Peninsula politicos received an unexpected surprise earlier this week, when word began to spread that Assemblyman Rich Gordon (D-Menlo Park) was throwing his support behind Marc Berman in his run for the State Assembly's 24th District seat. Even Berman says Fly he was a bit stunned, despite having Gordon as an honorary co-chair for his bid to get on the Palo Alto City Council. "I can definitely understand peole’s reactions," Berman says. In addition to serving in Palo Alto, Berman works as a development director for the Silicon Valley Education Foundation. It’s still plenty early in the race, though, and plenty more people could join the fray. Mountain View Councilman Mike Kasperzak has already thrown his hat in the ring, and there is a belief that greenie venture capitalist Josh Becker, who lost to Gordon in 2010, may give it another go. The district seat overlaps the line that segregates San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, and Becker actually edged out Gordon in the latter. Had Palo Alto’s former mayor, Yoriko Kishimoto, not come in with a strong third-place showing in this county, Becker may have been the one walking around Sacramento the last four and a half years. But there is an expectation the race won’t be all dudes for long. Mary Hughes, wife of Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian, has reportedly been beating the bushes through her foundation, Close the Gap CA, which was set up for the sole purpose of recruiting progressive women to run for the state legislature in 2014 and 2016. One person who might fit the bill is Margaret Abe-Koga, who spent eight years on the Mountain View council and part of that time as mayor. She now works as a district director for first-term Assemblyman Evan Low (D-Campbell).
The Fly
Assm. Rich Gordon Wastes No Time, Endorses Marc Berman
/ 11
Marc Berman, left, got an early boost of support from Assemblyman Rich Gordon. (Photo via www.voteberman.com)
Is Rich Gordon the Mike Honda of the CA State Assembly? He’s been in the Assembly 4-1/2 years? Has he done ANYTHING in all that time? I have never seen his name in print before today on SJI, nor have I heard it spoken on any broadcast medium…ever. I could understand that if Mr. Gordon represented Hoopa, Niland, or some other California outpost of civilization; but the guy represents a nearby wealthy district, and has managed to remain completely anonymous just a few miles south of his district. On the other hand, it seems like there’s a story about State Senator Jerry Hill, who represents a district just up the road apiece in San Mateo, every other day. People know more about a guy in federal witness protection than they do about Mr. Gordon. If he had lived in medieval times, he’d be known to us today as Gordon The Anonymous. Maybe Josh or Jen can dig into this guy so we can know just how valuable his endorsement might be.
Well, those of us who actually follow AD24’s politics are very familiar with Rich’s work. He is one of the most accomplished and respected members of the Assembly, with one of the highest rates of success when it comes to authoring bills that actually get signed into law. This year, he had 17 bills signed into law, more than anyone else in the Assembly.
He had a big win shortly after the 2012 election showed a huge influx of dark money into CA statewide initiatives. He authored a bill that gives the FPPC power to investigate possible dark money campaign financing violations *before* the mandatory filing periods. Prior to that, the FPPC had to wait sometimes months until filing periods were over and until the elections were actually over before they could intervene. So someone could illegally dump millions into a campaign, the FPPC could be aware of it, but the public often couldn’t know about violations until after an election was over. Now, the FPPC can act much earlier to investigate possible illegal campaigning, and it’s because of Rich.
Rich has been leading the charge on sea level rise issues, since many of his cities (like mine) are on the bay. He got a bill through that established a statewide sea level rise database, he chairs the Assembly Select Committee on Sea Level Rise, and he’s even having a joint meeting with Anna Eshoo on the topic, this week I think. Years ago, I and others told him that we were worried about sea level rise in our cities, but it isn’t the kind of thing that a city can solve on its own. So he took the ball and ran with it.
And he Chairs the Rules Committee, for God’s sake.
He also tends to do a lot of bills on little things where things just aren’t working right and need to be fixed. He has a bill now that makes sure people can continue to volunteer on park and environmental projects without running afoul of state laws regarding wages and benefits. He’s been very active on water and solid waste issues too.
If you’re unaware of what Rich has done, it’s probably because you haven’t been paying attention. But the Silicon Valley press doesn’t tend to cover the North County much at all, so that’s probably a factor too.
