Open Thread time! And there’s never a dull moment in Orange County (at least, if you’re easily amused.) Here is a little flotsam and jetsam from the last few days that you may want to sound off about!
1
WHO’S THAT DANDY? (Who’s that dandy, lovely dandy…)
Why, it’s Republican politician Matt Harper! Remember him? He was assemblyman for a couple terms until Cottie Petrie-Norris beat him; before that he was on Huntington Beach Council, where he got to be Mayor once or twice like most of their councilmen do. Funny, when he first ran for assembly a lot of us were “At least we’ll get him off the Council, kick him upstairs to Sacramento where he can’t do any harm” – and that’s exactly what we’ve been saying, 8 years later, about crazy Gracey Van Der Mark!
And in a surefire popcorn-necessitating portent of OCGOP civil war, Matt has just jumped into the 72nd AD race against Gracey. GRACEY – the hardcore MAGA, unstable, race-obsessed, sex-obsessed nightmare of the HB Library, whom just last week OCGOP chief Will O’Neill crowned “the presumptive front-runner,” with a quick endorsement from Scott Baugh and a Matt Cunningham press-release. Harper I suppose represents the more establishment wing of the Party, and I wonder if Will knew this was coming. The malignant little warthog will have to take a side!
I knew Matt Harper back in the day, part rightwing ideologue mixed with kleptocrat. On the one hand he was ruthlessly hostile to public employees cuz that was the OCGOP thing ten years ago; but on the other hand he was SO enthusiastic about the Poseidon desal boondoggle and would always giggle with his gleamy eyes about how he loved this Ricky Raindrop character when he was a schoolkid. (We were slightly friendly though during the noble, doomed, bipartisan struggle against Toll Lanes on the 405.)
So, what’s best for Democrats, progressives, independents, regular people? I’m sure the Democrats will put up somebody; last time it was reality TV personality Dom Jones, who lost by 19 points to incumbent Diane Dixon (who now has tired of the seat.) Nobody listens to me, but we don’t need another Democrat in the assembly, or to waste money on that race – rather we should let the Dandy and the Loony battle it out and waste Republican money.
We would like Gracey to make it through the June ’26 primary, so she’s at least off the HB Council. But that’s just me, this is an open thread, what do you think? And Matt, give me a call! [hat-tip Allen Wilson]
2
We’ve been discussing Tammy Kim’s considerable legal troubles (What, you can’t lie about your residence any more? I thought this was OC!) we’ve been discussing them OVER HERE, since we first heard about it from Neshanian. I figured Dan Chmielewski would be all over it before I got home from work, as his “Liberal OC” has been Hate-Tammy-Central for a few years. And sure enough, he quickly followed up his first Tammy story with a second one (in Dan’s grand PURGE tradition) calling down shame and pain on anyone who’d ever backed the lady! That’s what she gets, from Dan, for taking on Larry Agran!
“What Did You Know And When Did You Know it?” – such a way with words!
I always took it easy on Tammy, and NOT just because she comes to my concerts, but I figured if Dan, Matt C, Agran, Farrah, Strader and LiveNation all hate you, you must be doing something right. But apparently the days of residence-lying in Spitzer’s OC are over – at least if you’re a Democrat.
Best of luck to the Tamster, hope she pulls through without any jail time, and everyone pay attention and stop lying about your residence when you run for office! The GOP’s infantile Willie O’Neill, noticing that three Democrats had been in trouble with the law in recent years, quickly whipped up a meme:
Still though – one DUI, one chest-bumping of an old guy, and one faking of a residence – that’s not all that Punk, Willie. I think – once they get out of prison – Andrew Do, Harry Sidhu and Amy Pham West could make a much more hardcore band. “The Bribe-tones” maybe. There’s probably a better name out there… The Bribery Pirates?
3
If the 40th Congressional District needed one more reason to vote out smooth liar Young Kim, she has given it to us, when she cast THE DECIDING VOTE Thursday in favor of Trump’s Project 2025’s “Big, Beautiful, Murderous Bill.” The count was 215-214, it passed by one vote, so yeah, you could say EVERY Republican who voted for it was the deciding vote, but Young Kim lied, repeatedly and emphatically, saying she would vote no on any bill that cut Medicaid, so fuck it she’s the deciding vote and she’s gotta go.
