Is Honesty the Best Policy?
January 28, 2008
TOO HONEST LELAND: State Senator Leland Yee’s honesty two weekends ago caught a lot of flack in the Chinatown community press for blowing the whistle on his former ally, former Supervisor Ed Jew, for illegally helping with permits for Quickly boba café. Most APA elected officials stayed neutral, were hushed, or allowed the now resigned supervisor the benefit of the doubt until the justice system ran its course. …
UPPING THE ANTE: The Chinese American Democratic Club — celebrating its 50th anniversary on March 29 at Empress of China — has wrangled a donation of wine from the family vineyards of June 2008 state Senate District 3 candidate Joe Alioto Veronese, who’s angling for a CADC endorsement. The golden anniversary fete will feature past presidents like former California Insurance Commissioner Harry Low, Superior Court Judge Lillian Sing, retired Cal professor Ling-Chi Wang and former College Board member Alan Wong. Of course, there’s the infamous — myself and Calvin Louie, whose club desperately changed the rules to allow him to be pres for the third consecutive year. Apparently no one wanted the thankless job of running the club founded by the late Rep. Phil Burton in 1958. …
MUTTERING MAYOR: Tieless Mayor Gavin Newsom muttered on Jan. 15 about first putting Doug Chan in as police commissioner a few years ago and now appointing him to Human Rights commissioner, after swearing in his appointees with Civil Service Commissioner Mary Jung (sworn in again privately with the mayor), Aging Commissioner Richard Ow, Film Commissioner Villy Wang, Library Commissioner Mel Lee, Health Commissioner Margine Sako, Immigrant Rights Commissioners Greg Chew and Alan Mok, and Small Business Commissioner Irene Yee Riley, inside City Hall. …
GLASS CEILING: Given the APA population, city commissions should be at least one-third APA. However, it’s tougher to appoint more APAs to top posts like Public Utilities (only one APA: Dennis Normandy), despite the opportunity with all of the mayor’s commissioners submitting their resignations at his request last year. Chan — an AsianWeek contributor — and many other APAs who are generally moderately to conservatively leaning are qualified for top-tier commissions. However, the mayor faces a left-leaning Board of Supervisors that can veto his selections. Newsom has a 7 to 4 disadvantage on the board and will probably have to wait until supervisor elections in November to be bolder in his picks. …
NAME GAME: Chan resigned as the mayor’s police commissioner in 2006 to run for supervisor. But Veronese, also a police commissioner, has not, even though he is running against Assemblyman Mark Leno and Carole Migden for her San Francisco and Marin state Senate seat. It helps if you’re an Alioto — Joe’s the son of Newsom appointee and former Supervisor Angela Alioto, cousin of Supervisor Michaela Alioto-Pier and grandson of late Mayor Joe Alioto. …
Reach Samson Wong at (415) 321-5886 or swong@asianweek.com.
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