Mailbag: Huntington Beach residents weigh in on council votes

A big “thank you” to Daily Pilot reporter Matt Szabo for another article highlighting the political shenanigans that have become all too common in Huntington Beach (Bill, which could shut down Huntington Beach’s voter ID requirements, passes California Assembly, Aug. 30). Culture war stunts passed off as governing are growing very old, and few examples embody this type of nonsense more than the voter ID fairy tale put forth by Huntington Beach’s current City Council majority and city attorney.

While absurdly false rhetoric has elevated voter ID nationally, its newfound popularity has never been supported by facts or credible evidence. Huntington Beach’s elected cosplayers jumped on this bandwagon immediately without ever filing a formal complaint with the O.C. Registrar of Voters or requesting assistance from the Orange County district attorney’s office. Of course, none of this was ever real, but why go to the trouble of filing a formal complaint when you can simply spew ridiculous, fact-free accusations with impunity?

As state Sen. Dave Min noted in his statement about election integrity directed at Huntington Beach’s culture warriors, “… produce any evidence of widespread voter fraud, I will [would] lead efforts to change California’s voter eligibility rules.” Unfortunately, a lack of evidence has never deterred this bunch from doing what they do best: “solving” imaginary problems.

Steve Shepherd
Huntington Beach

Once again the conservative four on the Huntington Beach City Council fail to understand their role in governing. They only have jurisdiction over the city itself and none over national or state issues. Voter ID is a state issue, otherwise every small city could determine the requirements to vote and it would end up being a hodgepodge state. By challenging the state regulations and filing lawsuits they are costing tax payers thousands of dollars, money that could best be spent on improving our community. Former Mayor Debbie Cook continues to demonstrate the type of leadership that the con four should emulate.

Not only are the council majority not satisfied with their present control of the council, they are trying to use their influence and money to get more of their kind elected. The citizens should be aware of what is taking place, and do everything possible to insure that they are not successful.

Richard C. Armendariz
Huntington Beach

As Matt Szabo’s article reports, the legislature has passed SB 1174 which would bar local jurisdictions from enacting voter identification laws inconsistent with state statutes. This will protect Huntington Beach from the extraordinary expense of running separate elections for municipal offices and measures, and from arbitrary enforcement of its deliberately vague voter identification ordinance. SB 1174 and AB1285, also passed by the legislature, establishing state standards for the development of public library collections, are specifically stated by their language to be “matters of statewide concern, rather than a municipal affair, and, therefore, apply to all cities including charter cities.”

Huntington Beach City Atty. Michael Gates has already announced, without City Council public authorization, that he intends to challenge these bills in the courts, based upon his contention that they don’t apply to charter cities, despite the language therein. This tactic has not been successful in the past and is unlikely to be in the future. It only puts more city services at risk as the city attempts to stretch its deficit status budget to cover more litigation, which, contrary to Gate’s contention, is far from free. His office’s multimillion-dollar budget is unprecedented. Whether Gates and the City Council extremist majority like it or not, our city is not the Independent Fascist Republic of Huntington Beach.

Linda Sapiro Moon
Huntington Beach

Many in the Huntington Beach community have become used to, some would say numbed by, the partisan decision-making of the City Council majority. This is especially true when it comes to supporting Republican issues, ideology and officials. So, the entire audience at the council meeting Tuesday night was primed to have the agenda item submitted by the three minority members (Dan Kalmick, Natalie Moser and Rhonda Bolton) to demand the resignation of embattled Republican County Supervisor Andrew Do routinely brushed aside by the Republican majority (Gracey Van Der Mark, Pat Burns, Tony Strickland and Casey McKeon).

After the minority introduced the item, it was the turn of the majority to respond. Several speakers in public comments, including myself, had claimed that it was not just the allegations of corruption and malfeasance on Do’s part but also the failure to represent his constituents in District 1, which includes Surf City residents, fairly and honestly. Do had been noticeably absent and unproductive while under public scrutiny.

Strickland and Burns equivocated with the dual bromides of “innocent until proven guilty” and “we don’t have all the facts yet.” However, Mayor Gracey Van Der Mark broke ranks and used the “failure to represent” argument to side with the minority. The result was a 6-1 vote (with Burns stubbornly voting no).

Cypress City Councilwoman Frances Marquez, a Democrat, seeking to replace Do on the OC Board of Supervisors, also spoke in public comments to blast Do and dwell on those constituents, many sick and needy seniors and families, who were defrauded and betrayed. It was pointed out that even Republican Janet Nguyen, also seeking the same supervisorial seat, had castigated Do (her former chief of staff).

I was amazed at the vote, a direct snub of a local Republican office holder by a partisan City Council majority. Should mayor Van Der Mark receive kudos for her action or was she merely interpreting the handwriting on the wall? Either way, she did the right thing at the right time. As Martin Luther King Jr. would say “The time is always right to do what is right.” Right?

Tim Geddes
Huntington Beach

So our City Council wants city employees to become the gender police (Huntington Beach City Council majority approves of Parents’ Right to Know ordinance, Daily Pilot, Sept. 5). This would require educators who work in the city’s libraries, parks or other facilities to report a child’s sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression so the parents could be informed. What constitutes an educator? City volunteer homework tutors? Librarians? Storytellers? Makerspace and craft instructors? Lifeguard instructors? Leaders of the police Explorer program? Nature tour guides? Are they supposed to ask the child if the child is gay if they aren’t sure? Could they then be sued for invasion of privacy or harassment?

Our mayor says she was thinking back on her own teen experience when considering this ordinance. She was afraid to tell her parents she was pregnant but finally did so anyway so they could work it out together. I wonder how that would have worked out for her if an educator had informed her parents of her pregnancy before she, herself, was ready to tell them. And what happens if one informs the parents that their child or teen could possibly be gay, and it turns out they are not? If a child’s or teen’s relationship with their parents is such where the parents don’t know anything about what’s going on with their personal lives, how will this ordinance help these kids? Could it not just as easily hurt them? Instead of turning this issue into an “outing” political witch hunt, perhaps the council majority might consider offering family counseling classes to the public instead.

Barbara Richardson
Huntington Beach