In fact her lie is still up on line, right here:
“I want to be very clear that I understand how important Medicaid is for many in our community to access health care services. As this process moves forward, I will continue to make clear that a budget that does not protect vital Medicaid services for the most vulnerable…will not receive my vote.”
And she knew before she voted that this bill would take away Medicaid, take away medical coverage, for 10.3 million people. Were the words above “for the most vulnerable” intended as weasel words? Whatever, she took away medical coverage for tens of thousands of her constituents, and none of them are invulnerable, and that was just one of many ways this bill steals from the 99% to enrich the wealthy. She did get the one thing she wanted out of the bill – the SALT deduction, for rich Californians who thought they were paying too much state AND federal taxes. Well, THOSE people can vote for her if they want, but Young Kim has to go.
I worry though, about ALL THESE DEMOCRAT WOMEN lining up to run against her. Five of them so far, plus Joe Kerr? You think a certain sneaky Fire Hero has something to do with this, flooding the female zone, and 2026 is gonna end up looking just like 2024? Hope not, Young Kim has to go.
4
This is a picture of Santa Ana Congressman Lou Correa during the January 6, 2021 attacks. By all accounts he behaved bravely that day, defending his colleagues while blowhards like Josh Hawley were running away like young stags. Later that day we saw videos of him standing up to insurrectionists at the airport, in bold contrast to Lindsey Graham cowering behind all his security.
But this year, during Trump’s lawless reign of terror against immigrants, Lou says we should “keep our heads down,” not “draw attention to ourselves.” Hopefully this too shall pass, I guess is the idea. On May 6 Santa Ana Mayor Valerie Amezcua ridiculed her fiery progressive colleagues for “beating their chests” and affirmed over and over that she’s “not running scared, she’s just SMARTER than them,” and claimed “Even Lou Correa said we should keep our heads down” so that maybe the Rotten Yam, Stephen Miller and Tom Homan just sort of forget that Sanctuary City Santa Ana exists, and don’t take away any funding as punishment.
That part about Lou got my attention, it got Igmar’s attention, and it got Norberto Santana’s attention, who wrote a long Voice piece about it, getting Lou on the record. Worth reading! I can see the arguments on either side, but it doesn’t feel very American to keep your head down and hope Trump just goes away.
We had been wondering why Lou, unlike Dave Min and Mike Levin, has NOT HELD ANY TOWN HALLS. We’d been wondering why he went to El Salvador last year for proud dictator Bukele’s inauguration, and shouldn’t that mean he could help bring some wrongly imprisoned people like Kilmar back? (Not.) We’d wondered why he’s voted with Republicans against his own state’s anti-pollution measures.
But I’m tired of complaining about Lou; I already tried to help two different progressives challenge him in previous years, now I just try to get along with him. Someone on Facebook the other day (reminding me of past me) was all “Why is this conservative, cautious guy, representing such a Blue district, can’t we primary him?” and immediately Florice and Eugene from the DPOC were all “Don’t pick on Lou, he’s SO GOOD ON IMMIGRATION! You should concentrate on beating Young Kim instead!”
And now they’re trying to get rid of David Hogg as DNC vice-chair for suggesting we Democrats can do better than some of the folks we have in solidly blue districts. For suggesting that “ineffective” Democrats could stand to be primaried. I met David last year at a DPOC fundraiser. I wonder if he’d-a been welcome there if they knew how dangerous he was. David wouldn’t keep his head down (unless it was at a school shooting.)
This was a great song in the 70’s, but I’m worried some Democrats want to change the words to
“Hold your head down, whoa,
Hold your head down, whoa,
Hold your head down, whoa,
Hang your head low!”
But wait, there’s more!
Just got an e-mail from Chris Duncan, the insider Democrat, sometime San Clemente Mayor, and assembly candidate who lost twice to the awful Laurie Davies, and now he says he is running for BoE. Oh wait. I thought he meant he was gonna run against Lisa Sparks for Board of Education. But I guess he’s talking about the Board of Equalization. Okay, that’s not very interesting.
