democrats in the state and especially in Los Angeles by failing to support Democratic candidates, often supporting their Republican opponents and consistantly supporting Republican policy positions, including President Nixon's handling of the Vietnam War. I believe that even if the most conservative Democrats on thes board were he familiar with Mayor Yorty, they, too, would call him a DINO.

[Terwilliger]

34. Are you people so desperate?

Lieberman and the DLC platform is going down in flames and all you can do is ad hominem attack. What wonderful politics. No wonder so many people don't vote at all.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

41. Wrong-o...

the Pube stooge in this race IS the Democrat!

This Dem is voting for the best Dem, which happens to be a Green, who used to be a Dem.

Got it?

[skip fox]

20. I know Matt Gonzales and think he's

an incredible candidate for mayor. Committed, intelligent, etc. He was a public defender for a decade or more. The man is my hero! (Plus, he loves poetry!)

[durutti]

25. But he's RACIST!

So says Willie Brown. :eyes:

[skip fox]

26. He's anything but.

He's not, of course. He's actively working to have not citizens vote in local schoolboard elections and in elections that matter to them locally by showing that they're in the US legally and then . . . well, . . . voting. Certainly not the stance of a racist.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

43. When I read that Willie and Gavin...

had pulled that crap out of their asses, I just about had a stroke.

They truly are desperate.

[hatrack]

21. Rhetorical question

Judging by the article, Democrats of national stature are rushing to San Francisco to maintain Democratic solidarity and ensure a victory for the party in a mayoral election.

Yet other Democrats of national stature can't be bothered to maintain Democratic solidarity and ensure a victory for the party when a really shitty Medicare "reform" bill comes up in Congress.

Why is that? What are the apparent new limits of party loyalty?

[BlackFrancis]

23. keeping their bullshit jobs..

[AP]

44. Note WHICH national Dems are running to SF.

Bet you don't see Kucinich campaigning for Newsom.

[edzontar]

24. Feinstein shoud be the next target....

Preferably in a primary race, but I for one would vote Green against her, the way I am feeling rght now.

Fortunately for this lowlife DINO Bushwarlover, I live in PA. not CA.

[Zhade]

35. Because so many of them are traitors and/or Bush-enablers?

Gee, why would people like Dianne "PATRIOT Act A-Okay with me!" Feinstein have cause to worry?