Carl Chan reports good news! The paperwork for the Recall has finally cleared the Alameda County Registrar’s office, where it had been stalled for a while. This means that signature gathering can now begin! Not immediately, though. Carl will be organizing training workshops for the signature corps; I will share the details when he releases them. Meanwhile, I urge everyone to please volunteer to gather signatures. The task will be formidable: we need around 76,000 valid signatures to get the Recall on to the ballot. I’ll be out there, and if I can do it, so can you!
Senator Feinstein
My first thought, beyond sorrow when I learned of her death, was, “Wow. Poor Gavin.” Gavin, as in Newsom. The Governor now is confronted with one of the most difficult decisions of his political life: whom to appoint to replace her.
He once promised that, if he had the opportunity to appoint a Senator, it would be a Black woman. That opportunity has now erupted. Will he keep his promise? Will voters care? There’s always Oakland’s own Barbara Lee, who’s running for the seat. But she’s old (77), at a time when the age of our national politicians has become an issue. Moreover, the Governor may have his own issues with the Congresswoman. There’s also Karen Bass, the new Mayor of Los Angeles, although she’s largely unknown in most of California. If Newsom decides not to appoint a Black woman, he’ll come under fierce fire. At any rate, whatever he does will be controversial. Politico, referring to the Governor’s “painful political decision,” points out that he could appoint a “caretaker” as interim Senator, but Lee has already said she’s not interested in that. The one advantage of selecting Lee that I can see is that, as an Oaklander, she would bring badly needed funds into Oakland. Here’s a wild idea, entirely my own: What if he appointed Kamala Harris? She checks off several boxes: Black woman (actually, mixed race), Bay Area roots, lifelong Democrat, liberal, youngish (58). That would accomplish several things. It would relieve Democrats (and Biden) of a Vice President who is unpopular across the country, thereby making Biden’s re-election possibly easier. It also would open up the vice-presidency to new blood, and whoever the appointee is would instantly be a favorite for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028, even if Biden loses in 2024. Am I crazy?
I got to know Dianne Feinstein a bit during the 1980s, when I was a transit activist in San Francisco. She was a remarkably accessible Mayor, what they call a “pot hole politician.” When I complained about stuff, like the scheduling of a streetcar line, she generally got things done, and my files still contain many letters from her to me. She was a bit aloof, a rich daughter of an elite family; during the AIDS crisis, which she handled well, she would wear white gloves when visiting gay bars, as if she were afraid to shake anyone’s hand. But she was a great Senator, and if she stayed too long (she ought to have retired a few years ago), it is the one thing that can be counted against her in a long, distinguished career.
Have a wonderful weekend! Back Monday.
Steve Heimoff