But this is. A little:
An old friend – a pajarito – texted me yesterday:
“Hi Vern! Do you know about Judge Israel Claustro (right) currently on the bench in OC Superior Court? Former OCDA prosecutor, named as a co-conspirator in a massive workers comp fraud case? Also, a terrible judge, always getting reversed on appeal…”
Let me just interrupt my pajarito, who went on to provide lots of links illustrating Claustro’s malfeasance. I remember him running in June ’22, as a prosecutor with countless endorsements, running basically unopposed (against an unknown guy with an inactive law license) so he won 72% to 28%.
But the way Israel Claustro really impacted me & Donna’s lives was: He had a big campaign sign on the corner of La Palma and Anna Drive, and every day about ten homeless drunks hung out by it, so we called them the Claustro Drunks. And around that time, 22-23, those Claustro Drunks caused a lotta trouble in the neighborhood, more than any gangs. Little did we know Judge Israel Claustro was just as bad. I missed this Emery/Saavedra story in January:
- Or, Daily Journal: Judge Named in Relation to Workers Comp Scheme.
- Or, the Legal Documents.
My pajarito notes, er, quotes:
“In his plea agreement, (Dr. Kevin Tien) Do admitted that real owner of Liberty, and Do’s co-conspirator, was another person who was not a doctor or other medical professional, but rather, was a California attorney then employed as a prosecutor for the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, and who later became an Orange County Superior Court judge during the conspiracy. [aka Claustro]
“That true owner who was Do’s co-conspirator [Claustro] not only was a signatory on Liberty’s bank account, but also issued and signed Liberty’s checks to Do and others. The plea agreement specifies that much of the more than $3 million that the SIBTF paid Liberty during the years following Do’s suspension then flowed to another company controlled by Liberty’s owner and his wife, which totaled to more than $1.5 million.”
— US Attorney’s Office Press Release Dec 16, 2024.
And this guy is still an OC Superior Court Judge! Nobody’s doing anything about it. Just like Andrew Do’s wife Cheri Pham! Just like the brazen Brahim Baytieh – what a bench of miscreants we have! And even more hilarious they all started out as DA’s. The sheeple of OC want prosecutors as judges, not knowing that half of THEM are crooks – what a world!
Judge Baytieh came up in a conversation this week too (and then I’ll shut up.) You might remember a 2018 piece here about “Spitzer’s Piss-Gate,” where one of DA candidate Todd’s top aides got busted drunkenly urinating in a drug store, was let off by Rackauckas and then the whole story was released to the press, a year later, right before the Spitzer-Rackauckas showdown election.
Well, this guy asked me to remove his name so I did cuz he asked nicely and it’d been 7 years. But he also mentioned that it was not Rackauckas, but Rackauckas loyalist Baytieh whose idea it was to use that story as an October Surprise against Spitzer. The guy who Spitzer called his “Ethical North Star!” Until Todd discovered that Baytieh was knee-deep in the Snitch Scandal and fired him. (Although THAT was also coincidentally right after Baytieh publicly criticized Todd for musing on a black defendant’s penchant for white women, nothing is simple with these people.)
Well, as Gus Ayer used to say, “GOTTA RUN!” I hand you-all the baton….
I remember when Matt Harper was “working” as a stooge for Janet Nguyen. A complete No Longer Young Republican type cypher. They eventually got him a do-nothing job at OC Waste and he couldn’t even do that.
He did show up once wearing what looked like a velvet suit, so there’s that.
You left Nelson off your list of judges. He’s waist deep in the Spitzer harassment lawsuit.
thanks for the rundown. I am sure it will be helpful to the LATimes and Register reporters who do no basic research, have no stake in the community, and have no knowledge of the characters and time-lines involved. They will be reading this closely to avoid any actual coverage of local politics damaging to their corporate overlords and the incumbents you so ably call out.
Apparently the copd does not want to officially distance itself from Tammy.
Remember how long it took them to let go of Melahat?
Tammy is also a copd central committee member representing the 73rd district.
Have they really let go of her, though?
Sarmiento locates dementia patient who briefly escaped skilled nursing facility and delivers her to a public safety officer.
https://m.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1092709816223390
I know what I can do for Memorial Day this year (besides playing patriotic music for old folks in Placentia, Costa Mesa & Yorba Linda) – I’ll post the President’s statement, that should be appropriate, respectful & patriotic!
