Failed GOP Supervisorial candidate and Santa Ana Councilman Carlos Bustamante is apparently feeling a little blue since his loss. George Collins is reporting that Bustamante is going to move to the Democrat Party. I spoke to Collins and apparently his sources are telling him that Bustamante is being pursued by at least two high-ranking O.C. Democrats.
This would be a pretty funny turn of events. The Reeps have been burned before, in Santa Ana. Last year OC GOP Central Committee member Tim Whitacre called his fellow Reeps and he swore up and down that the two Democrats he was backing for the Santa Ana City Council, against endorsed Republicans, were both going to become Republicans after the election. Well, Tino Rivera and Jennifer Villasenor both lost – and neither one has since become a Republican.
Some years ago, Santa Ana School Board member Rosie Avila, a Republican, convinced the O.C. Lincoln Club to back Sal Tinajero for the school board. They did – and after he won he moved over to the Nativo Lopez camp.
Bustamante similarly wasted hundreds of thousands of Lincoln Club and New Majority dollars. And now apparently he is embracing the donkey party.
Bustamante has only been a Republican for two years. He was an independent before he ran for the Santa Ana City Council. I guess he won’t be posing with California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger anymore!
Bustamante also was recently stripped of his Mayor Pro Tem title – and it was handed to his Democrat nemesis Claudia Alvarez. He probably has read the tea leaves – he has NO FUTURE in Santa Ana as a Republican.
We saw a glimpse of this months ago when the Tan Nguyen scandal broke and Bustamante attended a meeting at Lou Correa’s office. The meeting was intended for Latino Democrats. Soon, it seems, Bustamante will be one of them.
The Reeps at the Red County/OC Blog have already forgotten about Bustamante, or at least tried to sweep him under the rug. Yesterday Jon Fleischman wrote a post about the losers in the Supervisorial race and he forgot to mention Bustamante. I think he should have mentioned his consultant, John Lewis, too. Sure, Lewis got paid a lot of money, but his reputation took a hit when Bustamante stumbled into fourth place. Now Lewis will have to explain why his client is reportedly going Dem…
Bustamante was not stripped of his pro tem title.
He graciously and humbly resigned from the post because of all the negative attention focused on this by poor sport Claudia Alvarez who was passed over for this position.
In fact, Tinajero’s move to “revote” this item would have been illegal under the Santa Ana charter if Bustamante had not resigned. By resigning the position was open, allowing Claudia’s little pity party to proceed. In a show of character, Bustamante even seconded the motion.
Bustamante showed that he is capable of working with others and focusing his attention on things that really matter instead of petty political posturing.
“petty political posturing”
But, wasn’t that the underlying theme of the ill-fated Carlos Bustamante for Supervisor campaign?
Bustamante resigned because of Pulido’s deal w/Tinajero regarding the app’t of Sarmiento. I don’t see anything “gracious” about backdoor dealings.
No amount of post election spin can turn Carlos the loser into anything else.
Say it ain’t so, Art!!
Why should the DPOC now embrace Carlos the Flip-flopping Loser, after seeing him run against ENDORSED DEMOCRAT Tom Umberg in the First Supe Specal? Why should we Democrats help him, after he has voted against our Democratic values on the city council? And why should ou friends at Labor raise their fingers to help him again last year, after he VOTED AGAINST THE BEST INTERESTS OF WORKING PEOPLE by allowing a Wal-Mart Supercenter to come in and ravage our town?
Sorry, but the GOP can keep Carlos! If he really wants to be an “Independent Democrat” like he positioned himself as in all those cheesy mailers I got, then maybe he can start a Orange County Chapter of the “Connecticut for Lieberman” Party. (And while he’s at it, he can take DINO Corporatist Miguel Pulido with him!)
: )
Careful Andrew…..the tent gets smaller and smaller when you close the flap and start evicting people who don’t meet your standards. The Democratic Party has always been diverse. If Liberman wasn’t caucusing with the Dems in the Senate the Reps would still control that body. We have primary elections(for partisan seats) to determine who we feel best represent’s the Party. Or endorsement caucuses. That’s where you can best expercise your selection process.
