This morning, the Union-Tribune reported that current Chula Vista Police Chief David Bejarano has been accused of writing bad checks by Art Moreno, his partner in a security company. The law says Bejarano can’t operate this kind of company while police chief, but of course the Chula Vista City Attorney says it’s fine as long as he’s trying to get out of the company (more on Chula Vista later in this column). I’m not a legal scholar, but I seriously doubt that most City Attorney’s would apply this kind of subjective test… and I have owned a small business and I know it usually doesn’t take this long to get out (did I mention the article says Bejarano is still taking a paycheck… sort of defeats his interest in getting out right?). Please note for the record I’m agreeing with Councilman Steve Castaneda for the first time when he said: “There should have been a specific timeline in which he had to divest himself from that business.” Of course there should have been Steve, but remember you are in Chula Vista.
Who knows what the truth of this matter is, but to tell the truth I’ve about had it with Bejarano’s antics.
What do I mean? In 2008 Bejarano – with the encouragement of the downtown and moderate types – decides to run for State Assembly to replace Republican Shirley Horton. The district is heavily Democrat. The other candidate, Chula Vista Councilman John McCann, who was already raising money and who had a fairly strong political base, is basically strong-armed out of the race by party insiders. After all that mess, and after having any number of politicians and donors put their names on the line for him, Bejarano drops out near filing – for ‘family reasons’. The real reason? Rumor has it he didn’t realize running for office actually required hard work (ie wouldn’t be handed to him). McCann, wounded in the process of getting out, starts at a disadvantage in a bad seat in a bad year.
A year or so passes. The County Sheriff office opens up. Bejarano decides to run. What are the internal discussions in his campaign: whether or not to flip party affiliations and run as a Democrat, with labor support (he was working with a Democrat consultant). This, after the Republican Party went to great lengths to clear the field for him a year before. My understanding is this is exactly where they were headed when (how convenient) he is offered the position as Police Chief of Chula Vista. I have no evidence that this offer was made to get him out of the race and consolidate insiders behind the appointed Sheriff, but anytime something ‘convenient’ happens it always seems to involve Chula Vista…. doesn’t it?
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Finally somebody gets out the truth behind the backstabbing that took place with McCann. McCann has been such a strong leader and team player for the Republicans, yet when he got screwed nobody recognized the sacrifice McCann made. Maybe Republicans need to do a better job of protecting their true leaders like McCann and recognizing the RINOs like Bejarano and Cox that are only in it for their self interests. Chula Vista continues to be a bad joke!