How on earth can you advocate that either Harper or crazy lady go to the state assembly. These two are clowns, and we have enough clowns in public office. I hope Democrats put up a high quality candidate. We have quite a few in this district, don’t leave anything on the table.
Neither of the two deserve it, and they’d both be an embarrassment (Gracey more of one.)
But I keep remembering that Democrats already have a supermajority in Sacramento and it doesn’t seem like one or two more would make any difference.
Now a PROGRESSIVE, like Jessie Lopez or Johnathan Hernandez, who would fight for stronger rent control and police accountability in Sacramento, that WOULD make a difference. But that kind of Democrat probably wouldn’t have a chance in 72.
I still want Eva Longoria to run against Lou. (She likely has no such ambition, but it would be fun to cover and good exercise for Lou.
I think I have mentioned before that OG Tea partier Max Maxsenti has announced in 72.
I’d prefer Harper to Gracey, if it came to it. He wouldn’t go any higher because he’s goofy. She, by contrast, fits in well with the Zeitgeist.
But, like I have said, if not in HB, I see her going to work with Linda McMahon, if the DOE somehow survives
*Is* Lou particularly good on immigration? What does he do that any other hypothetical Democrat in a safe blue seat wouldn’t also be doing? What’s Jose Moreno been up to lately?
(Viewing from the outside, it seems like the only thing Lou is good for is taking photos with every valedictorian, cop, and Little League team in the Anaheim/Santa Ana area. Staff could replace him by wheeling around a cardboard cutout, hand extended, to events; since he doesn’t do open town halls, it might be months before anyone notices the switch.)
Congress’ “El Salvador Caucus” – all Bukele boosters – includes only two Democrats, and those are Lou AND the subject of this article, Texas “Blue Dog” Vicente Gonzalez, who founded the caucus with MATT GAETZ. https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2025/05/29/bukele-trump-el-salvador-vicente-gonzalez-00363966
I’m not sure why Lou has always been said to be so “good on immigration” (and I think you can tell I’m trying to take it easy on him right now) except for the fact that he TALKS about it a lot. (And one thing he’s always been good at is “constituent services” or helping individual people with their problems, which could include immigration.)
When he had to justify himself to the state party in ’22 because Mike Ortega made the HERCULEAN EFFORT to get to to that point in a primary with him, Lou said “Immigration is my number one, number two, and number three issue.” I had two responses. 1) There ARE other important issues. And 2) If immigration was so important, why did you endorse anti-immigrant Republican Sheriff Don Barnes against a fine pro-immigrant Democrat candidate, Duke Nguyen, back in 2018? (The DPOC even censured Lou [and Tom Daly] for that, not that Lou or Tom cared.)
I know, just reminding people of all that, I’m just pissing in the wind. Law-abiding immigrants are getting spirited out of Santa Ana as we speak, on their routine ICE visits, and where is Lou? Keeping his head down.
https://www.ocregister.com/2025/05/29/ice-agents-staking-out-courthouses-in-southern-california-to-detain-undocumented-immigrants/
The “Bill” does not cut peoples medicaid stupid almost free program is being used for fraud increases costs for everyone. Big Lou should be rounded up by ice and sent home with all his posse. He got rich off the system.
Yeah you hear that Lou? Back to Anaheim!
So says illiterate knuckle dragger.
Arizonan paddling peckerhead seen off Orange County coast.
https://www.facebook.com/stapletonfornewport/videos/1247864623634861/
If you haven’t noticed Willie the Weenie issued a statement condemning the recent anti-Semitic attacks in Boulder, D.C. and Pennsylvania and the Stepford wives Hoffman and Johnson-Norris haven’t issued any statement denouncing recent anti-Semitic attacks.
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1337722358360157&id=100063672171402
Surprising, the DPOC leadership ladies are so quick to call anti-Semitism against anyone who criticizes Israel.
Dyk. Copd raised more $ in 2009-2010 than 2023-2024?
Lauren tried to accuse me of such half throatedely once.
Even former federal prosecutor joined the chorus.