Rich has been leading the charge on sea level rise issues…
I study sea level rise. The sea level has been naturally rising at the same rate for hundreds of years, since the Little Ice Age. That rate is about six inches per century. There has been zero ‘acceleration’ in the natural sea level rise. In fact, there are peer-reviewed papers stating that the rise is decelerating (papers posted upon request).
This is a non-problem. It is a corollary to the “climate change” scare. The basic purpose is to get ‘carbon’ taxes passed. But of course, a new carbon tax will not change the planet’s temperature by 0.000001º. It is just another new tax — and a big one.
Global temperatures over the past century are more benign than at any time in the geological record. The *tiny* 0.7ºC wiggle in global temperature over the past 150 years is flatter than geologists have ever recorded. Prior to our present Holocene, temperatures fluctuated by TENS of degrees — within one or two decades! That is scary. But a minuscule 0.7º fluctuation is not.
The small, natural sea level rise has not even affected Florida. California’s elevation above sea level is far more than Florida’s. When Florida starts to sink under the waves, we should worry. But there is no indication whatever that is happening.
Rich Gordon needs to get off the “climate change” bandwagon. It is a hoax, intended to raise everyones’ taxes. There has been NO global warming for almost twenty years now. The only reason this “climate change” scam is still in the news is because of the immense piles of grant money propping it up. And now the President — who has zero science background — smells more tax money. So he is pushing the “climate change” scare.
The gov’t is lying to you, folks. For money. Who woulda thunk it, huh?
Smokey:
Thank you for saying what I have been saying for years, but saying it better.
I will IMMEDIATELY add Rich Gordon to my list of unsatisfactory people.
The “climate change” scam is really another “children’s crusade”. Those who are thunping the tub for “doing something about global warming” are scared out of their pants, but they are scared about the wrong thing.
It’s not the everyday activity of human beings that is the threat., it is the stupid and insanely dangerous schemes cooked up by wreckless lunkheads trying to “solve the problem” that could do in human existence on the planet.
Many zany, crackpot geo-engineering schemes have been proposed to “do something” about global warming, and if any of this schemes were attempted and did something unpredicted, humanity and a lot of other stuff could be wiped out.
What keeps me awake at night is not people driving SUV’s, it’s science C-student and divinity school dropout Al Gore convincing the UN to put sun shades in earth orbit that work too well and cause a MONSTER ice age.
Rich Gordon, Al Gore, James Hanson, and their global warming claque are dangerous nuts with a capital “D” and they need adult supervision.
Thanks for helping to keep an eye on them.
So, what were these 17 bills about? Anything meaningful, or just water carried for some special interests? If you are his PIO or press secretary, you need to get busy, Mr. Griffith. Your post is as vague about these 17 bills as possible; basically an empty allegation. 17 bills in 4-1/2 years, in a state that passes hundreds of bills annually, does not impress me Mr. Griffith. I read and hear about legislators from throughout the state; but quite literally I have never seen Mr. Gordon’s name in print or heard it on any broadcast medium…ever, until this item in SJI. I love the photo provided by SJI, though. Google Laurel and Hardy, and you’ll see a photo that looks remarkably like Messrs. Berman and Gordon, without the bowlers. Top row, furthest left. They could be Stan and Ollie’s grandkids.
> Google Laurel and Hardy, and you’ll see a photo that looks remarkably like Messrs. Berman and Gordon, without the bowlers.
You know, there just might be something to this reincarnation stuff.
Margaret Abe-Koga would BY FAR be the best candidate for the State Legislature. Run, Margaret, run!
Sounds like the usual gaggle of California socialists, pinkos, moonbats, grifters, pickpockets, and identity politics sociopaths.
☺
Rich Gordon nominated pedophile child psychiatrist Dr William Ayres to get the Lifetime Achievement award for his “tireless efforts to improve the lives of children. “. After Ayres was arrested, Gordon refused to respond to some victims’ emails about this. He was extremely cold hearted and never offered a word of regret for his support of one of the most prolific child molesters in California history
Seriously?