Dean Andal, GOP nominee, CD11

Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Pleasanton

Democratic Rep. Jerry McNerney of Pleasanton and his Republican challenger Dean Andal of Stockton have agreed on two face-to-face showdowns.

As challengers do, Andal has been lobbying for months for debates while McNerney, as incumbents do, has been putting them off.

That’s all over now.

The pair will tape a half-hour roundtable on the evening of Oct. 3 as part of the traditional Contra Costa Times’ televised series in partnership with the League of Women Voters, Comcast, CCTV, Contra Costa County, East Bay Foundation and Lesher Foundation.

I am the moderator and will ask the questions of the two candidates in a roundtable format. The taping session isn’t open to the public because we’ll be inside a small CCTV Martinez television studio. But it will air repeatedly on CCTV and other area public stations until the election. The segment will also be available 24-7 online at www.ContraCostaTimes.com. (Check back on my blog for airdates and links to the video as soon we complete production and post it, probably on Oct. 6 or 7.)

An open-to-the-public candidate event opent sponsored by the Tracy Press will be held Oct. 11 at 7 p.m. at Monte Visa Middle School, 751 W. Lowell St. in Tracy.  As a public service, the Tracy Press has organized candidate forums since the 1960s.

A data processing error has Contra Costa County elections chief Steve Weir looking for a Sharpie. A lot of Sharpies.

As many as 200,000 ballot envelopes scheduled to be mailed on Monday depict the addressed voter’s party registration. It’s a violation of a new state law barring such designations on the outside of ballot envelopes used in general elections.

Weir caught it before the offending envelopes left the vendor, Ashland, Ore.-based IPCO Independent Printing Co. (It’s not the vendor’s error, Weir said. It was his office that failed to click the right button during the processing of the massive voter database.)

Weir’s plan of attack?

The vendor will deploy Sharpie-wielding clerks armed with black permanent markers. (Okay, I don’t if they will use actual Sharpies or some generic pen._

“We’ve tested it and we’re confident it will work,” Weir said.

“Project Mark Out” will not delay the mailing of ballots and voters shouldn’t worry if they see black line on the front of their envelopes that blocks out the disallowed verbage.

But unlike a problem of a few elections ago when the ballots came from the printer with a crease and Weir personally ironed thousands of crinkled ballots, he has no plans to go to Oregon and take a marker in hand.

Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland

The Hill reports that Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, is expected to become chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus in November.

Here’s the top of the story:

Article about Barbara Lee

Rep. Lee on path to get role as next CBC chairwoman

By Mike Soraghan
Posted: 09/24/08 07:29 PM [ET]
Rep. Barbara Lee, an ardent war opponent and early supporter of Barack Obama’s presidential campaign, appears to have locked up the chairmanship of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) for the 111th Congress.

The official vote won’t take place until after the elections in November, but several members say Lee (D-Calif.) is the only lawmaker running for the post.

Her ascension will also open the leadership of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. She and Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.) have been co-chairwomen of the group for four years. But they will not seek reelection next year, Woolsey said Wednesday. She said she and Lee are hoping that there is a two-member co-chairmanship for the next Congress as well.

Per the Public Policy Institute of California’s new poll, Californians prefer Obama over McCain by 10 points and appear unlikely to support Prop. 8, the statewide gay marriage initiative:

California’s likely voters prefer the Democratic ticket of Barack Obama and Joseph Biden to Republican contenders John McCain and Sarah Palin by 10 points, but they’ll be watching closely to see how the candidates perform in a series of televised debates before marking their ballots. Eight in 10 say the debates, which begin Friday, will be very important (38%) or somewhat important (41%) in deciding who gets their votes, according to a statewide survey released today by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) with funding from The James Irvine Foundation.

Click here for the full press release or read more for the release text. Read the rest of this entry »

A reader sent this funny depiction of the new $1 bill:

Antioch Mayor Don Freitas

Antioch Councilman Jim Davis

The gloves came off at last night’s Antioch City Council meeting between Mayor Don Freitas and his second-time challenger and  Councilman Jim Davis. (Skip to 33.13 in your media player to watch the exchange.)

