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Republicans in North Orange County have an image problem. Voter registration is declining and with good reason. The Republican message in a 21st Century California lacks appeal to growing constituencies, which is what happens when the majority of the party’s effort goes to defending policies embraced by groups that are well, to be quite blunt about it, dying.
Shawn Nelson is the last and best hope for a rebirth of the Republican Party in CA-39. If Republicans lose this Congressional seat, which is the anchor for all other political assets North Orange County, Democrats will have nearly unlimited access to resources and campaign cash for the next decade. It will mean that every Democrat running for City Council, School Board, State Assembly, Dog Catcher, you name it will have a substantive head start over their Republican peers. This is THE bench building office in this part of the world. Without it, we’re alone in the dark with nothing but our platform, which is about the same as being alone in the dark, naked in the snow, holding a damp piece of wood.
California needs a healthy conservative party to thrive. One party rule for any substantive economy in the last 100 years has been a consistent disaster for its residents. Democrats aren’t going to bring balance to the state by themselves. Conservatives need to do their part and contribute something to the modern California dream. We can’t hope to develop policies that support the root of what Republicans should be– pro-liberty, pro-individual, pro-family– while we let bad politicians in our own midst suck at the teat of government. Getting rid of the later so we can focus on the former means we need to take risks, and if we lose, well, then we lose.
Republicans need someone who understands the families making their homes in this part of the county. Someone who is not afraid to make a correct but unpopular argument and sticks with it. Someone with a proven ability to raise money and win. Most of all, Republicans need someone who will confront members within the party who don’t toe the line. We currently have a glut of politicians in love with themselves, who use their position to enrich their friends, all at the expense of the tax payer and the party brand. They need to go.
Shawn Nelson is the only candidate running in CA-39 that gets his voters, fights for his arguments when they’re challenged, and has a proven track record of winning elections. He’s also widely known as someone who cracks down hard on allies who don’t get in line. That’s exactly who and what we need. The consequences in this race are steep:
If Shawn Nelson does not win in CA-39, the Republican brand will be dead in this part of the county for at least ten years.
If Shawn Nelson does win, he has the personality and resources to permanently rid the county party of tax-suckers, hypocrites, and kleptocrats. If the OCGOP wants to grow, not be an embarrassment, and actually be relevant this century, this is what needs to happen. It’s going to be ugly, but the machine that Ed Royce built needs a serious overhaul. It simply doesn’t work anymore. It needs teeth, it needs to be ruthless inside and out, and it needs to be ready two years ago.
I’m trusting that Mr. Nelson knows what he’s doing with recent policy statements. We’ve got a lot riding on what his campaign chooses to front for our shared brand. This is a must win seat.
Shawn Nelson for CA-39.
CA-39 Candidate Rankings
- Shawn Nelson, last and best hope for a conservative North Orange County.
- Karen Lee Schatzle, great candidate, hopefully comes back to the party.
- Young Kim, very nice person, lacks the ability to win or defend policy.
- Steve Vargas, not ready for Congress. Should have sat this out.
- Sam Jamaal, credible liberal, which I respect. Last real liberal in the race.
- Bob Huff, should have retired after his last loss. Would be an all-Republican final. If a Dem wins this seat, Bob Huff is the reason why (sorry Bob, but that’s the truth.)
- All the also-ran Republicans
- All the also-ran NPPs
- All the also-ran Democrats
— THIS IS THE MINIMUM LINE FOR PUBLIC SERVICE —
10. Andy Thornburn, Shouldn’t be rewarded for selfishly squashing Jay Chen.
11. Gil Cisneros, Shouldn’t be rewarded for selfishly squashing Jay Chen.
1. I have often supported a good Republican over a bad Democrat, but IN 2018, when voting for Congress, I can hardly picture a Democrat bad enough or a Republican good enough to do that (I guess that makes me a 2018 Yellow Dog Democrat, for Congress at least). That’s how important it is that Democrats get the majority back in Washington to put the brakes on the Great Orange Tyrant’s endless depredations.
2. And Shawn is not that rare, nearly unseen Republican politician who would go against Trump (much.) As witness his recent demagoguing of immigration and sanctuary, WHICH HE SHOULD NOT BE REWARDED FOR. Shawn’s a real clever lawyer who can feign all sorts of justifications and motivations, but OC law enforcement has NOT been hamstrung by SB 54, and – even if someone feels passionately about some separation of powers issue – there’s already a fucking Sessions vs. California case in the works. There’s no denying Shawn was throwing OC’s Mexicans under the bus to make sure haters in and out of the Republican Party vote for him instead of Huff or Kim. To me that’s Shawn hitting bottom. (I’ll write much more, and more clearly about this, very soon.)
3. Hey Ryan, the years 2008-9 called, and they want you to return your High Hopes of Shawn As Reformer, ASAP – they need ’em back!
