Credit: Neon Tommy / Flickr
Getting bored yet with all the glossy Anthony Villaraigosa commercials touting the utopia that will be California if only the former mayor of Los Angeles rises from the basement in the polls and becomes our next governor? Just a few weeks ago, Villaraigosa was languishing at 9% in the polls, having fallen behind the no-name Republicans in the race to see who would compete against Gavin Newsom in November. Now the airwaves in the Golden State are awash in all things Antonio all the time.
What gives?
Well, as in everything political, the answer comes down to money. In this case, a small group of rich folks want to buy your next governor and are doing everything they can to resuscitate Villaraigosa’s dying campaign. As the San Francisco Chronicle recently reported:
Two billionaire charter school advocates stirred up California’s gubernatorial race by pouring a total of $8.5 million into an independent expenditure campaign supporting former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings pledged $7 million and Los Angeles real estate entrepreneur Eli Broad promised $1.5 million to an independent expenditure organization called Families and Teachers for Antonio Villaraigosa for Governor 2018, which is run by the California Charter Schools Association Advocates.
Not surprisingly this big money campaign is full of plenty of doublespeak as the “Families and Teachers for Antonio” group would more accurately be named “a handful of rich white guys for Villaraigosa because he hates teachers and wants to bust their unions like we do.” Indeed, the reality of the matter is that both of California’s teachers’ organizations support Gavin Newsom because he has pledged to work with them rather than join the billionaire boys club behind corporate education reform efforts and the unregulated spread of charter schools that will continue to drain funding from other public schools and, if left unchecked, ultimately undermine public education itself.
Indeed, a brand new report by In the Public Interest, “Breaking Point: The Cost of Charter Schools for Public School Districts”, documents how the unrestricted expansion of charter schools in San Diego has cost SD Unified $65.9 million and has done similar harm elsewhere in the state. That kind of “disruption” is precisely what the big money behind Villaraigosa wants in exchange for their rescue of his flagging campaign.
Whatever your opinion of education policy, one hopes that progressives would see the deeply disturbing implications of letting policy be driven by not just a lobby for private interests but by a tiny handful of oligarchs bent on hijacking California’s role as leader of the resistance and turning it over to forces more in line with an agenda that Betsy DeVos would love.
How sadly ironic it would be if while teachers in largely red states all over America are leading the charge by striking for more pay AND better school funding, California let a stealth campaign by billionaires turn our gubernatorial race between two Democrats in November into a proxy war. In this scenario, the Democratic frontrunner (most certainly Newsom) would face a Villaraigosa campaign supercharged by anti-union money seeking to determine the outcome in a state with a nearly unassailable Democratic advantage. This would give Republicans an opportunity to dictate the outcome and gain more influence in policy matters. It may very well happen—if Democratic voters don’t get wise.
Perhaps that’s why some big Trump donors also love Villaraigosa as the Los Cerritos News reports research done by the John Chiang campaign has uncovered that:
Villaraigosa has accepted almost $130,000 in contributions from separate Republican and pro-Trump supporters. Those include contributions from Susana Chandi, who contributed $500,000 to USA Business Freedom PAC, a pro-Trump super PAC, and NASCAR CEO Brian France, who endorsed Donald Trump for president. Villaraigosa has also accepted contributions from pro-charter Republican Walmart heiress Carrie Penner and her husband Gregory Penner, Republican “power broker” Bert Boekmann, Republican oil investor Thomas Wachtell and his wife Esther Wachtell, and Republican CEO Bernard Klepach and his wife Juliette Klepach.
While the Chiang campaign is clearly an interested party, there is no denying that Villaraigosa is not just the choice of the charter schools lobby but the choice of Trump loving Republican developers, CEO’s, Walmart heirs, and oil lobbyists. Along with this, Villaraigosa’s previous dealings with McLarty Associates, with their ties to both Trump and Russian oil interests, is also troubling.
So, before you purchase the shiny product being sold in the Villaraigosa commercials, consider who is selling it and what they hope to get for their investment in this particular Democrat.
In sum, buyer beware.
Jim Miller
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Now the feckless Newsom is running anti-Fox ads to insure he is on the balot and not another Democrat. Vote for Chiang.
Villaraigosa is a corporate reformer shill. Here’s what he did to me and other special needs parents in 2006: I’ve posted on his site and on several others as well as some news posts. “This man called special needs and English language learners “LEFTOVERS” in one of the last pages of a 40+ page report on his education “plan” when he wanted to takeover LAUSD with AB 1381. I kid you not. He considered our children in these sub-groups “LEFTOVERS” (how it appeared in the “study”, with all caps in quotations and as an afterthought – he had NO plan for our children). I was in leadership with LAUSD’s Special Education Community Advisory Committee at the time and we wrote a letter to ask him what he meant. He never responded.
Jackie Goldberg forced him to have a public town hall to allow us to question his plans so I took our letter there. He set up a podium to take questions for a media event outside the venue, but when protesting parents showed up, he was upset and had plainclothes police pushing parents out of the tv camera sight lines. I was one of those parents. I’m 5’1″ and was 50 years old at the time. I was told that I was “endangering” the mayor when I was far in the back with my sign. Hardly a threat. I remember writing a formal complaint against the improper treatment. Our Community Advisory Committee Co-chair was challenged by Villaraigosa as well at the public town hall. After speaking behind his podium, he spotted one of the few men in the crowd (couldn’t attack a woman without looking bad, it was a choice) and he poked his finger in the dad’s chest, telling him: “Your child would be ashamed of you!” (for exercising his free speech rights). The dad replied: “My son would be proud!”. Villaraigosa poked his finger in the dad’s chest, repeatedly while talking threateningly to him. I can still picture his angry face while dad kept his cool. All he did was hold a “no take-over” sign while wearing a “Parents not Politics” t-shirt.