I was there and agreeing with #1.
As I mentioned in the Trojan Horse post, Fiala was only speaker on this issue and warn the council not to elect Trojan Horse Candidate (Claudia).
Obviously egoistic (hater, name calling) Sean, took it on himself and OJ Bloggers.
Somehow, I see Fiala more sophisticated than you all giving him credit for.
With his humor he can say thinks, and get away with it, which none of you could.
The Reeps at the Red County/OC Blog have already forgotten about Bustamante, or at least tried to sweep him under the rug.
Speaking from ignorance again, Art? How, pray tell, are you privy to the thoughts of Red County/OC Bloggers?
Bustamante is going to move to the Democrat Party.
There is no such thing as the “Democrat Party.” It’s the Democratic Party.
WHOA Andrew. Take a chill pill and look back at the timeline of events way back in December:
– Bustamante filed to run for Supervisor days before Umberg.
– Umberg was not endorsed by the OC Democratic Party until after filing closed.
So at no time did Carlos make a choice to run against the endorsed Dem. And, if he had, he had every right to do so, regardless of his party affiliation.
I would welcome him to the Democratic side, but as a real moderate, I think he’d be most comfortable as a Decline to State.
“he VOTED AGAINST THE BEST INTERESTS OF WORKING PEOPLE by allowing a Wal-Mart Supercenter to come in and ravage our town”
Davey –
Thanks for exposing your true Socialist colors. I guess bringing hundreds of jobs AND low prices to Santa Ana is “ravaging” our town, right Davey?
I have an outstanding idea: If people do not want to work for the wages that WalMart offers………THEN DONT WORK THERE!!!
If Davey does not want to support WalMart because of their company policies……….THEN DONT SHOP THERE!!!
Apparently Davey thinks that affordable $4 prescriptions are “ravaging” Santa Ana.
Davey must be against giving retirees, students, & handicapped people access to paychecks and low-cost healthcare plans. Why is Davey against helping out the most vulnerable in our society?
The one point that Socialist Democrats like Davey can NEVER understand is this: There is no such thing as a tax on business. It does not exist. Businesses simply pass cost increases onto customers. If WalMart is mandated by a local government to pay above-market wages, then those increased labor costs will simply be passed onto consumers. Then every single customer loses.
Davey should ask himself why hundreds & hundreds of people STAND IN LINE to apply to work @ WalMart. Perhaps it is not as bad as he thinks it is.
Clearly Davey thinks that WalMart doesnt pay enough. Maybe, just maybe it may have to do with the millions of illegal immigrants that have driven down wages? Any second-grader can tell you that a labor shortage is going to increase wages…..and an influx of millions of unskilled workers will drive wages down.
Since you LOVE illegal immigrants, it kind of puts you in a no-win position, huh Davey? You want higher wages AND you welcome the thousands of people loitering around Santa Ana who are desperately willing to work for five bucks an hour. You cant have it both ways Davey!!
Hypocrisy at its finest!!
Eh, I still call it the Democrat party.
Democratic sounds too close to democracy… and since when have Democrats ever cared about true democracy?
Because, as we all know… at least Democrats are frequently lead to believe… Democracy only prevails when Democrats win.
The above statement, is of course, not true.
Ryan–And many of us would prefer to call the Republican Party, “The Patrician Party.” But that’s not your name.
Politics is a body contact sport but there are certain rules of civility that make life easier and allow us to focus our animus on policy issues like foreign policy, immigration(ok and residency and photoshopping). Its a small courtesy to ask someone to refer to the actual name of the group…a refusal to do so imediately sours attempts for working together.
I see it much more simple #12 and #13,
The Democratic and Republican party is respectively, left and right wing of the American National Socialist Workers’ Party.