4. I don’t see how Cisneros and Thorburn fall under some “minimum line for public service” – what, because they have money? They’re both very decent and smart, and I’d rather have either of them than the guy who led OC’s anti-sanctuary lawsuit. If someone is gonna be “North OC’s last and best hope for the Republican Party”, I’d rather it were YOU.
Seems to me that that “last best hope” is Josh Ferguson, isn’t it? Am I wrong to remember that he has not been a Democrat for most of the past few years (at minimum)?
Sorry, no sale. I discovered Nelson used me to shake down County supplicants for campaign contributions. I also later found out he was shaking down contributions for land use changes.
The selfish self-serving venality is appalling.
We could talk about the pension hypocrisy and the conga line of County failure cover-ups, but why bother?
Because those conversations are fun, especially over a glass of wine.
For how long have you been a member of the Democratic Party, Josh?
Do you plan to caucus with the Democratic Party in fiscal issues, including taxation?
Do you plan to caucus with the Democratic Party on non-fiscal issues?
Would it be correct or incorrect to describe you as as doctrinaire libertarian? Why or why not?
Thanks for stopping by. I didn’t think that anything could lead me to endorse Ling-Ling in the replacement vote, but….
*Bob Huff is the most able of all of these candidates. He actually has his own minds on
some issues. That is pretty remarkable in a County built by the Lincoln Club….and ADSC
(Auto Dealers of Southern California). Add the developer corps of Tony, George and Donald….and whoa Nellie. Young Kim is the nodding dog in window and will probably
take the Primary. Your bud Shawn is a little too smooth for our liking, but then you can’t have everything ….can you? Maybe, because he is a Lawyer…..that gives us that quesy
and uneasy feeling.
*The self-styled “quarterback for redevelopment” and now cheerleader for profiteering charter schools.
Plus Ryan’s right, he shoulda stayed retired – he’s very likely to have sunk the Republicans in this race, in’shAllah!
*Chairman Vern, don’t know why you have serious antipathy for the Huffster, but at least he is a real guy. We don’t care what side of the argument you are on, as long as you are a straight shooter. Huff is like that. It is attractive. Shawn has to join the Hot Toddy and explain the $65 million dollar shortfall in the County Budget…..and still hasn’t spent money on the homeless issue!
He is a Bill Murray clone, a dangerous Manchurian candidate, pre-programmed to go into full conehead mode if elected.
Shawn is as genuine as his hair color.
California is the 5th largest economy in the world – in the world. Someone somewhere must have done something right. In fact incredibly optimistically phenomenally right. The leader ship in California is the best and must stay on course, to be perverted by the radical republican party at this point would be disastrous. Not the party it used to be the republican party has gone dark, like Darth Vader dark, and in California we need light, we love light, bring us light. I see the death star hovering over OC now AHHHH.
Last time we had a Republican in command (also achieved through a recall, but that’s a different story), we went from being the 5th largest economy to a basket case, and the butt of many a Republican joke.
Most of our Republicans (by and large) are much better than those in power elsewhere in the country, but at their worst, they’re just ‘as bad’ as any Trumpist – serving Trump’s whims at California’s expense (and proclaiming their ‘independence’ by refusing Trump 5-10% of the time…). If Nelson won, he would be a 90%-95% “pro-Trump” legislator.
“we went from being the 5th largest economy to a basket case,”
Post hoc ergo propter hoc.
States with Democrat governors all did really badly during that time frame. I seem to recall it was the Great Recession – or something like that.
But if you want to go down that path, the California Legislature had a heavy Democrat majority, with, as usual, almost no self restraint.
The lessons learned by Enron’s followers: even in California, it’s not difficult to shift blame from the guilty party to others, use that for political gain, then essentially replicate similar schemes in a different setting to profit handsomely and ensure others pick up the tab for the risks you’ve taken. What worked in California in 2001 was tested, demonstrated, and perfected in a much bigger market in 2007: quod erat demonstrandum.
I think Mr. Cantor makes the best choice from what is arguably a handful of strong candidates if you vote Republican.
I do think the bottom half of his rankings needs adjusting with the last place being anyone but Andrew Sarega , the shady carpet-bagger from La Mirada.
This is a man who washes out from a tryout on a number of professional soccer teams in Europe after suffering a ‘debilitating injury’ that ended his career, then turns right around and gets a job with Newport Beach PD.
I have to ask, did Sarega disclose the injury? And what a coincidence he takes a disability retirement after six years that will bring him over $2 Million plus benefits if he lives to age 70.
And there is more. Sarega’s RRK Motors DMV dealer license expired in April, but he and three family members still drive around in cars with dealer plates, not paying sales tax, or registration fees.
A DMV investigator told me today that he should not be doing so, he is unlicensed.
Obviously, Sarega is not going to place in Tuesday’s voting.
History reveals Andrew Sarega and his convicted felon father Ion (aka John), have an undying thirst for power and they will run again in two years along with their shady benefactor Stelian Onufrei, so remember these names.