Jul 14, 2016
The official recount is over and Lan Diep has been named the winner of the San Jose City Council District 4 race, again. But the news of a confirmed defeat has not stopped Nguyen and a voter from requesting yet another recount, this one at their own expense. The recount will cost approximately $20,000 and take one month. The general…
Jul 12, 2016
Now that the Opportunity to Work Initiative has been placed on the November Ballot, I’d like to make a prediction. San Jose’s elected leaders are going to hear from outraged business owners who will argue the proposal will do them grievous harm. The source of their information will be the Chamber of Commerce, and the information will be a disgraceful…
Jul 6, 2016
One indicator of the political strength of an organization or individual is the success of the candidates they endorse, particularly in contested races for open seats. In the hotly contested race for the open seat in the 27th Assembly District, which pitted Ash Kalra, endorsed by Labor, against Madison Nguyen, endorsed by the Chamber of Commerce, Mayor and the…
Jun 20, 2016
County of Santa Clara Funding for the Housing Authority’s Potential Acquisition of the Buena Vista Mobile Home Park County administration is recommending that the Board approve a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Housing Authority of the County of Santa Clara and the City of Palo Alto relating to funding the Housing Authority’s potential acquisition of the Buena Vista Mobile…
Jun 17, 2016
Yesterday, the AFL-CIO announced that its General Board, which represents 12.5 million members, voted to endorse Hillary Clinton for President of the United States. The endorsement reflects a comprehensive, democratic process started a year ago to capture the interests of the working people the AFL-CIO represents. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said, “Hillary Clinton is a proven leader who shares our…
Jun 8, 2016
Yesterday’s list of election winners was a near perfect match with the list of candidates and measures endorsed by the South Bay Labor Council. Here’s a quick rundown: Assembly District 27 saw labor’s candidate, Ash Kalra, make it past the primary election despite the nearly $2 million spent against Kalra and in favor of his opponent by outside interest groups.…
May 27, 2016
Any grassroots, community or neighborhood activist who has struggled to get the City of San Jose to expand public services has likely encountered a perennial refrain – We’d love to help but the money just isn’t there. A year ago, my think tank, Working Partnerships USA, and SPUR, a Bay Area urbanist organization decided to take a cold look at…
May 26, 2016
In an article published on EBCitizen.com, Bill Ferguson, a former Ro Khanna staffer, says Khanna refused to pay him $6,000 for work done during an unsuccessful 2004 Congressional race and is now lying about the money owed. Khanna claims that Ferguson has been paid. However, emails sent between the two men, starting as far back as July of 2004, show…
May 19, 2016
The San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce has been getting a lot of heat for its mudslinging against District 8 candidate Joshua Barousse. Last week, Pat Waite, another contender for the District 8 seat, found the hits on Barousse so petty and overinflated that in a letter published in the Evergreen Times he stated, “I have returned the contribution…
May 18, 2016
Today, the San Jose City Clerk announced that the Opportunity to Work Initiative has the signatures needed to be placed on the November 2016 ballot. The Council, which will hear the item at their May 24th meeting, has the option of placing the measure on the November 2016 ballot, adopting the ordinance or requesting an impact report. Silicon Valley Rising,…