By Doug Porter
San Diego’s “New Republican” candidate for the 52nd Congressional District actively sought and failed to get the endorsement of the United States Chamber of Commerce.
Instead, the pro-business group endorsed Democratic incumbent Scott Peters, saying “We will encourage the business community to vigorously support your candidacy.”
This makes Peters unique in that he’s supported by (some) organized labor groups and the largest pro-business lobbying group in the U.S. The Chamber’s lobbying expenditures in 2013 totalled $74,470, 000. In the 2012 Congressional elections they spent $33 million in support of mostly Republican candidates.
I’ll suspend judgement for a moment about just how scummy the U.S. Chamber is as an organization to crack wise about the DeMaio campaign’s reaction.
From UT-San Diego:
“We’re not surprised that a special interest group in D.C. is trying to protect members of Congress — they like the system the way it is. They know Carl DeMaio is coming to end the perks for this crowd,” said Dave McCulloch, spokesman for the DeMaio campaign.
A spokesman for the US Chamber responded to this comment via Twitter:
.@carldemaio spox needs to get facts straight. The campaign actively sought our endorsement. Sour grapes. http://t.co/JFJb5uygsU
— Rob Engstrom (@RobEngstrom) September 3, 2014
Not Loving It: Fast Food Workers to Strike Thursday
Workers at over a dozen fast-food restaurants in San Diego will walk off their jobs early Thursday morning. Fast Food workers from across the country held a national convention last month and agreed to escalate the ‘Fight for $15’ (per hour) and this action is just one of what organizers are saying will be over 150 walk outs nationwide.
Supporters are starting at the crack of dawn, with a 6am press conference featuring elected officials, clergy and community supporters in a shopping center near the McDonald’s at Fairmount & University, followed by a march to a nearby Burger King (4144 University Ave.) and even more marching to a Jack-in-the-Box (4075 University Ave.)
According to a press release from the Center for Policy Initiatives:
Thursday’s strike comes a month after the National Labor Relations Board’s general counsel determined that McDonald’s is jointly responsible for wages and working conditions at its franchises. Fast food corporations repeatedly have tried to sidestep workers’ calls by claiming local franchisees bear full responsibility.
The movement also is challenging fast-food companies’ outdated notion that their workers are teenagers looking for pocket change. Today’s workers are mothers and fathers struggling to raise children on wages that are too low to cover basic costs.
The fast food industry increasingly has been at the center of the national debate onwhat’s wrong with our economy. As corporations decrease real wages for average American workers, a growing number of economists warn that low wages are harmingthe overall U.S. economy.
BOOMER-Con! Getting Older (for sure), Wiser (maybe)
Just Don’t Talk About Dying While You’re Here
Wait-a-minute! That’s me they’re talking about. The American Association of Retired People (AARP) is hosting what they’re calling Ideas@50+ exposition at the San Diego Convention Center over the next few days.
Eight thousand people are expected to attend. There will be workshops, celebrities and entertainment. It’s all about discovering your potential, re-inventing yourself and doing everything possible to not get bummed out about the fact that we’re getting o.l.d.
UT-San Diego columnist Logan Jenkins’ column today is about how AARP expo organizers denied Final Exit Network (a right-to-die group) booth space at this event, saying, “After further consideration, we are unable to approve right-to-die societies and other like organizations as exhibitors.”
The expo’s motivational themes — health/wellness, technology/innovation, travel/lifestyle and money/work — are all uppers. Let’s gallop to a hundred!
But life’s end game? Planning how to negotiate the legally dicey challenge of ceasing upon the midnight without pain?
Outside the Convention Center, Final Exit members will try to engage the public. They’ll hope to draw attention, even sympathy, from the expo exclusion.
So look for lots of celebrity sightings, including LeVar Burton, Valerie Harper, Arianna Huffington, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Dan Marino, Kevin Spacey, and Martha Stewart around town.
The expo will kick off on Thursday with a Day of Service and end Saturday night with a concert featuring John Mellencamp, Mavis Staples and Los Lobos. The website for the event says that registration is still available in person at the San Diego Convention Center.
Cross-Border Relations by Sane People
From UT-San Diego:
UC San Diego has entered into an agreement aimed at increasing its collaboration among faculty and students with a Tijuana university, expanding on existing partnerships the La Jolla campus has with Mexican schools.
Leaders of the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California and the University of California San Diego signed a memorandum of understanding in early August that calls for students from both universities to engage in joint research projects and publications.
Faculty, graduate students and postdoctoral scholars will participate in exchange programs between the two campuses.
Cross-Border Relations by Wingnuts
From Latino Rebels:
A group with ties to Murrieta, California, that has 1,500 Facebook members is actively recruiting supporters via social media to organize a “Shut Down All Ports of Entry” along the US-Mexico border.
According to the group’s site, the attempt to close all these ports of entry will start at 8:00amPST on September 20. Here is why the group wants to do this:
We are but a small representation of Americans who are unsettled and deeply concerned with our current Administration, in all branches of Federal and State governments. Our mission is to Shut Down, every United States’ Port of Entry on the Southern Border, until our Goals are met.
By doing this, we will stop approximately 1.4 Billions dollars of trade, per day, from going into, and out of, Mexico and The United States of America.
This action will force the elected officials in The United States and Mexico, to come up with a permanent and legitimate solution for dealing with the Illegal Immigration issue, enforce our rule of law, and bring our Marine, Sgt. Tahmooressi, home. This protects all American citizens and those legal immigrants who wish to come here the legal way.
The Border Shut Down will remain in place, until our Goals are met, in writing, from both the United States and the Mexican governments.
Photo via http://charlieuno.wordpress.com/
Yeah, right. I wonder if it will work out any better than the Border Convoy a couple of months back, where they basically ended up fighting with each other.
On This Day:1838 – Frederick Douglass boarded a train in Maryland on his way to freedom from being a slave. 1942 – Frank Sinatra started his solo singing career. 1991 – Twenty-five workers died, unable to escape a fire at the Imperial Poultry processing plant in Hamlet, N.C. Managers had locked fire doors to prevent the theft of chicken nuggets. The plant had operated for 11 years without a single safety inspection.
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Doug Porter
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Gotta say — remember Cliven Bundy? — in response to your column’s last line, Doug, in which you “wonder if it (the Shut Down the Border action) will work out any better than the Border Convoy a couple of months back, where they basically ended up fighting with each other.”
Cliven and his militia were not arrested, not even after they pointed assault rifles and aimed long guns at federal officers.
Also, in Murietta the haters succeeded several times in turning back the federal buses and were not controlled. In fact, that Border Patrol spokesman was quoted several times in support of the demonstrators.
It does seem highly unlikely that the obstruction of the Feds working the border will be tolerated, even by a White House that seems wary of confronting white militias.
AARP is basically a profit making corporation masquerading as a do gooder non profit. They are a shill for United Health Care which they advertise for continually.
From Daily Kos:
“If you want to know only one fact about AARP, remember this, they make a huge amount of money selling insurance. They don’t give a rat’s ass about your mother or mine, they care about the revenue they generate selling for-profit junk insurance.”
The AARP is a shill organization for United Health Care. It pulls in the patrons and United makes huge profits.