"I've never received this much mail for a race and I've lived here 40 years." ~ Anonymous 4th District Voter
No question the County Board of Supervisors wields tremendous power, but as the days countdown to the June 5th primary, the amount of mail coming at voters is totally absurd.
Those paying big bucks to fill our boxes in the final days certainly hope it translates in an election day nod, but clearly those same politicos can't be bothered with the accuracy of the messages on those mail pieces and the certain legal jeopardy they will face following the primary.
At some point, one would think the "pay the fine, who cares" attitude would end, but that likely won't happen until the Fair Political Practices Commission gets serious with fines.
EXHIBIT A
Lincoln Club of San Diego County Mailer
This hit piece on candidate Nathan Fletcher is void of a "paid for" line. Campaign experts note it is illegal to send a mailer without such notice.
It was paid for by a "super PAC" funded by The Lincoln Club, which has endorsed Republican and retired District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis.
Fletcher has notified IVN San Diego that a complaint has been filed with the Fair Political Practices Commission which will no doubt be addressed after the election.
The Lincoln Club is wearing out the postal service spending nearly $120,000 on mail this month trying to keep Fletcher out of office.
In an exchange with KPBS, Lincoln Club President Brian Pepin has admitted the mailer was a mistake, "There was an internal miscommunication during the production of that mailer which caused the problem with the disclaimer. The committee immediately self-reported the issue to the (state Fair Political Practices Commission) as soon as it arrived in mailboxes and we became aware of the problem. All of our other mail has consistently included disclaimers and will continue to do so."
EXHIBIT B
San Diego Democratic Party
This piece by the San Diego Democratic Party reads, candidate "Lori Saldaña sides with abusers to advance her political career."
The party and its consultants are going to great lengths to paint Saldaña as the outlier Democrat who supported and endorsed disgraced San Diego Mayor Bob Filner.
Not true.
Before the election only one or two Democrats in San Diego spoke out against then candidate Filner, this was despite the fact that nearly every Democrat within the party knew of Filner's awful treatment of women.
In a piece from the Voice of San Diego in 2013, Saldaña was quoted as saying, "I blew the whistle on this two years ago to the Democratic Party leadership."
The hit pieces on Saldaña reflect that blatant hypocrisy.
PASSONS AND DUMANIS STEER CLEAR
Omar Passons and Bonnie Dumanis have mostly stayed out of the ugly campaign. The former District Attorney, Dumanis is the lone Republican in the field and will likely finish in the top-two and compete for the Supervisor seat in November.
Democrat Omar Passons is considered a political outsider who received the 4th District endorsement from the San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board,a nice and important feather in his cap. The Editorial Board noted, "While he lacks some of his opponents’ name recognition and campaign resources, Passons outshines them on temperament and preparedness. Voters who are unfamiliar with him should check out his website at omarpassons.com."