I just got polled. Somebody is willing to spend good money to find out if Gavin Newsome could face a serious challenge to his reelection in November. Don't I wish --though so far no serious candidate has surfaced.The interviewer tested my sentiments toward Newsome (pretty, but empty; a front for big developers); Tony Hall (ferget it!); Matt Gonzalez (prima donna who quit when he found his way blocked), and Art Agnos (hmmmm. ...)
Truth be told, I was one of the shortsighted people who helped set things up for that idiot Frank Jordan to become mayor by working for Angela Alioto when Agnos ran for reelection in 1991. This was a dumb move, though I got some interesting electoral experience out of it. But that year's free-for-all (crazy Dick Hongisto was in it too) paved the way for imbecility under Jordan, who paved the way for urban racketeering under Willie Brown, who paved the way for pretty boy glitz under Newsome. Meanwhile the city costs more and more to live in and we limp along.
Agnos is a decent guy who'd care about the ordinary people of the city. The poll tested whether we were still mad at him about the homeless encampment that took over much of Civic Center at the end of this term. I'm not mad at him about that. I wasn't then (but they didn't ask me that.)
Doubt if Agnos will run. Why would anyone want to be mayor of a major city? The problems are intractable if you are actually trying to solve them and multiple constituencies are always mad at you.
If Agnos runs, I'll certainly vote for him.
I'd vote for Agnos too, although from all accounts he was an arrogant prick rather than a smooth diplomat in his dealings with many people in this village of a city, and most of those people are still in positions of municipal power. There's a reason all his post-mayoral gigs have been with the Feds.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite moment in his tenure was when the pugnacious Agnos confronted the American Red Cross, and actually got back the millions of dollars that had been sent to San Francisco by the rest of the world after the 1989 earthquake, and which the "charity" was pocketing for their "administrative expenses." If Agnos runs again, I'd put that as the #1 selling point for his campaign, and please pass that info on.
By the way, it's "Newsom" without an "e" which is a common mistake I see with our screwed-up pretty boy mayor's name. And I knew it was your effing fault that the moronic Jordan and then the gangster Brown became mayors after Agnos. You have a lot to answer for, Ms. Jan.
Hey -- I didn't do anything for Willie!
ReplyDeleteGuess I should learn to spell the mayor's name. I've never been able to take him very seriously.