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=724166613893517&id=100089005555653
Is no one going to mention Spitzer getting his comeuppance yesterday??
We knew Tracy Miller back around 2019-20. We being the Chicanos Unidos Legal Clinic, who met several times with her and Todd to try to get some innocent young men and women off gang injunctions (with only a few successes.) She seemed more ill-tempered and recalcitrant than Todd, less willing to give these young folks a break. Some of us secretly referred to her as “Bride of Chucky.” (Not me, didn’t see the movie.) Now I feel bad, she was probably getting harassed at the time by Todd and Shawn.
https://www.ocregister.com/2025/06/05/jury-finds-da-todd-spitzer-harassed-veteran-prosecutor-awards-her-3-million/
How do you like the attorney for Spitzer & the County begging not to make Todd pay $25K in punitive damages out of his own pocket, as the $3 MILLION award (to be paid by you and me) is humiliating enough for him? Oh, these politicians (esp. GOP) are happy to take it on the chin when it’s taxpayers paying, but when it’s actually them? Now you have gone too far.
And isn’t Todd just the Prince of Apologizers: “I respect the jury’s decision, and I am heartbroken over the fact that any of my actions could have been interpreted as anything other than a good faith effort to clean up the public corruption in the Orange County District Attorney’s Office and to create a work ethic that adheres to what Orange County residents demand of its District Attorney.”
PS “Spitzer, in his own testimony, compared taking the reigns of the DA office to ‘going into battle in the lion’s den’…”
No I’m not gonna ridicule Todd’s grandiosity here, just ask whether Sean Emery doesn’t know that you “take the REINS,” or if some dumb Register editor thought he was fixing it for him, or if “reign” is purposefully used to poke fun at His Majesty.
Well Noah doesn’t know Shawn Nelson was a supe of the 4th district.
And boss of Zenger, Bilodeau & Mark Lopez. And before that Fullerton Councilman, who hired me to play piano at his party. And the guy we supported for Supervisor because he was better than Sidhu or Galloway. And “father of the OC Tea Party,” who became part of the swamp he used to rail against. And next-door neighbor & friend of Bushala. And (although he’d like us to forget) criminal defense attorney.
See, here we have institutional memory.
Two of my law school classmates helped sully the OCDA’s reputation. Now their judges.
P.S. one of my other law school classmates is Gascon.
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-02-27/george-gascon-todd-spitzer-district-attorney
Two ships passing in the night. Willie the Weenie and Katrina “I get two appointees on human relations commission” foley attend same oc bar association event but avoid taking photo together. Now that’s professional courtesy and civility for you. The stepford wives were a no show.
https://m.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=OCBarAssociation&set=a.1245828520887012
Nelson has always been a natural bully. He tried it on me without success. Anytime somebody stood up to his inflated gasbaggery he immediately backed down.
And his two favorite political metaphors were “I shoved it up their ass” and “They shoved it up my ass.”
True. Those were his exact words when when he bragged about puting a homeless shelter on State College – right behind the elementary school on Commonwealth.
That debacle fell through thanks to Bushala and Whitaker and Chris Thompson. But Nelson almost got a six-figure “sole source” real estate commission for his pal and County Planning Commissioner, Cameron Irons. Now Nelson’s is a “Your Honor.”
Willie the Weenie wants you to report any suspicious looking Democrats walking in Newport Beach to the authorities.
https://x.com/OCGOP/status/1931778145042219203?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet
Stop Asian hate?
Local Chinese community claims Taipei born Melinda Liu as first Chinese American elected councilmember In Irvine. Local Taiwanese community go crickets!
https://www.sccca.org/news/2025/04/01/headline-news/volunteer-service-recognized-melinda-liu-elected-irvine-s-first-female-chinese-american-city-councilmember/
https://cityofirvine.org/city-council/councilmember-melinda-liu-district-1
HA that’s worth its own story!
https://irvinecommunitynewsandviews.org/congratulations-to-yulan-chung-irvines-woman-of-the-year/
Irvine’s woman of the year is a
Leader in sccca, the organisation that called liu Chinese
She was also a member of Irvine DEI committee.
Stop Asian hate they said.
Eric, sometimes you give idiocy an even worse name.
