At the close of the San Diego County Democratic Party Metro West endorsement consideration and District 6 candidate forum on Jan. 31st, I was making these prepared remarks. Unfortunately, when I began drawing contrasts between myself and Kent Lee, one of my opponents whom I never mentioned by name, my mic was silenced — not once, but twice — by the acting chair of the San Diego County Democratic Party. The silencing came when I mentioned that a board member of the Lincoln Club of San Diego had donated to Mr. Lee’s campaign. Here is the full text of my remarks.
My neighbors in District 6 are relying upon you to make a good decision tonight.
I’ve often mentioned how our council seat continues to be co-opted by Downtown special interests instead of grassroots neighborhood advocates, and I don’t think the case could be any clearer given the choice before you tonight.
More than anyone in this space, I know what it takes to run a primary and a general election campaign in D6. I’ve done it before. You know how close we came to success four years ago in our race against Republican Chris Cate.
I know what the issues are my that neighbors are concerned about because I’m talking with them every day in their front yards and at their front doors. I’m in the community.
The reason I’m running for this seat is because my neighbors have asked me to represent them.
Many claim to be concerned about D6 and ensuring my neighbors have representation, but have never spent any time getting to know D6 themselves. I’d like to invite you to come canvass with us to meet our community, our neighbors, and hear for yourself what my neighbors’ concerns are, and what they want in their next councilmember.
Now, my opponent admitted he became a Democrat in 2020 after voting as an Independent throughout his adulthood. It’s fine if you want to be a no party preference or decline-to-state voter.
But to be clear, my opponent wasn’t even a Democrat when President Biden was elected in November. Now he wants to run as one. He became a Democrat specifically to run for this seat, just this month. That’s not leadership, that’s opportunism — and our neighbors know it.
I released my financial disclosures for the second half of 2021 a full 21 days ago because you need access to that disclosure information before you vote. My opponent didn’t.
And because the deadline to submit that information was today, my guess is no one here has looked at my opponent’s disclosures yet. So you’re going to vote blind.
My opponent has already received contributions from a board member of the Lincoln Club, and from another donor who was a signatory to the 2012 anti-Project Labor Agreement ballot measure that outlawed PLAs in the City of San Diego. I’d like to think that’s not acceptable to you, or to this party. It’s not acceptable to me. It’s not acceptable to my working neighbors in D6, especially in Mira Mesa.
My opponent had a chance to defend the Mira Mesa Community Plan at our local planning group. He had a chance oppose the destruction of a wetland protected as open space. He had a chance voice opposition to an absurd proposal to build an office park in the creekbed of Peñasquitos Creek where it goes beneath I-805 on land already included in the City of San Diego’s Multiple Species Conservation Program inventory. He had a chance to vote with the majority of his colleagues on the Mira Mesa Planning Group who voted to deny the applicant.
In every instance, my opponent failed to do so. If elected, my opponent’s lack of mettle will ensure courage remains in short supply in San Diego. That’s not what we need when we’re about to undo the last Republican-held seat in the city.
My neighbors and I in D6 take these things seriously. I hope you do too.
So I ask that you think carefully about your vote tonight, and that you vote to support our campaign for San Diego City Council.
