Ethics cited in Brewer censure

The Orange County Republican Party on Wednesday censured 48th

District Congressional candidate Marilyn Brewer for making several

false claims about GOP opponent John Campbell, including that he

day-traded energy stocks during the state’s energy crisis, said

Orange County GOP chairman Scott Baugh.

He said the party’s ethics committee also found that Brewer

violated ethics rules with campaign mailers about Campbell’s position

on stem cell research and his record on illegal immigration and a

mailer that mentions the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers’ Assn., which has

endorsed Campbell.

Brewer could not be reached for comment late Wednesday.

The decision was the result of a complaint by Campbell, Baugh

said. Brewer also was warned by the county GOP’s ethics committee in

1994 following a complaint from Thomas G. Reinecke, whom she beat in

a primary in her first race for the state Assembly.

In that case, she was admonished by the party; Baugh said being

censured is more severe.

“Part of the report to me was that it’s happened before and that

affected the level” of the reproof, he said.

The party took no further action, so the finding is essentially a

political tool to keep candidates in line. An egregious ethics breach

could potentially get a person booted from the party’s Central

Committee, Baugh said, “but you can’t kick somebody out of a party.”

Earlier Wednesday, Campbell dismissed Brewer’s statements about

him as “flat out lying.”

“It’s disgusting and the people should absolutely reject it,”

Campbell said.

-- Alicia Robinson