Here are two paragraphs from that story, with a particular word emphasized:
I’m trying to figure out why you think someone calling her Chinese is some sort of gaffe. I can only presume that you think that she should instead have been referred to as “Taiwanese,” which I suspect is indeed what she is.
What you don’t understand is that Mainland China (the “People’s Republic of”) and Taiwan (the “Republic of) both have “One China” policies. The “Two China policy is an American invention designed to let us continue defending Taiwan without entering into a hot war with the PRC.
In other words, both of them claim sovereignty over all of China; it’s just that the PRC’s claim could actually happen (especially with Trump’s turbocharging China’s power and speeding the ascent of the long-predicted Chinese century) while the ROC’s claim is a pipe dream to keep their viable dream of independent and secure existence alive.
I reckon that if I traced this jihad/crusade of yours back far enough, it would lead to Treseder or Farrah or Azerbaijan or Turkey, but I’m as uninterested as all of our readers except you yourself. So if you want to attack Liu, find away tha is not predicated on a near-bursting pustule of ignorance.
Umm, you wouldn’t call a Ukrainian Russian would you, Greg??
The idiocy is the whole AAHNPI bunch who want you to celebrate their heritage one and all alike.
Taiwanese history is a tad different than the history of mainland China.
So when a non-Chinese person calls her Chinese, she can decide to go up in arms over it as a hate incident depending on how much attention it will get her.
There are Taiwanese organisations in Irvine too.
https://taiwaneseamericanhistory.org/our-journeys/
https://www.ivc.edu/clubs/taiwanese-student-association
I didn’t cause this confusion. Is liu gonna be Chinese when china invades Taiwan??
There is a split of authority re Taiwanese nationals considering themselves “Chinese”. There are indigenous Taiwanese folks and there are Chinese ethnicity island natives who consider themselves Taiwanese not Chinese. Then, there are those like Liu whom are Taiwanese born and consider themselves Chinese not Taiwanese. But I’m pretty certain what she claims depends on the audience.
I didn’t know that Ukraine officially lays claim to all of Russia! (Neither did you, because it doesn’t, but it’s the underpinning of your analogy.)
In my experience, both are accurate, but “Taiwanese” is (1) more specific and (2) conveys the understanding that the person in question does not recognize the sovereignty of the PRC over their homeland. Chinese is an ethnicity as well as an affiliation, and Liu is apparently of Chinese ethnicity.
Do you know where the dominant population of Taiwan came from, Eric? (Oh, well, even if you don’t you can look it up.) Do you think that their ultimate aspirational allegiance is to their present real estate? It may be unrealistic, but their hearts remain in the mainland, although obviously not with the mainland regime.
As I understand it, Liu is and will always be of Chinese ancestry, which in this case traces back to the mainland. She is a child of 3000 years of China culture. But if China invades Taiwan and topples their government, she’s going to continue to be (1) of Chinese ancestry, (2) affiliated with the Taiwanese community in exile (and at that point, in exile twice over), and (3) American. None of these conflict with the others.
You’re creating a controversy based on your misunderstandings, prejudices, and (knowing you) personal political agenda, without knowing much about the subject — which doesn’t stop you from being “sure.”
From darling to dog, dnc vice chair Hogg is out.
Yeah probably cuz he was too friendly with me at a DPOC bash last year.
He was a darling so long as he was a puppet; now he is his own man, and certainly not a dog. He’s on the right side of history; you should try it sometime.
I will send him a membership card for the Democratic Party’s “shot at the king but didn’t kill him” club. I think that he has comported himself extremely well — and will do well in the future.
He was raised in LA before his family moved back to Florida, so — having just turned 25 — he could come back here and run for Congress against anyone in the state! (I have some ideas about that.)
Greg, I got JUST THE THING for your holiday week! You gotta LOVE this – It’s got California Clean Energy cars ! its got Lawyers ! Even a mention of Orange County ! Enjoy !
https://youtu.be/B3oMR35uggM?si=eJuanUdfO93J7mqS
And even another secret tip before you hit TLDR – You can go into YouTube settings and set Playback Speed to 1.5x or 2x – Problem Solved !
Guess what I’M not going to do!