Mayor por vida Miguel Pulido has benefited from the credible charge that one of his main rivals, Alfredo Amezcua, hasn’t thoroughly articulated an alternative vision for the city of Santa Ana. However, a quick visit to www.miguelpulido.com reveals a similar lack! With a month left before the election, the Mayor’s got “issues.” Click on his website under that very button and it says “coming soon!” As stated previously, the day when Santaneros head to the polls is rapidly approaching. However, there’s not even a typical vague statement about improving schools or even the ubiquitously lobbed out slogan “jobs, jobs, jobs.” Perhaps an incumbent Mayor whose reign is almost as long as my very own time here on Earth feels not the need to state his case for the future. Perhaps he feels as if his record of accomplishments speak for themselves.
Mayor Pulido’s website does just that. On the front page, bullet points are listed detailing his supposed achievements over the years. For the purposes of analysis, two will be selected for critique. First, the Mayor’s website touts his economic achievements for the city as it reads, “Santa Ana continues to attract and retain jobs and businesses. We have one of the most vibrant economies in Orange County.” Only, a “facts and figures” website from none other than the city itself spells out an unemployment rate of 15.7% as of March 2010! This is probably the widely used and grossly misleading “u-3” unemployment statistic. The real story of unemployment in Santa Ana is very likely to be much more dire if better indicators such as the “u-6” measure were employed. How the Mayor can say what he says on his website with terrible job losses in his city is beyond me.
Secondly, Pulido touts among his achievements gains in education, only they are deemed narrowly in terms of funding. Money is important. The Mayor’s website states, “Helped secure over $320 million in funding towards Santa Ana Unified for classrooms and repairs.” Of course, this makes no mention of context or performance, however. Much as I hate to use API index scores, Santa Ana Unified has some of the “worst” schools in Orange County according to them. What that means to me, is that under the current pedagogical model employed in public schools, API scores are sometimes little more than another statistic indicating socio-economic status. Nevertheless, a proactive partnership can be much more viable in bucking the confines as much as possible by embracing bilingual instruction, culturally responsive education and critical pedagogy. SAUSD shouldn’t go begging for “Race to the Top” money either as that is just another dead end. Mayor, proclaim your accomplishments as you may, the status of your city calls for a vision for a new way forward, not revisionist gaze backward!
Other dishonorable mentions include “city enhancement” and Santa Ana’s enriched cultural atmosphere. I agree that culture is in abundance in the city, especially in contrast to the corporate plaza model that makes other cities in OC so pre-planned, so boring. However, the cultural hustlers that I have come to know do not speak well of city governance in terms of support of their homegrown grassroots efforts and institutions. Imported cultural institutions have been much more generous benefactors. Over the course of this year’s race for Mayor, much attention has been focused on Amezcua’s failures in vision, but Santa Ana under Pulido has spawned social statistics that cry out for a true progressive agenda to be articulated. Amezcua, in his OC Metro profile, noted home foreclosures, a jobs crisis, and failing schools. Pulido lists partnership with schools and retaining jobs as “accomplishments!” If the Mayor truly underwent a “progressive” transformation this year, his rhetoric would be reflective of that.
While arguments over Brown Act violations and other political blogosphere chatter about matters of less importance have dominated, another Santanero loses his or her job, has their home foreclosed, is failed by the SAUSD, gets their car impounded by a supposed “DUI” checkpoint and can’t make a viable cultural imprint on the city they have called home all of their life despite all of their talents. If Amezcua hasn’t seized the moment before him, Pulido is resting on his supposed laurels and banking on the reliability of his political machinery to ensure victory. Meanwhile, Santa Ana suffers…
“While arguments over Brown Act violations and other political blogosphere chatter about matters of less importance have dominated, another Santanero loses his or her job, has their home foreclosed, is failed by the SAUSD, gets their car impounded by a supposed “DUI” checkpoint and can’t make a viable cultural imprint on the city they have called home all of their life despite all of their talents.”
I would say that all the above is happening under Pulido’s watch not Amezcua’s so I thing you have soot yourself in the foot.
Stan –
The whole point of the post is that all of the above is happening under Pulido’s watch.
Thanks for clarification Gabriel…… somehow I got lost in this politically correct labyrinth.
Gabriel,
Let me remind you that Alfredo has been allied with Miguel for all these many years. As soon as Miguel cut the “usual suspects” free Alfredo turns on him. What gives?
I don’t care about Amezcua. He could present his candidacy in a much better way, but hasn’t. If he does, I’ll take a second look.
That leaves us with Pulido…and his “accomplishments.”
Ps, the unfortunate thing about Claudia Alvarez saving face for the Mayor is that he could have, when pressed, actually accounted for his past support of Moreno and company.
Pulido has a new website, at http://www.miguelpulidoblog.com.
Pulido can’t do that much for the schools, but the city has worked hard to renovate our community centers over the past few years.
Pulido has also supported new development that will bring thousands of new jobs to our city . Amezcua’s allies have tried to stop those developments.
“…new development that will bring thousands of new jobs to our city”……… sure!
I bet it will be green jobs like the onion fields?…… Hun.
I think Pedroza that you have somehow, by the accident, swallowed that blue pill you were fantasizing about to slip in Pulido’s drink, once.
Pretty nice layout on the new site and a little more up to date than the one linked in my article, but still…no issues page. No vision for the future. Amezcua’s campaign can’t run an ‘accomplishments’ page as he’s not an incumbent.
As for Pulido, his slick new site doesn’t negate the statements on his old one.
It’s going to take a lot to overcome an unemployment rate that is probably close to a quarter of the city’s residents. Whoever wants to be Mayor of the city must be vigilant on this point. It’s more than an economic crisis, it’s a human crisis.
And sure, Mayors don’t have ultimate sway over school boards, but to say they have no influence is not true. Can’t have it both ways. Can’t tout educational accomplishments and then distance the end results by saying Mayors have little influence.
How about a moratorium on foreclosures? Mayors can declare them. Or “Sanctuary City” status? That’s how you really fire off a middle finger to SB1070 and one of its major components that has been enacted banning such distinctions in Arizona.
Vote for completely Independent Candidate for Mayor of our city. GEORGE COLLINS!!!!!!!. Honest, and Integrity proved!!!!!!
Gabe does not support Pulido and that is fine but none of the other candidates can do better. They would be worse.
That is fatalistic thinking GOTV which eliminates the concept of your elected representation in the government. Any Santa Ana homeless person can do better job.
See Eddie Murphy’s 1983 Trading Places flick.
Meanwhile Santa Ana suffers…
The point is to not “knight” a candidate as progressive and cease criticism (which is what has happened with Pulido)
The point is to continue to evaluate the social conditions of a city and articulate a progressive agenda. Wherever any candidate falls short – and they do – this agenda must be espoused first, and held to account.
To do the opposite is to make a dangerous concession to power.