IN THE PIPELINE:H.B. treated like the plague

Can you name the last time a sitting president of the United States visited Huntington Beach?

Bush, Clinton, Bush, Reagan, Carter? Keep going. Nixon, Kennedy? Not quite.

The last time a sitting president came to town (based on my research) was back in 1938 when Franklin Delano Roosevelt rode in the Fourth of July parade, as he campaigned for fellow Democrats during the year’s congressional elections.

Which begs another question: When is the last time you remember a presidential candidate coming through here as part of a campaign?

I’ve been studying this lately, and I can come up with virtually nothing. Oh, there have been some minor close calls over the years.

On Nov. 14, 1963, the new Douglas space plant on Bolsa Chica was dedicated at a ceremony featuring Vice President Lyndon Johnson.

At a Junior League breakfast in Chicago on Oct. 29, 1970, President Nixon said: “... I think of my own little area of Southern California where I grew up. There is a great beach, Huntington Beach. I remember what a beautiful beach it was in the old days.

“Now, of course, it has some oil wells. It still has some good beach, but there is one part of the beach that is not yet properly policed in which — I went by them the other day and there were literally thousands of beer cans and litter and so forth — completely destroyed.”

So at least a president was referring to us. I may have missed something, but from that point it seems to dry up.

We all know how important California is to all parties concerned. Just look at all the nearby recent activity as candidates start revving up for the big fight in ’08.

Last month, Arizona Senator John McCain toured the 65,000-square-foot Thuan Phat supermarket on Beach Boulevard. New York Senator Hillary Clinton might as well be a California state senator, with the time she spends here. Recently she was feted at a $2,300-a-plate fundraiser at a private Laguna home. She makes seemingly endless runs up to Benedict Canyon estates, and at a June 24 fundraiser in Newport, you can join Hillary and Bill for cocktails ($750) a VIP reception/photo op ($2,300) or an ultra up-close opportunity ($4,600).

And it goes on.

Rudy Giuliani in Newport Beach, Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich in Orange, soon-to-be-declared Fred Thompson at the Lincoln Club in Newport Beach, and a whole slew of Illinois Senator Barack Obama SoCal tour stops.

One thing (perhaps the only thing) both Democrats and Republicans seem to agree on is this: It’s OK to bypass Huntington Beach when trying to reach voters and raise money.

I hope to change that fact. This column will be sent to each campaign manager of each confirmed candidate on both sides of the aisle as a formal invitation to pay us a call.

Think of it — a chance to be the first one to pay campaign-starved Surf City USA® a vote-wooing visit. I will personally buy the candidate lunch at my favorite place in town, the Secret Spot; give them a personal tour of the city and a signed copy of the Huntington Beach book I wrote, and if scheduling allows, dinner with real people (my family) in a real home (ours) as cooked by my real wife and mom.

I’ll also dedicate this column space to an interview with them and naturally will help them decide where to meet/greet/make a speech. Perhaps the pier/Main Street? As Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger showed on Oct. 6, 2003, it’s a great place for a stunning photo op and a chance to interact with some real people, as opposed to all of those slick, hors d’oeuvres-gobbling policy wonks often found at exclusive gated fundraisers.

Why don’t they stop here? Who knows? We have more than 200,000 people. In terms of size, we’re the 19th largest city in the state, just after San Bernardino, with 205,010, and just before Irvine with 202,079. We have lots of money and more than a few waterside estates to host cocktail parties. We have major companies, plenty of creative start-ups and serious tourism.

But beyond that we have diversity, civic pride and tons of hardworking folks who, for once, would like a chance to ask their own questions and hear in person what might get this country on the track it needs to be on.

Maybe candidates just haven’t been invited. And if that’s the case, well, they won’t have that excuse anymore. THIS is the invitation.

Will anyone accept? I hope so. Who would want to miss a fantastic opportunity to visit a beautiful beach community, make a big splash and drum up lots of votes and money? Seems like a no-brainer (though that never stopped many politicians before).

Hey, perhaps it will start a trend and lead other candidates here for town hall meetings in high school gyms, a surfing lesson or a cup of coffee at the Sugar Shack.

Whatever happens, at least for once we’d experience the exciting presidential barnstorming frenzy that blows through so many other Southern California neighborhoods. We’ll be part of the process, instead of passed by on the freeway. Candidates, are you listening?

There’s political oil to be struck here. All you have to do is pay us a visit. Swim trunks optional. You can RSVP to chris@chrisepting.com.

I’ll keep you updated on what I hear, and if you’d like, go online and post who you’d like to see come to Huntington Beach at In The Pipeline, www.hbindependent.com/ columns/