► Sacramento News & Review - 03/28/08 - Dawg bites 31 California public officials |
Sacramento News & Review March 28, 2008
Dawg bites 31 California public officials
Folsom-based judicial and political watchdog David “The Dawg” Palmer has struck again, yesterday filing 32 sworn ethic complaints with the Fair Political Practices Commission against various “public officials in regards to their failure to comply with campaign expense reporting rules/laws. In each instance the respondents failed to provide any explanation of any kind in regards to hundreds of payments to various credit card companies in an aggregate amount of $3 million.”
Three million ain’t chump change, folks. And lest you write off Palmer as some sort of gadfly, understand he’s already raised his leg over public officials in the states of Ohio and Texas to significant effect. They’re still trying to get the stink out. But that’s the thing about corruption. You can smell it, and no one has a stronger sense of that smell than The Dawg. “In some instances, the respondents failed to include dates for each and every credit card transaction,” Palmer notes in the complaint. “Moreover, some of them failed to disclose the vendor’s name like Visa, Discover, etc. In fact, they merely identified the vendor as Card Services, Bankcard Center, etc. “These serial violations cannot be viewed as mere happenstance or excusable neglect,” Palmer continues. “In fact, many of the respondent’s are attorneys and/or have been public officials for decades. Of course, ignorance of the law is not a viable defense although in many instances it is a stepping stone to higher office.” No reply from the 32 state and public officials yet, but hey, it’s early. They are numerous, so keep scrolling down: Statewide Officeholders/Candidates for Statewide Office GARAMENDI – Lt. Governor John Chiang – State Controller Betty Yee – Board of Equalization Judy Chu – Chair Board of Equalization Legislators Rep. John Benoit – Rancho Mirage/Palm Desert Rep. Mervyn Dymally – San Bernadino Sen. Abel Maldonado – Santa Cruz, Monterey/San Luis Obispo Rep. Rudy Bermudez – Whittier Sen. Sheila Kuehl – Beverly Hills, Santa Monica Rep. Roy Ashburn – Bakersfield Rep. Alex Padilla – Fremont, Union City Rep. Anna Caballero – San Benito Rep. Pedro Nava – Santa Barbara Rep. Joe Coto – San Jose Rep. Mary Hayashi – Hayward Rep. Kevin De Leon – LA Rep. Dave Cogdill – Fresno Rep. Jenny Oropeza – LA County Rep. Paul Koretz – Beverly Hills Rep. Bill Maze – San Bernardino Rep. Karen Bass – Culver City Rep. Alan Lowenthal – Long Beach Rep. Mike Davis – LA County Rep. Felipe Fuentes – LA Rep. Tony Mendoza – LA County Rep. Richard Alarcon – LA Rep. Hector De La Torre – Lynwood Rep. Julia Brownley – Woodland Hills Rep. Mike Feuer – LA |