The circus is in town again, also known as the San Diego mayoral race. Our citizens get to pick a mayor for the second time in a year. What I find fascinating is the fact that endorsements are completely along party lines. Knock me over with a feather.
Endorsements are supposed to convince voters to support a particular candidate because the voter believes in the judgment of the person making the endorsement. Lorena Gonzalez, Toni Atkins, Jerry Sanders, Scott Peters or Donna Frye all know better than you. They are saying, “Listen to me San Diego this is the best candidate for mayor.” Well how did that work for the citizens of San Diego last November; not so well.
Many of the same elected officials that told you to elect Bob Filner now think you have forgotten how wrong they were. They are counting on you to have no long-term memory. Forget about what I said last fall, listen to me now.
It is a sad commentary on the state of politics in San Diego when qualifications are no longer the reason to cast your vote for mayor. Sure, many of the elected officials who are making endorsements in the mayoral race give a reason they support a particular candidate. Unfortunately, upon close inspection their suggested reasons are often no more than platitudes. Here are some great examples from recent endorsements for mayor:
“He understands that he is a public servant and knows that the needs of the public come first.”
“San Diego needs a steady hand on the tiller of government after our recent turmoil … (he) has the experience and leadership to lead our city back to stability and restore confidence in government.”
“I think he’ll add a definite note of experience and common sense.”
“He’s grounded and comes from a family who instilled in him core beliefs and values that are based upon respect for all members of our San Diego communities.”
“(He’s) a friend, somebody who has a very rich history in terms of civil rights who has equality as part of the very fabric of his being …”
“It’s very rare that we have someone come along who wants to run for mayor who’s got the experience and the ability to actually bring people together …”
“(He) also has institutional knowledge of City Hall and that will enable him to hit the ground running and move this city forward.”
Can you tell which quotes are about Bob Filner versus the slate of new candidates? Of course not. That is why most political endorsements are nothing more than political theater. Either the endorser has a political agenda, i.e. Doug Manchester and the U-T, or the endorser wants to carry favor within their political party power structure. At least political advocacy groups like labor or environmental organizations have the interest of their members at heart. Not so much when it comes to elected officials.
As we approach our next choice for mayor, I know that you are a smart informed voter and will not be swayed by endorsements. They misinformed the public about Bob Filner, why should we believe anything they say about the current slate of candidates?
San Diego mayoral decision 2013; you decide all by yourself.
STAMPP CORBIN
PUBLISHER
San Diego LGBT Weekly
