Melissa Fox has NOTHING to say about public employee pension reform on her website!
Our editor, Vern Nelson, took umbrage at my post about his pal Melissa Fox, who is one of two Democrats running for the 70th Assembly District. She sent out a mailer stating that it is time to “reinvest” in education. I assumed she meant it was time to raise our taxes, which is what most Democrats seem to think.
So I took a look at her campaign website this morning. Oh boy. Here is what I found:
- Fox says “During tough economic times, investing in education is one of the most important investments we can make. California is projected to face a shortage of nearly 1 million college-educated workers by 2025. Funding cuts to education will worsen that skills gap and hurt our economy.” But there is NO mention of immigration reform or the Dream Act anywhere on her website. You want more college educated young people? How about letting kids raised here become citizens and go to college! We posted just this week about a young lady named Gloria who cannot get student loans because the government won’t give her a path to citizenship, even though she grew up here in the U.S. and went to our public schools.
- Wait, she does mention immigration, “As a member of the Assembly, Melissa will fight for upholding America’s security and the rule of law, secure borders, responsible, legal immigration, and for the needs of our immigrant communities.” Secure borders? Good grief she sounds like one of those Arizona Minutemen! Is she even against SB 1070? Of course she does not support another amnesty. Don’t forget – it was Republican Ronald Reagan who gave us the first amnesty!
- Fox offers NO clue as to how she wants to increase funding in education. We already pay the highest taxes in the nation, and it isn’t close. So how is she going to drain more money out of us? Schools in Irvine already spend almost $9,000 per student. Imagine what you could do with that money if you could spend it on a private school instead? I doubt however that she supports school vouchers!
- Fox says “Melissa believes that the cuts to our police, sheriff and fire departments are dangerous. We cannot afford these cuts – which put our lives and the lives of our loved ones in danger.” Well Melissa, the cops and firemen are being allowed to retire at fifty, even though they die, on average, at 82. We are going broke funding their early retirements, to the tune of six figures per year, per each cop and fireman! Why do you think we are slashing their budgets? To pay for the retired guys! And will we get to retire at fifty? No way!
- Fox says “Melissa is strongly committed to helping businesses create jobs through tax relief and tax incentives, cutting red tape, and by investments in freeways and transportation, job training, education, and renewable and efficient energy, in order to turn around and revitalize the economy of California and Orange County.” Give me a break! She says she wants tax relief, then she says she wants more “investments” in a whole slew of new public spending. Where are you going to get that money Fox? More taxes!!!!
- She says “Melissa will be a dedicated and passionate leader in the fight against wasteful government spending, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars.” But take a look at her endorsements! She is backed by every union in Orange County! Is anyone abusing our taxpayer dollars more than unionized government workers? Is Fox decrying the wasteful spending by her fellow Democrat, Tom Daly, who paid a consultant over $50K to advise him on baseball cards? Doubt it!
You’re grasping. So her website is not encyclopedic. If you want to know how she proposes to pay for her ideas, you could read my post for once, or you could even ask her. You won’t of course though, as you’re already honor-bound to attack her no matter what.
As far as her immigration paragraph, wanting “secure borders” is even less controversial than “re-investing in education.” EVERYBODY wants secure borders (except for evidently you) – that makes everybody a Minuteman? Before you accuse her of backing Arizona law, why don’t you ask her yourself? Why do I have to be the freaking messenger? Melissa@VoteMelissaFox.com
Of course you won’t though. Because you don’t really care what her positions are. You’ve just decided you’re going to attack her no matter what, and make stuff up if you have to. What a shame. Well I’m going to do my best to make sure she kicks Don Wagner’s butt in November, for the good of our kids and our freedom.
Vern,
Let me be clear. I am on a vendetta against ANYONE associated with Beth Krom and Larry Agran. If Fox wants to associate with them, let her, but it is going to cost her.
Oh, and I am so sure that Steven Choi or Don Wagner;
– supports immigration reform (not a Sacramento issue anyway)
– supports the DREAM Act (ditto)
– opposes SB 1070
– backs an oil extraction tax
That’s just some of the stuff that you accuse Melissa, above, of being on the wrong side of, because it’s not mentioned on her website. Well she’s not, and maybe she should update her website. But YOUR boys are DEFINITELY on the wrong side of all that and much more. (e.g. marijuana, three strikes reform…)
Vern,
Look at the numbers. This is a Republican district. Fox is toast. The numbers don’t lie.
