John Alden, Damon Connolly, Alex Easton-Brown, Jared Huffman, and Pam Torliatt at the 4/5 DFA Candidates Forum — Photo By Denise Castellucci

The first question had to do with what kind of democratic party and state each candidate wanted. John Alden started off talking about how too many democrats want to be like republicans and how he wanted to bring the party back to progressive values. His goals were single payer health care, the environment, and building coalitions.

Damon Connolly wanted to change priorities and focus on tough issues. He has  experience and background with going up against enron and other big interests. Education is “a personal issue and his biggest priority as is securing our energy future.

Alex Easton-Brown began saying that,”democracy is messy” while holding up a sign with Bush’s picture with the word “Evil” on it. He also brought up that he wasn’t invited to this event and found out about it by accident.

Easton-Brown had grumbled about this before the forum started with the organizers stating that he “had to fight to be here. The organizer pointed out that it wasn’t that he wasn’t invited, but they didn’t even know he existed as a candidate. Easton-Brown replied that they should “read the paper”. [We read the paper and heard from other sources that Easton-Brown had just made the ballot.]

Easton-Brown used this first question to mention his interest in narrowing the gap between the rich and poor and recognition that each era is inclined to be racist.

Jared Huffman was next and said that nobody was going to fight harder for the environment and against climate change. This district and state can act ahead of the federal government on these issues. He mentions his endorsement from the Sierra Club as well as other environmental groups.

Pam Torliatt at the 4/5 DFA Candidates Forum in San Rafael — photo by Denise Castellucci

All of the candidates supported the reform of the Three-Strikes Law. Alex Easton-Brown used the question to bring up a common theme that money is poison to the political system. In this particular case, the Prison Industrial Complex has lots to do with the law. He stated that this “racist driven system is often too efficient”. Easton-Brown added that he was against the death penalty. Like other candidates, Easton-Brown, expressed concern about the rising problem of meth addiction. Easton-Brown later would state that he would shift war on drug resources away from marijuana to meth.

The next issue was affordable housing, a tricky topic in the old sixth district. The question was to Easton-Brown and asked, “Where is the teeth for affordable housing.  He bluntly replied that as long as there is demand, prices will always be high and he couldn’t see the teeth.

Huffman stated that we need to be honest about what qualifies as affordable. He asked whether $300k really affordable? Also, he thought that there was a stigma about renting in favor of ownership. Not everyone can be an owner, and that should be okay. Huffman thinks that the state can do more in enforcement of affordable housing requirements.

Pam Torliatt declared herself the only candidate that has actually worked on obtaining set asides for affordable housing to 7.5% of the housing stock.

John Alden discussed his involvement with San Rafael Planning Projects. He emphasized the need for inclusionary mixed instead of ghettoizing affordable units.

Damon Connolly favors affordable housing trust funds and mandatory zoning for workforce housing. He pointed out how difficult it is for teachers, police officers, and firefighters to afford living where they work. He also mentioned infil housing and the importance of protecting open spaces.

Money As Spoilt Milk

The moderator shifted the topic to the growing number of red counties in the interior of California and how these candidates from safe districts plan to help win back those imperiled counties. Candidates took this opportunity to talk about election reform. Many supported a “clean money” system. Loni Hancock’s California Clean Money and Fair Elections Act of 2006 (AB583) was cited a lot.

John Alden at the 4/5 DFA Candidates Forum in San Rafael

Alden pointed out that his campaign doesn’t take corporate contributions and believes that we need to decrease the influence of corporations. Apparently, California lags even Texas in this regard. Connolly pointed out that he has the most individual contributors at 700 (and 60 house-parties), and has focused on grassroots action.

Easton-Brown used to be for public funding, but questions that when there is an “advertising industrial complex” that “contructs webs of deceit and fuels the out of control spending. “

The forum then turned to our state’s deficit.

Torliatt wants to focus on increasing economic activity, increase the split roll system, and promote single payer health plan.

Alden thinks that the plan comes in several parts and will take as long as it took to get into this mess. The problem for him is that the democratic leadership over the years have not stood up to republicans and allowed tax cuts. Corporations have been allowed to exploit Prop 13. Since 1990 taxes have gone up 1% for residents, and down 5% for corporations. Alden favors long term investment in people.

Connolly believes it is the wrong priority to keep building prisons. He believes the key to keep the economy strong is take the lead in renewable energy technology. Connolly also thinks corporations are not paying enough.

