DCCC Madness
By Samson Wong

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOT MEETING: Something was amiss at the S.F. Democratic Central County Committee’s April 26 meeting to elect the chair, either Alex Wong or Jane Morrison. County committee member Connie O’Connor, her fellow county committee members and spectators were prohibited from entering the state building at 455 Golden Gate. And O’Connor had to resort to using her sheriff department’s badge to look for a building manager and get past the building’s security.

Why the confusion? The party’s former executive director, Scott Morris, had failed to send out notices to members—and failed to reserve a room for the meeting.

Despite the gathering of 28 of the 31 members, no meeting could be held without proper advance notice. Current chair Natalie Berg adamantly refused to conduct a meeting because the committee had been sued in a similar situation two years ago.

“Perhaps things are not going on in the most open fashion,” said ‘reformer’ Jeff Sheehy suspiciously. (Sheehy, who has been waiting since March 7 to take office, has been a critic of Berg’s tenure as chair.) “I don’t recognize you as a chair,” he declared.

But Berg replied: “There is no intent to lengthen the period of time.”

Moreover, first vice chair Alex Wong noted that county committee seats occupied by local state and federal officials were only certified by the California Secretary of State that day, April 26. Further, party bylaws require a 10-day advance notice of any meeting, meaning that May 6 would be the earliest the party could gather.

As Sheehy walked out of the meeting, Henry Louie played a political Jekyll and Hyde.

“I have some concern to having you serve as chair in the interim…. It goes against the spirit of the bylaws,” said ‘reformer’ Louie, who led the applause for Berg’s tenure as chair, and then tried to appoint Connie O’Connor as interim chair.

But O’Connor declined and said: “I don’t know what’s going on,” adding that she had just learned about Louie’s offering five minutes before the meeting.

In response to the brouhaha, Berg retorted: “We’ve been running [the party] out of my office… using my staff … my stamp machine.” Berg further stated, putting her foot down, “I am still here, whether you like it or not.”

Now, was the meeting about a non-meeting, or was that a non-meeting about a meeting now rescheduled for May 12, Friday? After observing the antics on April 26, some ‘reforming’ members believe the party is transforming from a political machine to a Rube Goldberg device.

DEDICATION: You can always accuse Eric Mar of being a good daddy and politician.

“I have to take care of my baby on Monday nights. My wife will kill me,” said Eric Mar, a newly elected county committee member who objected to Monday night meetings. Now add the fact that Mar showed up at the county committee on April 26 despite being burned out of his home earlier in the month on the same day his wife, Sandra Chin-Mar, gave birth.

FRY BOTH SIDES: Your turn to fry me. E-mail me at samson@sfindependent.com or potsticker@prodigy.net. Phone at 415-826-1100, ext. 23.