This reminds me of your campaign for Debbie Cook. Where is she now Vern?
This reminds me of your campaign for Debbie Cook. Where is she now Vern?
Oh! you want to play the game of “which blogger has backed the most candidates who went on to lose?” That should be fun. A little pile-on, readers? Or let’s just see what happens with dear Mr. Choi. That won’t take so long.
I am on a vendetta against ANYONE associated with Beth Krom and Larry Agran.
Oh what happened did Melissa go to the prom with Larry? Hold a tupperware party at Beth’s house? Sit on the board of directors of the Great Park at age 16 and hand out no-bid contracts? You got nothin’.
Vern,
And neither does she. Dude you are wasting your time.
The only Dems who have a real shot this year are Bill Hedrick and Phu Nguyen. The rest are all destined to FAIL.
Well I’m putting my effort into Hedrick, Phu, and Melissa. And making sure Bill Hunt doesn’t become our next sheriff. At least we agree on 3 out of 4.
Art, Your are correct regarding lack of ideas by Ms. Fox regarding schools and their funding, but she is not alone. We haven’t seen a single state or local candidate for office with good ideas, because neither they nor the public understand the actual operation of schools and the multiple problems within.
School admininistrators are master manipulators of public information, and schools are as closed to public scrutiny as is the CIA. Every news reporter who attempts to report on schools is denied entry “to protect the children from strangers”, though the same campuses may be crawling with contract workers doing construction and repairs. Yes, core academics and campus and classroom hygiene suffer from inadequate funding; but the waste of public money and the time diverted to non-academic fluff would enrage legislators and public, if they knew.
An example? We in the schools, admin’s, teachers, etc. will be paid for another 6 weeks, but education has pretty much slowed to a crawl. Last week we completed the battery of tests that will determine the school’s API (the “scores”), and the floodgates now will be open for art and music shows, sporting tournaments, all-day field trips, and other celebratory happenings that will leave classrooms half-empty for much of the rest of the year. I’m not sure this is what you intended to pay for with your taxes assigned to schools, but this is what you are paying for. Good luck trying to get into a school to see if what I’m saying here is true.
Doc, I will pass your comment on to Melissa & co. I’m sure she will be interested.
And I think Art and you are right that there should be some more specifics in her website, which I will also suggest to her. I know what her ideas are, but they should be out there for all to see. Particularly in regard to the oil extraction tax and how it will be invaluable for pursuing her priorities.
She’s gonna sail to victory in the primary, but I think starting in June I’ll be encouraging my favorite candidates to offer more specifics. Just so there’s no misunderstandings like last night’s slander that she wants to raise people’s taxes.
Vern,
OK, time to take you to the editorial woodshed.
I did not slander her. Slander is the spoken word. Nor did I libel Fox. If I intentionally wrote something false about her, that would be libel.
She released a mailer intimating that we need “re-invest” in education. Why don’t you look up the word “invest” in a dictionary. It implies spending money. Now where do you think this money is supposed to come from? She is saying she wants to spend more money, that means she is going to have to find more money. You say she has a scheme to raise the money from the oil industry, but, as you stated, that info is NOT on her website. It is in fact on Glover’s website.
So how did I libel Fox? Any reasonable person would have made the same deduction I did – this woman wants to raise our taxes.
You need to learn to disagree with people without resorting to calling them malicious liars. Doing that is the very same BS that Matt Cunningham and Dan Chmielewski do. You are better than that.
I realize you are somewhat invested in this Fox, but as I have stated, many times, I do NOT trust anyone associated with Krom or Agran and will NOT support them, period.
I’ve been over the “slander/libel” thing with Crowley before. Everyone knows that when you’re actually in court, slander is spoken and libel is written. But if you look up slander, the very first definition says nothing about being written, so I use it because I like the sound of it better and I’m not suing you for anything.
You seem not to have noticed that my comment #9 was a conciliatory one. I was AGREEING with both you and Dr. R. that she should have more details on her website, particularly about how she would pay for her priorities and specifically the oil extraction tax. And I said I’d encourage her to get more detail into her website as she proceeds into the general election (if she’ll listen to me.)
