Good Crime News, E-Verify & Phu Nguyen

COSTA MESA VIOLENT CRIME DOWN
Tuesday evening, in the Daily Pilot online, Joe Serna reports that - according to FBI statistics - violent crime in Costa Mesa dropped 14% in 2009! You can read Serna's article, which includes the details, HERE.


GREAT NEWS IN TOUGH TIMES
This is terrific news and a great testament to those brave men and women who patrol our streets and try to make our city safer. We only hope the current budget constraints, and the current salary negotiations, won't keep them from continuing to perform at such a high level. Kudos to the Chief Chris Shawkey and the men and women of the CMPD.

MANSOOR TOUTS E-VERIFY
Our formerly young, and former jailer, Mayor Allan Mansoor has been getting a lot of press recently. For example, the media is all abuzz about his latest scheme to quash what he perceives to be a marauding hoard of illegal immigrants in Costa Mesa - to REQUIRE the use of the federal E-Verify program. This was discussed at the city council study session Tuesday. I was not there, nor have I seen the tape of the meeting yet, but I'm told that Mansoor stuck close to his request as presented in the staff report.

ONEROUS DEMAND ON BUSINESSES
Not only will his plan require the City of Costa Mesa to utilize E-Verify, but he would require every NEW BUSINESS to agree to use E-Verify before a business license could be issued. Additionally, Mansoor also wants to require EVERY EXISTING business to use E-Verify on all it's current employees before a license renewal could be issued.

MANSOOR TO ASK FOR FUNDING FOR RESEARCH
It's my understanding that Mansoor will bring this item before the council in a future meeting, seeking authorization for the staff to do exhaustive research and create the appropriate legal documents needed to implement such a plan. This seems like an unnecessary, costly (in these difficult budget times) and intrusive measure - one that will certainly not endear Mansoor to the business community. Much like his "rule of law city" resolution, this is just another grandstanding move on his part to gin up votes for his faltering Assembly race against Phu Nguyen. Cindy Carcamo and Jon Cassidy of the Orange County Register did an excellent article late Tuesday on this subject. You can find it HERE.

ORANGE JUICE BLOG PIECE ON MANSOOR
There's a very interesting piece about Mansoor on the Orange Juice blog by crooner Vern Nelson that is part of a series of articles on that site about our aspiring assemblyman. I think you'll find this particular one especially entertaining. You can find it HERE. Enjoy.

A VIEW OF PHU FOR YOU
Finally, before I close, I want to provide you with some perspective. The following little video clip from YouTube presents a view of Mansoor's opponent in the 68th Assembly race - Phu Nguyen. I know you'll find it interesting and gives you a way to compare his background and qualifications to those of Mansoor.

Chili Cook-Off A Success

GREAT JOB, HALECREST!
Our friends in the Halecrest-Hall of Fame area of Costa Mesa did themselves proud yesterday. Their sixth annual chili cook-off was a rousing success.

Blessed with perfect weather and a record crowd, the sponsors should be feeling pretty darn good about their event today.

NO POLITICAL "WINNERS"
More than 20 versions of chili were available for the public to sample, ranging from "pretty darn mild" to "blow your socks off spicy". My wife and I tried most of them and, much to my chagrin, she decided the chili being served by Mayor Allan Mansoor was the best because it "didn't bother her stomach as much". Arrrggghhh! According to reports, neither Mansoor nor his Assembly rival, Phu Nguyen, won the top prize.

THE WINNERS WERE...
Winners - there really were no losers in this competition - included the Wingnuts chili which was deemed to be the spiciest; the McCarthy clan of Planning Commissioner Colin McCarthy won for most unique and best overall was snagged by entry number 10. Sorry, my source didn't have the name of the contestant. Second over all went to #16 and third went to #3, Chris Blank. The people's choice award went to the Cowboy Chili. UPDATE: A little after 5:00 p.m. Jim Fitzpatrick sent me the official finish results: #3, Chris Blank & Grovey Chili; #2, Yvon Dunne & Mom's Chili, #1, Luise Fiduccia & Dad's Old Fashioned Chili. Congrats to all!

URP!
One thing about a chili cook-off - it's a gift that just keeps on giving. If I'd have been half-smart I would have set up a Tums booth!




ABUNDANCE OF POLITICOS
As you might expect, many local politicians were seen at this event. Wendy Leece had a chili booth, as did Jim Righeimer. Also spotted in the crowd were planning commissioners Sam Clark and Jim Fitzpatrick, the latter as part of the judging panel along with Realtor Larry Weichman, Assistant City Manager Tom Hatch and Chamber of Commerce President Ed Fawcett.

(Hatch, Weichman, Fitzpatrick, Fawcett)

AND MORE...
Parks & Rec. Commission Chairman Mike Brumbaugh, the driving force behind this event, seemed to be everywhere. We also came across his Vice Chair, Terry Shaw, cruising the chili booths, searching for that perfect sample. Former Planning Commissioner Jim Fisler, currently campaigning to return to his appointed seat on the Mesa Consolidated Water District Board, stopped to visit while sampling chili.

AND EVEN MORE...
We saw Katrina Foley (here with Phu Ngyyen) working the crowd and had a nice visit with Fairgrounds CEO Steve Beazley, too. Everywhere we looked there were smiles, smiles and more smile. In fact, the only frown I saw during my couple hours at this event was on the face of one perpetually grumpy old Mesa North resident observed lurking about, apparently on the prowl for something anti-white about the event so he could write about it.

