ojai news at The Ojai Post :: blog, newspaper, events in Ojai, California

An addendum: best wishes to Rep. Gallegly for a full recovery from his health issues. I don't agree with him on most issues, but hope that he moves on to a productive next chapter in his life.

Brian Dennert's blog at the VC Star is doing a great job of covering this issue as well.

Tyler,

Thanks for the plug. Ojaipost, if you hear anything interesting,please let me know.

Cathy Carlson from TO here: I just found your OjaiBlog site today and found the link here to The Ojai Post. I got confused thinking I was on the same site with different colors! Now I've got it straight. There appears to be quite a variety of political views among the authors. This should be interesting reading.

Tyler, thanks for the update. I found this harrassment of Wagner very offensive. Months ago I wrote in to Brian Dennert's website supporting Brett's right to campaign. That is the American way. If someone wants to serve, then give him room and respect. But, boy did I get viciously attacked by Brian's angry bloggers for my comments. Can you say, "psychopaths"?

I'm very glad that the state Democratic Party leaders reprimanded their Ventura County members for such uncivil behavior. Those guilty out-of-control DEMS are some of the same names that have been on a mission to mess with the school board politics here in the Conejo. Several of the 20-odd renegade DEMs who signed the illegal letter against Brett Wagner are also on the Board of the Democratic Club of the Conejo Valley. (Google their website. It's a great example of what NOT to write in a political newsletter; i.e., whining about how weak they are compared to the opposition!)

I heard these radicals got reprimanded all the way from Washington for the damage they did to the Ventura Democratic Party! I bet that explains why the DCCV website hasn't had it's usual daily update since Feb 12. This slash-and-burn type of politics is eventually seen for what it is -- drama rather than substance.

Thanks, OjaiPost for outing these troublemakers.

So why hasn't the Star done a story on this? Is the truth too embarrassing for Richard Larsen and his radically liberal editorials? The names of all the signers should be listed. You can read the notorious letter and the names of all the signers in Brian Dennert's website with the Star. There are TONS of comments on this scandal from months ago. This is a juicy story, but apparently the STAR doesn't want to print it. I think people in Ojai and the rest of Ventura County should ask the Editor for an explanation.

Jeeze, it's sounding like the same old song again with the Dems. You'd think after the major disappointments in '04, there would be a more united, organized effort with an actual plan for winning seats in '06. But here an excellent opportunity presents itself and no one really seems to be at the ready. All the party can muster is a minister who no one knows much about. I know her as someone dedicated to the social justice cause for affordable housing in an area where the median home price is $1.2M, but that's about it. I sure hope her people (does she have people?) are planning to not get much sleep over the next several months so that this seat can be taken.

Mary was the only true Progresive in the race. I hear that a massive write in campaign is going to happen. The Martinez campaign is asking people to believe that Mary would not sign on to a "clean money campaign". It was a ruse to force her to share her donor lists. Clean money has not yet passed our state legislature. Mary always supported clean money and immediate withdrawal from Iraq. She proudly stated that she was a Progressive at the same town hall where Martinez claimed that she was proud to be a MODERATE. Write in Mary Pallant if you are a progressive.

Cathy Carlson from TO here: This is the list of the 24 Democrats that signed an unauthorized letter demanding that Brett Wagner not run against Elton Gallegly. The California State Democratic Party finished an investigation a couple of weeks ago and admonished them all. I hope they took away the Charter of the Democratic Club of the Conejo since 4 of their Board Members signed (Ingrid Van Eckert was their Fundraising Chair and Tom Mullens was President.) The Star needs to out all 24.

You can find 124 comments about the melt down of the Ventura County Democratic Party last fall on Brian Dennert's blog site @
http://blogs.venturacountystar.com/vcs/dennert/archives/2005/10/when_democrats.html#comments
***********************

(This is a post from Brett Wagner last October 2005 in Brian Dennert's blog that I cited. About 3 or 4 made retractions, including Ferial Masry, but the damage was done. They are all guilty.)

Brett Wagner wrote:

....The accusers' letter ends with this threat:

"We are hereby requesting that you terminate your
candidacy and, for the
good of the party, step aside in favor of more
viable candidates. If you
should decide to continue your candidacy, we will
have no alternative but
to publicly oppose you."

Two days later, on Wednesday morning, without
warning, they held a press
conference in a reckless attempt to complete
their character assassination
against yours truly.

All of the following Democratic Party officials I
list below signed the
aforementioned letter which has initiated this
attempted character
assassination, and which began following through
on all of the disturbing
threats I've been receiving these last 4 or 5
months (along with their own
handwritten "office or title" printed beside
their individual names):

- in the order that they signed -

JIM MILLER - Associate Chair, 37th AD Committee

LAURA WINCHESTER - Ventura County Democratic
Central Committee

JODELL HAWS - Delegate, 37th AD Committee

TOM PARKER - Chair, 37th AD Committee

SUSAN BROIDY - President, Ojai Valley Democratic
Club

LARRY MILLER - Ventura County Democratic Central
Committee

MARY KAY DONAHUE - President, Democratic Women's
Council of Conejo Valley

JOAN RUST - President, Democratic Club of
Camarillo

PAUL DELGADO - Ventura County Democratic Central
Committee

VIRGINIA ROGALSKY - Exec. Vice President,
Democratic Club of Conejo Valley

SANDRA EMBERLAND - Ventura County Democratic
Central Committee

ALLEN DIRRIM - Ventura County Democratic Central
Committee

JAMES HENSLEY - PR Media Chair, Greater Oxnard
Organization of Democrats

LINDA MC KENNA - Ventura County Democratic
Central Committee

JOAN ADAMS - Ventura County Democratic Central
Committee

MARY FLEISCHBEIN - Ventura County Democratic
Central Committee

FERIAL MASRY - Candidate, 37th AD

INGRID VAN ECKERT - Delegate, 37th AD Committee

DONALD KATZ - Ventura County Democratic Central
Committee

REATHA KATZ - Ventura County Democratic Central
Committee

THOMAS MULLENS - President, Democratic Club of
Conejo Valley

CHRIS ROBSON - Delegate, 37th AD Committee

KAREN PETERS - Secretary, 37th AD Committee

ELLEN NAGLER - Alternate, E-Board Representative,
35th AD Committee

Cathy C again: I see that Laura Winchester signed as as a Centrl Committe member, but she was also on the Board of the radical DCCV. the 4th person from DCCV was Virginia Rogalsky, and she signed as Executive Vice President of the DCCV. I see some other names of DCCV regular members as well. Will this group still promote Ferial Masry? Does Masry want their support after all this scandal? Has the DCCV lost its power now in Ventura County? Serves them right.

Cathy C here: I just found this on that blog site from October that had 124 comments. It is about Jill Martinez and anti-gay slurs. Is this so? I don't know the blogger. He wrote:

"This is a question for Laura Winchester: Are you aware of the offensive anti-gay slurs which Jill Martinez mailed to Brett Wagner? Are you backing that woman? If so, why, when Professor Wagner so galvanized the congressional district a few years ago with his message of competent foreign policy and a wise implementation of the progressive domestic agenda?

Brett Wagner put together a great grassroots campaign -- we need more of that. Don't be deceived by cheap imitations!"

(Posted by: Nathaniel White at October 10, 2005 08:05 PM on Brian Dennert's website)

This is all more than I know about local politics (although I'll keep reading and try to catch up) but I have to say I'm pretty excited for a Gallegly-free future.

Michael Stettler from Ojai is a strong write-in democratic candidate in the 24th District. Clearly Stettler is the one to watch in the challenge for Gallegly's abandoned seat. More soon to unfold.