Bladerunner,
I can see your argument and respect your opinion. I enjoy working with others who are on opposing sides of anything in order to accomplish things for the greater good.
My sarcastically made point is one of my gripes about your party. I’m sure you have plenty for mine, that’s why we’re both registered differently.
An example I should’ve used earlier was none clearer than the “democracy” out of your party during the last Washington state Gov.’s race between Dino Rossi and Christine Gregorie.
Though a close election, Rossi was easily the winner save for four or so recounts they did which overturned the election for Gregoire. Maybe they counted and/or discovered some illegal Canadian provisional ballots, I dunno.
Anon 3:06, interesting opinion.
I fail to see where my party’s core beliefs reflect Socialism and neo-Nazism.
I can see where the Dems are be more socialistic in nature (i.e. unionizing the hell out of everything they can get their hands on), but as far as Democrats being neo-Nazi I also fail to see that since they’re largely (falsely, in my opinion) regarded as the party of diversity.
Ryan—Neither party has a monopoly on pushing the ethical electoral envelope. Your Washington example of 4 recounts raises questions but many Dems saw the recall right after the 2002 elections as nothing more then a mulligan for the GOP.
Dems look at the 2000 elections and see it stolen by the GOP in Florida. Reps look at the 1960 election and see it stolen by the Dems in the Chicago graveyards and Texas saloons. If you want to see when the nastiness really got out of hand in Washington D.C., go to 1984-85, when the Democratic House declared Dem Frank McClosky a 4 vote winner over Rep Rick McIntyre after the Rep had been certified winner by 47 votes. It really soured the atmosphere and laid the seeds for the scorched earth policies(with regard to the rights of the minority party in the House) of Newt Ginrich some years later. And of course the granddaddy of all the electoral thefts was the 1876 election where Dem Sam Tilden of New York had his victory stolen by a party line commission vote in favor of Rep Rutheford Hayes, awarding the votes of Florida, Louisiana & South Carolina to the GOP despite solid evidence to the contrary.
Its a good reason to have each State’s Secretary of State be a non-partisan office. Both parties will cheat, or take advantage if you prefer, when opportunity presents itself.
Ryan, if you don’t have enough respect for us to call our Party by its correct name then perhaps you don’t have enough respect for us to join us at Drinking Liberally.
You either respect us as individuals or you don’t. Your choice.
Poster #3-
Pulido had no part in that deal! Sarmiento made that deal with Claudia, Sal & Martinez, in exchange for Sal’s vote to appoint him, before the Council meeting got started the night he got appointed. That’s why that Council meeting started so late.
He also promised them his vote for Mayoral term limits! Pulido didn’t find out about the deal until after that Council meeting ended. That’s why he was so surprised when Sal voted to appoint Sarmiento.
Hey Gila,
Do you own liberally drinking or memphis?… Hey Gila,
Do you own liberally drinking or memphis? Why the recent attitude?
“Sarmiento made that deal with Claudia, Sal & Martinez”
Isn’t this same clique which is responsible for Trojan Horse Commission appointments?
Gila,
I’m sorry – you’re right. I will get that right next time.
Jubal,
Fleischman did not mention Bustamante when he wrote about losers in the Supervisorial election. That is a fact. I am not sure why you are disputing it.
Art – he also did not mention Umberg or your Benny…..hmmmm, must be a conspiracy eh?
Poster 25,
Obviously Fleischman was trying to kiss up to the Nguyens in his post – and yes he should have mentioned Umberg as he and Bustamante jointly ended their political careers in this race.
Diaz spent zero on mail. You cannot win with signs alone. His party screwed up by picking Umberg. Diaz was a reminder to them that they should have tried to recruit a Latino candidate. He is a good guy and he should not feel bad about the results.
Art says: “Diaz was a reminder to them that they should have tried to recruit a Latino candidate. He is a good guy and he should not feel bad about the results.”
I agree with Art in regards to Art’s choice for Supervisor. Benny should not feel bad about the results.
He should feel embarrassed.