ENERGY PLUS...
The vivacious young folks from the Costa Mesa High School Cheer Squad entertained the crowd with a few routines, including one with members of their youth cheer camp. Great job!



OLD CARS, TOO
A half dozen custom and/or special cars were on display in the shade - a nice touch for us old car fans. I really liked John Rubright's Studebaker convertible.

THANKS, READERS...
Thanks to those of you who made it a point to say howdy as we wandered around the crowd. It's always nice to put a face on a name and your kind words about the things you've read here are much appreciated.

MAYOR NOT HAPPY WITH ME... DUH!
And, no, the Mayor was not happy with my commentary in the Daily Pilot. He got pretty animated when he told me I was off-base with my question about why he left his job last December. And, no, he didn't clear up the mystery at all - he just said he left to do "other things" - so we are left to speculate. He went back to slinging chili, less happy than he was before. Such is life in politics.


FINALLY MET PHU
I did have a chance to meet Mansoor's competition, Phu Nguyen, as he was serving his chili to the crowd. He took a couple minutes to visit with me. Phu seems like a smart young fellow who is serious about going to Sacramento go make a difference in the state. Of course, that's what every candidate says. I understand he's been interviewed by two reporters from the Daily Pilot and that their stories will appear soon. I didn't try his chili - the thought of fish sauce in chili was off-putting for me.

A VERY SPECIAL DAY
Yep, this was a very special event and a great example of what makes Costa Mesa such a wonderful place in which to live.

Final Election Results & Fairgrounds Deal?

ALL BALLOTS COUNTED
According to the Registrar of Voters office this morning, all the ballots have been counted and the numbers are final. They will be certified tomorrow. So, for the last time (probably) here are the local election results from the Primary Election on June 8th.



LESS THAN 1/3 VOTED!
Fewer than one-third of the registered voters made their way to the voting booth - or took their time to cast a ballot via mail or any other way. To the more than 1.2 million of Orange County voters who didn't participate in the process - when things don't go the way you want, if your elected representatives don't do what you want, just muzzle yourselves. If you don't participate you don't get to gripe about it later.
REPUBLICANS OUT-VOTE DEMOCRATS
More than twice as many Republicans voted than did Democrats. Republicans (42.8%) turned out in a much higher ratio than did Democrats (28.8%). Let's hope that trend holds in November.TRAN IN TROUBLE
Van Tran is going to have a tough time against Loretta Sanchez in November.
GIDDYAP, LATINOS!
Allan Mansoor tallied more than 22,000 votes in the primary, 69.3% of the Republican vote in the district. It looks like he may just waltz to victory for the 68th Assembly seat being vacated by Tran using the same strategy he followed four years ago - to ride the backs of the Latino population in his district to victory. Unless Phu Nguyen can motivate his base to turn out in large numbers in November, Mansoor will end up in Sacramento in January.
MUSIC STOPPED - LEECE LEFT WITHOUT A SEAT
Wendy Leece missed a seat in the 68th Assembly District Republican County Central Committee, finishing more than 900 votes behind the 6th place finisher. Costa Mesa Parks and Recreation Commissioner Jeff Mathews finished 5th in the voting, more than 1,000 votes ahead of Leece.MEASURE "C" OVERWHELMING
The final count for Measure "C", the General Plan Designation of the Orange County Fair and Event Center, finished with an even 13,000 voters (87.7%) screaming loud and clear that they want the Fairgrounds to remain as it is - a fairgrounds. We'll see how this result affects the possible sale.FAIRGROUNDS DEAL MAY BE ANNOUNCED
Incidentally, rumor has it that the deal between the City, the State and Facilities Management West nearly went down in flames last week a couple times but, following a marathon session on Saturday, it looks like there may be agreement. We should find out on Tuesday, when the joint powers authority, the Orange County Fairgrounds Authority, meets in both closed and open session following the special council meeting that was called to attempt to get a budget passed.

Primary Count Almost Complete

30% VOTER TURNOUT
Well, the counting continues and not much is happening in the way of change. I checked the Registrar of Voters office this afternoon and find that just under 26,000 votes remain to be counted in Orange County. So far not quite 30% of the eligible voters cast ballots in the Primary election. I expect the final tally to be available by the weekend. I'll report on it next week.
REPUBLICANS OVER DEMOCRATS
42% of the registered Republicans voted while only a little over 28% of the Democrats cast a ballot.


TRAN HAS A TOUGH ROAD AHEAD
In the 47th District Congressional race, Republican Van Tran captured just under 55% (10,514) of the votes while Democrat Loretta Sanchez received all the Democrat votes - 17,010.
MANSOOR VS. NGUYEN
In the 68th Assembly District, Democrat Phu Nguyen (9,934 or 58.8% of the votes) will face Costa Mesa Mayor Allan Mansoor (21,752 or 69.3% of the votes) in November.
LEECE STILL OFF THE PACE
In the race for one of six seats available in the Republican Central Committee for the 68th Assembly District Costa Mesa Mayor Pro Tem Wendy Leece is in 7th place, just about 1,000 votes behind the 6th place person. Costa Mesa Parks and Recreation Commissioner Jeff Mathews is in 5th place and seems secure in that slot.
MEASURE "C"!
Costa Mesa's Measure "C", which locks in the zoning for the Orange County Fair and Event Center, has passed in a landslide, 87.7% Yes to 12.3% No.