“Slander” – you’re taking big offense, maybe I should be more sensitive given the legal shit you’re going thru. But we both like to employ strong language. And this is how I came to use “slander” – your jumping from “re-investing in education” to “raising YOUR TAXES” was a big leap, a big assumption which you not only made, you made it your headline. And as always you go back and forth between “hey I’m only reporting the facts” and admitting that you have animus against someone for other reasons. “Malice” even, although that sounds kind of nasty.
Let’s just end like this – this whole thing was educational and I’m going to try to get her to give more detail. That means, being better than almost all other candidates that way, but so be it.
Vern,
Yyour jumping from “re-investing in education” to “raising YOUR TAXES” was a big leap.
No, it wasn’t. I took the phrase literally and considered that a) she is a Democrat and b) she grew up in a household of government workers. This is how these people think.
When I later reviewed her website I found it to be vacuous and indirect. Anyone can speak in general feel-good terms. Actual substance is another thing altogether.
I didn’t take as much umbrage as you think I did. I just think that terms like “libel” and “slander” should not be tossed about so carelessly. I suppose I am a bit senstitive to that given that stupid Liberal OC lawsuit.
I have nothing personal against Fox. She made a decision to get in bed with Agran and Krom. That is on her. Now she is on my list. That’s the way I roll….
I have never seen them in bed. i don’t know what you know that I don’t.
Vern…careful what you wish for…I’m still here. Just needed to recharge the batteries.
Art, I generally like your analysis of races but Bill Hedrick has a chance of winning in November? Really???? Correct me if I am wrong, but isn’t this the same Bill Hedrick got his butt handed to him in that special Assembly election by Chris Norby to replace someone who loved to brag about his spanking fetish (Mike Duvall). Outside of pictures being released showing Ken Calvert dressing up as a cross dressing dominatrix or in some other comprismising positions that will end up in Larry Flynt’s video vault, I don’t see how Hedrick can win this time around. Espeically if he runs his Congressional campaign the same way he ran his Assembly campaign. C’mon Democrats, is this the best you can do? He’s not as low as Beth Krom, but he’s a wee bit short on details. At least that’s what his website (Hedrick’s, not Flynt’s) shows.
And that is why they call me…The Oracle.
Oracle, you are going to wish you paused before clicking that submit button.
You are thinking of John MacMurray. Is it the teacher thing? The Democrat thing? Very little else to explain the confusion.
Bill Hedrick is a kick-ass candidate who NEARLY DEFEATED dirty Ken Calvert in 2008, and the GOP is really worried about him doing even better this year. Art’s right on this one. You might want to bone up on my Hedrick trilogy (I think you’ll especially enjoy the writing in the first segment.)
http://orangejuiceblog.com/2010/01/hedrick-rocks-pt-1/
And that is why… you need a different name.
My bad on confusing Fred MacMurray with Bill Hedrick. How could I mistake the star of “My Three Sons” and “Flubber” with an actual contender? Unfortunately, the Democratic Party which you belong and act as this blog’s main cheerleader for hasn’t come up with a decent candidate in OC since Loretta Sanchez beat B-1 Bob Dornan. Although it didn’t help Dornan that he came up with some tinfoil hat theory that illegal aliens were voting in Garden Grove. A city that he visited as much as a normal person visits Antarctica.
Unlike some of the self proclaimed pundits on this site, I was humble enough to admit upfront that “I may be wrong.” Believe me, practicing humility up front won’t kill you. Judging from the emnity and vagueness that surround the Democratic “leadership” in this town, it’s no wonder why your party gets trashed in November here in OC. I’d like to see Hedrick prove me wrong, but I just don’t see it happening.
No Oracle is perfect! Don’t sweat it.
I think the problem is that the Dems are bereft of good ideas and their candidates lack charisma. And they send all their money out of state.
And they are too cozy with the Reeps to be able to beat them.
If the Dems were willing to pay me $200K a year I would be happy to run their party and show them how to take out the Reeps. But they won’t. Their new E.D. doesn’t even live here – she lives in Long Beach. Lame.
Our Oracle is at that point of his life when, flush with the realization of his intellectual capacities, he feels immeasurably superior to other mortals, especially such low creatures as would stoop to run for public office. Ah, the fresh bloom of youth! Especially when “recharged” (chemically or else-wise.)
Seriously there are SOME candidates you might find worthwhile if you actually heard them speak or met them. I’m thinking especially of Bill and Phu.
And that’s why they call me the Oracle’s Trainer.