Easton-Brown remembers growing up in a state with the best schools and the best of everything. Back in the day corporations were paying 40% marginal and the wealthy 70% marginal rate. He wonders why people are so afraid to ask the wealthy to pay more. When you make only 23k every penny matters, but not so for someone who makes over 100k. Sales taxes are regressive and he favors the split roll.

Damon Connolly, Alex Easton-Brown, Jared Huffman, and Pam Torliatt at the 4/5 DFA Candidates Forum

Huffman wants fiscal responsibility to be seen as a liberal issue. He feels its necessary to insure stability in programs and build confidence among taxpayers. Huffman believes that there are cuts to be made in the corrections department. Huffman cites his 11.5 year record with his work having to install hiring freezes and balancing budgets. He also believes in a split roll system, wants to look at subsidies, and favors a polluters pay program. Huffman made it a point to say to the audience, “Read my lips: we must raise taxes.  He thinks that the 2/3 vote for tax increases is too much.

When it came to suggesting state and local election reform, the candidates all doubted the security and trustworthiness of electronic voting systems like Diebold.

Alden thinks that in close races challengers shouldnt be made to bare the cost of a recount. He claims that even here absentee votes cast and the number of people who voted are off about 25-30%.

Connolly thinks that clean money, opposing term limits, redistricting (but not Prop 77), and voting system with a paper trial is the answer to election reform.

Easton-Brown suggested compulsary voting, a 6 week campaign season like Austrailia, and a parlimentary or 1 house system. He related how he asked each state house to give him the total number of committees in each legislative body. The assembly was able to give him a number of 27 committees, but no one from the Senate could tell him. Easton-Brown said that the assembly was really the house of the people, but the Senate has “their heads somewhere else.

Huffman believes absentee ballot sorting should be free and proposes a legislative horse trade with republicans” relief from term limits for concessions on redistricting. He also thinks that when a candidate “flip-flops” on campaign limits the voter guide should reflect that flip-flop. Richard Halstead of the Marin IJ has pointed out that it was “a shot at Murray for changing her mind about complying with a $446,000 voluntary campaign spending limit” Because Murray may now exceed the spending cap, state law precludes her from having a 250-word statement on the June sample ballot.

In addition, those who opt out of financing should be taxed and those taxes should go to financing elections.

Torliatt was talked about how she had read how easy it would be to rig an election by electronic voting and saw the need for paper trials.

Three Wishes, err…Three Bills

The moderator gave them some time to think of the first three bills they would pass and chose one to talk about how they would pass the legislation through the legislature.

Connolly went first and made education legislation first priority. He would first request to get on the education committee.  His bill would make recruiting the best teachers a priority, since we will be losing 1/3 of our experienced teachers to retirement. The proposal would be that if you are a student at a UC or State school, have a certain GPA, and are willing to commit to at least 5 years to teaching, their student loans will be forgiven.

Connolly would make his other two pieces of legislation about energy and transportation. His plan for energy would create a pool of 4 billion over a 10 year period to reduce oil consumption 25%. He would also impose a windfall tax on the profits of oil producers working in California. Currently, our state is the only oil producing state that doesn’t impose such a tax.

Easton-Brown would look at usary and how check cashing and credit card exploitation could be curbed. He is also interested in realigning the tax code and creating a cell phone users bill of rights. Easton-Brown cited his own struggles with cell phone companies as a consumer.

Huffman didn’t want to be limited to three pieces of legislation. His first priority would be to “lead, follow, or get out of the way” in getting a single-payer health care system passed. Huffman’s other legislative priorities would  address climate change, mercury pollution from abandoned mines in the Sierra, ground water regulation, smart growth, and state bio-monitoring.

Pam Torliatt would make curbing urban sprawl her first priority through urban growth boundaries and smart growth. She would also pass legislation to consolidate transit agencies to improve efficiency. Ultimately, should would want to see SMART oversee transit systems of Sonoma, Marin, and Golden Gate transit. Another issue on her legislative agenda would be greenhouse reduction calculating the impact of greenhouse emissions for every project.

John Alden’s legislative priorities have the goal of showing a true progressive front. Like Huffman, a single payer system would be number one on his agenda. Alden attempted to answer how he would pass the single payer system by explaining that he would build coalitions of groups who traditionally would oppose it. For instance, he could show doctors that if you elimate insurance companies they can save on administrative costs of dealing with multiple insurance companies. He would show small businesses that a system would level the playing field. Then, he would move to enacting a split roll system to fund education and support smart planning.

