Should SF Mayor Gavin Newsom be recalled?

[Delano]

Sure mayor Newsom took a bold step in issuing marriage certificates to gay couples, but that only benefits a tiny portion of the populace. On other issues, he seems more and more republican every day.

First merciless budget cuts, pandering to the rich and big business, trying to attract more big business to the city, to the point of relaxing all kinds of regulations. Now he's trying to attract the biotech industry that insists on producing experimental frankenfoods to test on humans without their knowledge (unlabeled GM foods)


http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=c/a/2004/06/08/PROTEST08.TMP&type=universal

Today the frankenfood thugs bullied more Americans trying to raise awareness...

Should he be recalled?

[bhunt70]

1. wow, think you could skew the options a bit more?

[Paragon]

2. "Frankenfoods"? Please. And your poll is a push poll.

:eyes:

[Delano]

3. Almost all polls are push polls.

There is an "other" button. Feel free to elaborate.

[bhunt70]

4. well you have one vanilla "yes" answer and two detrimental "no" answers

I mean couldn't you have tried some neutral language?

[Delano]

5. There. Is that neutral enough for you?

EOM

[bhunt70]

10. well I didn't vote, but I still think this poll is busted.

[Shakespeare]

13. No, because it's STILL NOT NEUTRAL

"Neutral" would mean including a "no" option that leaves off your opinion.

Newsom is proving himself to be an outstanding mayor. I don't expect every politician to do things I agree with 100% of the time--to expect that is incredibly naive and unfair.

How breathtakingly arrogant to suggest that he be recalled because you disagree with him on the biotech conference. Biotech issues are complicated--some good, some bad--and for either side to treat it as an all-or-nothing prospect is absurd.

[Delano]

15. The answer is valid.

He IS proposing gutting regulations to attract business.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/06/08/BAGMG72FS91.DTL

"You need parking requirement changes, we'll take care of it. You need tax incentives? You got it. We're going to target this industry,'' Newsom said.

"Whatever you need,'' he added, "I'm here to tell you, 'We are open for business in the city and county of San Francisco.' ... Whatever it takes to bring San Francisco back to the forefront of this incredible industry, I'm here to deliver.''

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

19. OH my GOD!

Changing parking requirements! Where will it end?

[Shakespeare]

21. No, it isn't, because your term "gutting regulations" is subjective.

Sorry, try again.

[davidinalameda]

6. don't know about you but I like living in a city with jobs

and look around, we need them

[Delano]

7. SF has some of the best quality of life in the US

Allowing companies to foul the air and water, disrupt parking and traffic will be a detriment to that. Much off SF's regulation has been a model for the rest of the country, and has been hard-won.

I'm all for attracting business, if it means a temporary tax incentive or whatever, but this is SF, not Peoria. It is a world-class city - we don't need to give them everything lock, stock & barrel.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

17. SF has some of the best quality of life in the US

Yup, because it's so goddamn expensive to live here. Marin has a pretty high standard of living, too. Higher than, say, Oakland.

>It is a world-class city - we don't need to give them everything
>lock, stock & barrel.

I dislike this attitude - you should kiss our ass for the privelege of doing business here. A lot of restaurant owners are closing up shop and opening up places in Piedmont or Burlingame to avoid this kind of nonsense, not just "polluting" industries. And I wonder exactly what kind of pollution you're talking about. SF already has essentially zero heavy manufacturing and port activity. It all ends up in Oakland, where it fouls *their* air and water. But I guess that's ok.

[Delano]

20. "Whatever you need...I'm here to deliver"

It's going to be a lot more than just parking regs.

[genius]

8. Did he or did he not contribute to Bush? I saw that in DU a while back

when he was running for mayor. But I haven't seen any corroboration.

[bhunt70]

11. no he didn't...it was a different person.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

27. Did he or did he not contribute to Bush?

Nope. Anywhere outside of San Francisco, this guy would be considered a radical leftist. We live in a nice happy fantasy world here. He's definitely no Bush supporter.

[dsc]

9. What part of democracy is so hard to understand?

Your side lost, and lost fair and square. Unless he either breaks promises he made or breaks a law he should serve until his term is up. I am sick of both the GOP and others wanting do overs in these elections.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

12. As a San Franciscan...

who voted against Newsom, I say no.

