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| According to the SF tin foil hat set, puppeteer Willie still runs the City. I'm good with that. |
We'll have a mayoral election in EssEff this year, but it's not clear that we'll have a race. Our incumbent mayor Ed Lee has yet to attract any significant opposition. Quite a change from four years ago when we had a cavalry charge of 16 candidates running for Mayor. The mayor won handily, but with the uncertainties of ranked choice voting, it was not at all clear how the confused electorate would be counted. They had to go eleven layers deep to settle that vote. I'll just quote the Argonaut again - "... let us express our complete and unqualified contempt for the city’s
system of ranked choice voting and taxpayer financing of campaigns."
The mayor is not taking any chances this time. His strategy is to run hard, run early, and amass a campaign war chest that will provide a significant - to borrow tech terminology - "barrier to entry" for any competitors. It appears to be working. The 2015 Great Progressive Hope was Mark Leno. He was definitely going to run. Then he definitely was not.
I was invited to attend an Ed Lee fund raiser at the Far East Cafe on Grant to help build that barrier before the January cutoff. I can't say my politics align perfectly with Lee's and I can find much to complain about how his administration is running the City. But this is San Francisco. The choice is between Liberal Democrats, Radical Progressives, or Anarcho-Maoists. Ed Lee is the voice of what passes for practical politics and common sense in The City. I went to the event.
The mayor is not taking any chances this time. His strategy is to run hard, run early, and amass a campaign war chest that will provide a significant - to borrow tech terminology - "barrier to entry" for any competitors. It appears to be working. The 2015 Great Progressive Hope was Mark Leno. He was definitely going to run. Then he definitely was not.
I was invited to attend an Ed Lee fund raiser at the Far East Cafe on Grant to help build that barrier before the January cutoff. I can't say my politics align perfectly with Lee's and I can find much to complain about how his administration is running the City. But this is San Francisco. The choice is between Liberal Democrats, Radical Progressives, or Anarcho-Maoists. Ed Lee is the voice of what passes for practical politics and common sense in The City. I went to the event.
It was a sit down dinner. Cash bar. The food was unremarkable. Lee's stump speech was not bad. Good enough. I'll vote for him.
For this particular City voter, there is one wedge issue that separates the reasonable pols from the batshit crazy fringe in the Peoples Republic of San Francisco - Sharp Park. Mayor Ed Lee has proven to be there when we need him to defend our civic jewel. If my small contribution helps build a barrier that keeps the pitchfork and torches at bay, I'm happy to help.
Sent from my T-Mobile 4G LTE Device
Looks like the plan is working, at least according Matier and Ross:
Ed Lee’s finances booming for November re-election drive
"Having no opponent this fall hasn’t put a damper on San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee’s fundraising, with reports being filed Monday expected to show he has amassed $625,000 for his November re-election drive.“That’s a pretty good run over the holidays,” said campaign spokesman P.J. Johnston. Lee has been holding almost daily meet and greets, often at $500 a head. The biggest was in Chinatown, where activist Rose Pak delivered $220,000 in donors’ checks... With the first-round money in the bank, the campaign will ramp up in earnest starting this month. The campaign will be run mainly by SCN Strategies, whose clients also include Gov. Jerry Brown, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and Attorney General and U.S. Senate candidate Kamala Harris... There may not be anyone for Lee to run against just yet, but “we’re taking this very seriously and preparing for a fight,” Johnston said."
"Darius Anderson and the crew at Platinum Advisors turned out about 100 of their clients for a $500-a-head breakfast fundraiser for Mayor Ed Lee’s re-election at Original Joe’s the other morning. That’s the way to do it. Everybody was in at 8 and out by 9. And trust me, the profit margin on eggs is a lot higher than with wine. Why is Lee bothering to raise money, when he probably won’t have any real opposition? For starters, he’s signed up a slew of consultants and campaign managers who need to be paid. Plus, he’s sending the message to anyone who might still be considering a run that if they do take him on, he’s armed and ready to fight."