At this point, Huffman was excused to go to a Water Board Meeting at 8:15pm. Then the question turned to each candidate’s top three financial supporters. Easton-Brown was not accepting contributions and will only be spending several hundred dollars. He railed against the “visual pollution of lawnsigns.”

The politicians who were left did have contributors, but took pains to list them as good friends, family, and people they have worked for.

On Leadership & Challenges

The candidates were asked to provide an example of leadership and a challange they have faced. Torliatt cited her experience in 1999 on the Sonoma City Council and trying to get public finance reform through in the face of new pro-development council members taking over. When the pro-development members overturned her public finance reforms, she pushed through an initiative to get it back.

Alden related how he flipped democrats in the California legislature about the Three-Strikes Law. At the time, democrats were afraid of this issue. Alden had to buck pressure from the democratic leadership and built coalitions to turn it around. As a chair of the Marin democrats, he has been able to raise 8 times the money and is getting out the voters.

Connolly recounted his experience as part of the California Attorney General investigative team against Enron. He and his team had to coordinate with the feds and other agencies in a case that dealt with millions of documents. The investigation led them to Portland where Enron’s West Coast Trading offices were located and where they found many damning hand written notes. This investigation took perseverance. Another example of perseverance was  Connolly’s second vote he cast while on the school board to decide whether to try for another parcel tax after one had lost. He was able to work and get that second parcel tax passed.

Even though he was a democratic nominee for office in 1972, Easton-Brown stated that he has never been in public office. He is a singer for a local group,”The Music Farmers” and raised his son while his wife worked as a teacher in San Quentin. For more than 30 years, he has been building his house and fighting the county of Marin. Easton-Brown considers himself a political outsider and working-class guy.

When the question of immigration came up the candidates considered it much more of a federal issue, but offered their opinion of the current uproar over immigration.

John Alden said that his family is made of people who came here hundreds of years ago and those who came as recent immigrants and were initially undocumented. Both sides were rational people who want jobs to take care of their families. Alden wants the laws to keep those who are real criminals out, but give a break to those who merely want to work.

Connolly called for comprehensive immigration reform. If an immigrant is working and paying taxes, he or she should be able to obtain legal status. The state needs to make sure large employers who hire undocumented workers comply with wage and hourly regulations.

Easton-Brown declared that there is no immigration problem, only politicians “saddling up with the Klan.”

As a people we need to be realistic, Torliatt said, a huge part of our economy depends on undocumented workers. She hates the politics on this issue, and wishes that they take the color out it.

Every candidate, when asked about gay marriage, fully supported marriage equity. Alden added that he had helped Carol Migden pass legislation in regards to equal treatment for property/death tax statutes for gays and lesbians. Torliatt had voted for domestic partnership benefits while on the city council in 1999 which led to a city registry. While those developments occured the council did receive death threats against them.

When it came to the issue of casinos, everyone supported a moratorium. John Alden related a story of how he worked for the Assembly leader during the original authorization of casinos in California. When Alden remembered how politicians from both sides of the aisle got emotional about how badly native americans were treated, you could see Alden getting visually moved.

The last question of the evening was about SMART. Both Torliatt and Alden strongly supported SMART as an investment in the future. Alden pointed out that 50% of the traffic on 101 today is local traffic going up and down the corridor” much of that people who work at the civic center. Connolly supported SMART, but acknowledged that there were some sound issues involved and some of the numbers didn’t add up. He saw SMART as part of the overall solution. Connolly suggested that the shuttle system found in South Marin should be expanded.

Easton-Brown referred to SMART as a “money train that won’t pass the cost/benefit test and relies on regressive taxes on the poor who won’t be able to afford to take it.” He went on to say that you cannot drop a train on what is sprawl and expect it to be a magnet. Easton-Brown suspects that this is merely guaranteed employment for consultants. SMART will be a “wine train without the wine.”

This forum had some really great moments, especially with the inclusion of Alex Easton-Brown and his visual aids. It was enjoyable to throw in an anti-establishment candidate with some vanilla progressives. It was difficult not to call Easton-Brown the “bomb-throwing ewok” candidate. He proved an essential axiom of politics: that the less likely a candidate will be elected is directly relational to how crazy/truthful that candidate is. Nothing says “bomb-throwing ewok” more than having a website called disciplinetherich.com.

Just so you know, we love this guy. Who knew that you can have so much fun over at San Rafael City Hall? A last minute addition to the State Assembly race, Alex Easton-Brown provided some much needed political theater. Alex is going to make covering this race fun.