He was elected and he has not done a damn thing worth recalling him for.

End of story.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

14. From an SF resident...

>First merciless budget cuts

I have yet to hear anyone propose a reasonable fiscal policy for this city that doesn't involve large cuts or massive tax increases. Willie Brown hired hundreds upon hundreds of useless people into the city gov't for patronage purposes and made a mockery of the civil service organization in this city. The budget is horribly bloated and ineficcient. The SF budged has gone way up in the past 4 years, and I've yet to see any improvement in city services (outside of MUNI not being quite as broken as it was before) I'm sorry, but these people need to go.

>to attract more big business to the city, to the point of relaxing
>all kinds of regulations

Please cite some of the regulations that are being relaxed. And while I'm at it, let's talk about the minimum wage increase and its consequences. You do realize that this is putting small retailers and restaurants out of business, right? I know that statement is considered heresy by many progressives, but there's a point at which the minimum wage is too high, and SF has reached it. There's a large, independent, extremely popular video store in my neighborhood. This store now must charge the full price of the videotape rental for every day it's late in order to make up this money. Talking to the owners, business is down about 40% because of this, and they think they're going to have to lay off half their staff. I've seen prices go up at the restaurants in my neighborhood. Now I don't eat out as often. Not to mention that restaurants and hotels are already struggling with sagging tourism. This was *not* the time to make this change. You rail against "business" while ingoring the fact that business is where our jobs come from. Business is down. Way down. Not just big business. Small business is hurting here. Gonzales would have won easily if he hadn't gone out of his way to make so many enemies in the small business community.

>Now he's trying to attract the biotech industry

The biotech industry is already here. That's why the conference is here - because so many biotech companies are on the northern peninsula.

>Today the frankenfood thugs bullied more Americans trying to raise
>awareness...

Please. They were blocking traffic, and they got arrested. There was no violence. They were there to make a point, and their point was made. Look, I know some of these people. They're my friends. And none of them have been complaining about the police this week. If anything, they've said that they've been much more restrained than usual.

>Should he be recalled?

Why? He's doing exactly what he said he was going to do. He *won* the election. He is extremely popular right now, and it's doubtful that any recall could even get on the ballot. If it did, he'd win. Look, you guys had your chance with Gonzales. Hell, I voted for him. However, Newsom hasn't done anything recall-worthy. I don't agree with some of what he's done, but this is just ridiculous. You lost the election fair and square. Deal with it.

[confusionisnext]

28. Well said

furthermore Newsom is proposing in his budget to tax business more: how very Republican of him.

Having been trained a life science, I support bringing more biotech into SF. GM crops are only one aspect of the entire biotech industry.

[mandyky]

16. Other - the people of SF and CA should decide

I agree with what he did, but did he break laws doing it? Since I live in KY, San Fran is way out of my jurisdiction.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

18. No, he didn't break any laws.

There are just a lot of people around here who believe in the mob rule theory of democracy. At least when they're part of the mob.

[Delano]

22. Neither did Gray Davis.

But I was against that recall. And I wouldn't be in favor of a recall on Newsom, either. It's just a question. Personally, I favor the "protest" option.

[ibegurpard]

24. Davis shouldn't have been subject to a recall either

Perhaps Californians should look at tightening the regulations governing recalls.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

26. I am against recalls period.

We have the impeachment mechanism to deal with illegalities, and even that should be used sparingly. If politicans constantly face the threat of recall, they'll never do anything except things which won't piss off any minority significant enough to initiate a recall. And sometimes the majority is wrong, too. That's one of the foundations of this Republic, and what separates us from mob rule. Recalls undermine that.

[ibegurpard]

23. No

If he was elected legitimately and he isn't guilty of any crimes or corruption then he should serve out his term. Recall should only be for criminal wrongdoing. And I'm not a fan.

[KamaAina]

25. Absolutely not. In fact, he should be groomed to run

against der Gropenfuhrer. Not only does he have the media-friendly starpower (if not the steroid supply) to compete with Ahh-nuld, it'd get him out of the way and make room for a real progressive in City Hall at last.