For someone who has spent so much time talking about improving performance at schools, Nathan Fletcher should really be looking at improving his own grades. Yesterday, the California Republican Assembly released a scorecard for legislators on a variety of conservative issues.
For the second year in a row, Fletcher received the lowest mark amongst all Republicans statewide. His 56% is an F grade according to this Cal Watchdog article and also indicates his scores have been dropping every year in the Assembly. This is not a one year fluke, but a disturbing trend.
In response, Team Fletcher claims he held the line against higher taxes and while working to defend small businesses. Interestingly however, the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association (HJTA) recently gave Fletcher one of the lowest scores among Republican lawmakers for his tax related votes this year.
A low score on the HJTA scorecard should race a red flag for any fiscal conservative looking at supporting Fletcher in his race for Mayor. One hopes that Mr. Fletcher spends some of his campaign war chest on tutors who can educate him on conservative ideas and principles to help him bring his grades up in 2012.
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From Admin– This post originally stated HJTA recently gave Fletcher the lowest score among Republican legislators. That is not the case, as shown by the link provided above by the author. HJTA initially gave Fletcher a C grade, then upped it to a B while apologizing and retracting the error. That information was posted on Rostra. We regret the error and apologize for the inaccurate statement.
Comments 15
He got an “A” from the NRA.
Top of the class on guns and bottom of the class on taxes…Alger must hate this guy seeing as how he’s been pushing for people to elect straight “C” students lately.
Author
Admin – thanks for making the change. It’s correct that he received one of the lowest scores from HJTA.
Michael,
Actually, I think Fletcher would make a great Mayor.
Sorry to break this to you, but the majority of the public doesn’t agree 100% with any of the groups that put out a report card.
The bad news keeps piling up for Nathan Fletcher. First, a low score on the California Republican Assembly scorecard. And then, even worse, unequivocal praise from Alger. You talk about a miserable day.
The California Republican Assembly gave Fletcher a 63, its lowest score for any Republican in the Assembly or State Senate. (http://www.californiarepublicanassembly.com/content/cra-scorecard) The majority of the Democrats received a zero with the average of all Democrats being a 2.
It appears to me that this puts Fletcher slightly right of center, in other words, the place where most people define their own political leanings.
MANY THANKS for this admission of your support for Nathan Fletcher. Contrary the adversarial tenor of our exchanges, I DO very much value your opinion, Alger.
Indeed, I very much value the opinion of your labor unions as well. No better guide is available to tell conservative, libertarian and most independent voters who NOT to vote for.
Why independent (“decline to state”) voters? Because apparently most seem to be fiscally conservative and socially liberal — kinda wuss libertarians.
Yeah, yeah, I realize you REALLY want Comrade Filner to win. But most important to liberals such as yourself is to make sure devil DeMaio does NOT win. Labor views that possibility as slightly worse than Armageddon.
Again, Alger, thanks so much for sharing your wisdom in this matter.
Richard,
I don’t think you needed me to tell you that most thinking people are scared to death that DeMaio might actually be elected Mayor. Everytime I mis-type his name, my computer autocorrects it to demagogue. Even my computer can see what you either cannot or will not.
Now THAT’s funny! “Most thinking people” are scared to death of DeMaio? Care to provide a source for that assertion? Your side claims a lock on “thinking people”??
Actually that smug elitist viewpoint is expressed often by liberals. And since they spend their time in the union halls, government offices and academic institutions agreeing over and over with each other, it’s understandable how such a mindset might develop.
Again, many thanks for your insights. You are the gift that keeps on giving.
Wow, Alger, that’s pretty amazing. I actually know all kinds of “thinking people” that support DeMaio, as well plenty of others that support others in the field of candidates. I guess you’ve come to the conclusion that if anyone supports DeMaio, then they can’t think for themselves. Would that go for all of the groups and individuals that support him? You said it, not me. How very pompous of you. Groupthink is alive and well, especially among non-thinking people who make blanket statements based on the other closed-minded non-thinkers with whom they talk.
Richard and Spin Zone,
You need to look up the meaning of “most.” Since DeMaio polls well below 50% and I think even you would agree that he would not be the second choice of many who are supporting one of the other candidates, I feel comfortable that my original comment was accurate.
Name one candidate that is polling over 50 percent.
So, through logic, we can deduce:
1) Most thinking people are scared to death that Dumanis might actually be elected Mayor,
2) Most thinking people are scared to death that Filner might actually be elected Mayor,
and
3) Most thinking people are scared to death that Fletcher might actually be elected Mayor.
There are a lot of scared thinking people in San Diego, it seems.
T.A.,
Ask those supporting Filner, Dumanis or Fletcher who they would support if their candidate wasn’t in the race. I don’t think DeMaio’s name will be mentioned very often. On the other hand, there are quite a few Democrats supporting Dumanis or Fletcher who would easily switch to Filner and I am sure you would concede that if Fletcher or Dumanis were to drop out, the other would receive the bulk of their supporters. I am even more certain, that very very few of Filner’s supporters would ever vote for DeMaio.
DeMaio has his hard core supporters as most demagogues do, but again I am very comfortable with my statement that MOST who are following this race are scared to death that DeMaio may actually be elected Mayor.
Alger, let’s go back to your original statement:
“most thinking people are scared to death that DeMaio might actually be elected Mayor.”
Your statement now:
“most who are following this race are scared to death that DeMaio may actually be elected Mayor.”
We can only guess that the change is based on your admission of how insulting it was to many “thinking people,” no matter how much you actually believe you have the ability to think while others do not.
Either way, a blanket statement unsupported by anything but your conjecture and analysis. Which is fine on Rostra, of course, we just like people to admit that’s the game they are playing.
The same use of your analysis above could lead a “thinking person” just as easily to conclude that “most followers of this race” are terrified of Filner being mayor, especially based on the DeMaio supporters that would likely never vote for Bob.
Actually, we believe that last part is in fact the case. Our conjecture and analysis. So there. We just don’t insult people as “non-thinking” when they disagree.
T.A.,
Although I still believe my original wording to be accurate, I did make a conscious change because it was obvious that my choice of words were offensive, at least to some, and offending wasn’t my intent.
As for most being terrified of Filner being Mayor, that would probably be an accurate statement as well. And still, unless Dumanis or Fletcher drops out of the race, we might very well have a Filner-DeMaio run-off.
Back to my intent: To question why the contributors to and the readers of this blog cannot see past DeMaio’s blatant demagoguery. I understand that his perceived ideology is agreeable to many here, but please take a look behind the curtain. My, and many’s, fear of Filner is his unabashed liberalism untempered by the real world; the fear of DeMaio is something much worse.
Actually, I suspect a poll would show that “most thinking people” are “scared to death” that FILNER will be elected Mayor of San Diego. But personally I’m not all that worried about Filner (though I don’t consider myself overly dumb).
Filner has made his living running in gerrymandered districts. He hasn’t faced a diverse electorate in many years. Even with the 2012 “Obama effect” and millions in labor union money backing his play, Filner won’t be able to carry San Diego in the runoff. Not even close.
Ask Donna — who won the 2005 mayoral primary only to be crushed in the general election.