It was ugly. The men called each other nasty names like “liar” and “bully.” The body language alone was cold enough to flash-freeze a side of beef.

Before you read this, put this foremost in your mind: This is the silly season. Antioch reporter Hilary Costa is working to flesh this out for tomorrow’s paper but here’s what I know.

Davis alleges that Freitas and the City Clerk Jolene Martin engaged in an illegal conversation about his much-contested ballot designation request of “vice mayor” “mayor pro tem” prior to the close of filing for candidates. The title is typically disallowed because it is a rotated position rather than an elected one.

However, several of my colleagues at the Times reviewed the election code and the confidentiality provision appears to apply to the candidate statement, not to the ballot designation.

Davis believes the mayor misused his power and pushed behind the scenes for a city-paid legal opinion on the ballot designation for his own political purposes. Davis wants the mayor to reimburse the city for the legal costs, perhaps as much as $10,000.

Freitas denies that anything illegal took place and accused Davis of hijacking the council meeting in order to drum up a campaign issue.

Check this out: Google has a new search page for quotes by presidential candidates.

Measure J mailer in Moraga, Page 4

Acalanes Union High School Superintendent Jim Negri sent out an email to parents advising them that the district had nothing to do with the “Go Cougars” message and use of Campolindo High School colors on the “Yes on Measure J” signs popping up in Moraga.

The Bruzzone family, a large Moraga landowner, sponsored Measure J, which largely preserves the town’s existing general plan for open space and mandates the developer pay $7 million for public uses in return for housing approvals. It’s a counter-initiative to Measure K, sponsored by open-space advocates, which expands open space land-use designations and restricts development to the downtown area. If both measures pass by a majority, the one with the most votes would prevail.

Negri says the district contacted the “Yes on Measure J” campaign and the Town of Moraga regarding the signs, but was told that neither the town nor the district has any legal authority to remove the signs.

“Campolindo High School and the Acalanes Union High School District have not taken any position in support of or against Measure J,” the superintendent wrote. “The District does not take a position on local ballot issues, such as Measure J, unless there is a direct impact to the District. Measure J has no direct impact.”

UPDATE: 1:40 PM

Yes on Measure J spokeswoman Mary Jo Rossi is unimpressed with the flap.

“In a democracy, there is nothing wrong with painting signs red, white and blue - those are American colors - even our candidates for president have red, white and blue signs,” she wrote in an email.

She also took a jab at the Measure K advocates.

“Measure J advocates are mainstream Moraga residents who are youth sports leaders, parents, firefighters, and educators who take great pride in Moraga - not fringe Berkeley extremists like the individuals supporting Measure K,” she wrote.

Go Cougars!

I try to keep up. Really, I do.

But I couldn’t quite fathom a press release I received with details about how I could use Twitter to hack into the upcoming presidential and vice presidential candidate debates.

In my mind, hacking equals the Big House.

But Current TV and Twitter have teamed up to allow folks to “tweet” real time — it’s all legal — during the debates with the comments appearing onscreen during a live webstream feed.

If you routinely yell at the television, this is for you. Be heard by someone other than your bored cat. See what others are saying about the debates literally as they unfold. The first debate is Friday night.

Click here for a demonstration on how “Hack the Debates” works and full instructions on how to participate either via your computer at Current.com its cable station, Current TV. (You’ll have to check and see if your cable or satellite television channel line-up includes the station.)

Per Wikipedia, Current TV is an independent media company founded by former Vice President Al Gore.

Read more for the full press release. Read the rest of this entry »

Actor Jon Voight

Who says Democrats attract all the famous people?

Actor Jon Voight, who will appear in an upcoming movie called “An American Carol,” will visit the Alameda County Republican Party headquarters Thursday from 2-4 p.m. for phone-banking.

If you’re politically inclined, the address is 1039 MacArthur Boulevard in San Leandro.

“American Carol,” described by Entertainment Weekly as “Hollywood’s first unabashedly right-wing comedy,” opens Oct. 3.