After the press conference, he went inside and the panel on stage had Gloria Romero (then a State Senator – also charter friendly and a recipient of corporate reformer $$$ who also treated the audience with disdain), Villaraigosa, his lawyer, Jackie Goldberg and someone else I can’t recall. People on stage made speeches then it was time for the audience Q & A. Right before it started, Villaraigosa sneaked behind the curtain and out a back door. He was too chicken to face people who disagreed with him.
Many of our parents went to Sacramento when the Education Committee was to vote on the measure, AB 1381 and he bullied us in the chambers, threatening Marlene Canter with “removing us” from the room. It wasn’t his house, nor his right to do so. We were respectful, but he didn’t like us being there. He was trying to control the message and failed. So many parents signed up to speak against the measure that we were asked to send leadership of various parent orgs to represent all those in attendance. We were not happy with that, but agreed. He appeared sullen and petulant during the entire process.
Villaraigosa has never supported children with disabilities or their parents. He’s refused to speak with us, answer our letters or allow us to have any voice when he was mayor. I doubt if he’ll do what’s best for our children if in the Governor’s office. His ties with corporate education reformers are more important than doing what’s right. He’s a disgrace.”
Reckless may be the better word for people with too much money and too little commitment to notions broader than self. Maybe Newsom’s okay, but vote for Chiang anyway.
Okay, but make sure either one can beat Villaraigosa. You may need to change your vote so Tony does not slip by to Sacramento.
Since the 70s or 80s (who can remember?) I’ve heard don’t
vote for McCarthy or McGovern or Sanders because they have
have no chance to of winning and we need the second best
because they do have a chance. Now we’re hearing that we
need to votefor Villaraigosa even though he’s been taking millions
from the DeVos family and other multi-millionaires who support
charter schools and condemn public schools (LA Times, May
15, 2018).
Long ago I decided I prefer voting for people who come closest
to representing my own interests.
an old axiom, paraphrased, says vote your conscience in the primaries and vote the realities in the general. like Obama in his first couple of years as prez, if you compromise right off the bat you have already lost.
No, no, no, no. He is such a corporate reformer shill. Here’s what he did to me and other special needs parents in 2006: I’ve posted on his site and on several others as well as some news webpages:
“This man called special needs and English language learners “LEFTOVERS” in one of the last pages of a 40+ page report on his education “plan” when he wanted to takeover LAUSD with AB 1381. I kid you not. He considered our children in these sub-groups “LEFTOVERS” (how it appeared in the “study”, with all caps in quotations and as an afterthought – he had NO plan for our children). I was in leadership with LAUSD’s Special Education Community Advisory Committee at the time and we wrote a letter to ask him what he meant. He never responded. Jackie Goldberg forced him to have a public town hall to allow us to question his plans so I took our letter there. He set up a podium to take questions for a media event outside the venue, but when protesting parents showed up, he was upset and had plainclothes police pushing parents out of the tv camera sight lines. I was one of those parents. I’m 5’1″ and was 50 years old at the time. I was told that I was “endangering” the mayor when I was far in the back with my sign. Hardly a threat. I remember writing a formal complaint against the improper treatment. Our Community Advisory Committee Co-chair was challenged by Villaraigosa as well at the public town hall. After speaking behind his podium, he spotted one of the few men in the crowd (couldn’t attack a woman without looking bad, it was a choice) and he poked his finger in the dad’s chest, telling him: “Your child would be ashamed of you!” (for exercising his free speech rights). The dad replied: “My son would be proud!”. Villaraigosa poked his finger in the dad’s chest, repeatedly while talking threateningly to him. I can still picture his angry face while dad kept his cool. All he did was hold a “no take-over” sign while wearing a “Parents not Politics” t-shirt.
After the press conference, he went inside and the panel on stage had Gloria Romero (then a State Senator – also charter friendly and a recipient of corporate reformer $$$ who also treated the audience with disdain), Villaraigosa, his lawyer, Jackie Goldberg and someone else I can’t recall. People on stage made speeches then it was time for the audience Q & A. Right before it started, Villaraigosa sneaked behind the curtain and out a back door. He was too chicken to face people who disagreed with him.
Many of our parents went to Sacramento when the Education Committee was to vote on the measure, AB 1381 and he bullied us in the chambers, threatening Marlene Canter with “removing us” from the room. It wasn’t his house, nor his right to do so. We were respectful, but he didn’t like us being there. He was trying to control the message and failed. So many parents signed up to speak against the measure that we were asked to send leadership of various parent orgs to represent all those in attendance. We were not happy with that, but agreed. He appeared sullen and petulant during the entire process.
Villaraigosa has never supported children with disabilities or their parents. He’s refused to speak with us, answer our letters or allow us to have any voice when he was mayor. I doubt if he’ll do what’s best for our children if in the Governor’s office. His ties with corporate education reformers are more important than doing what’s right. He’s a disgrace.”