Life Without the Gang of 3 - Summing Up

We’ve been looking at what life might be like without the Gang of 3 on the City Council, a distinct possibility as the deadline for the recall supporters to submit 7,882 valid signature draws near and unofficial reports say that they will achieve their target. We’ve projected several possible changes –

• · Saving more money as true fiscal conservative policies are adopted.
• · Reducing corruption as special interest money is stopped from electing Council members who are beholden to outside interests.
• · Involving more people in government
• · Holding government more accountable
• · Improving our image
• · Keeping more of our money at home

These are all good things to achieve, and none of them could be achieved if the current Gang of 3 remains in power. They have consistently accepted corruption as a way of life, opposed saving money by eliminating the fat from the City’s budget, spent lavishly on themselves, refused to appoint anyone who wasn’t a campaign contributor or supporter, and refused to give preference to local businesses.

More than anything else, what has been lacking from the Gang of 3 who have a stranglehold on the Council is a sense of leadership. Think, for a minute, what has Dwight Robinson championed? Not what he promised (e.g., smaller classes) but what’s he done. I can’t think of anything.

Now Scott Voigts. What has Voigts championed? Or Hamilton?

The Gang of 3 like to take credit for the Sports Park, but that was set in motion long before any of them joined the Council.

They like to say they are pro-business, but they refuse to give local businesses any preferences, and they rarely show up at ribbon cuttings, grand openings, and seminars for businesses. Even worse, when they spend money on their campaigns they almost always spend their money in other cities, rather than in Lake Forest.

Now switch it up and think about Adam Nick. He’s championed transparency, the sunshine ordinance, and resident rights. He’s consistently looked for ways to save money and was the first to talk about the unfunded pension liabilities.

Or think about me. I’ve championed transparency, better life for people and their pets, services for seniors, increased involvement of residents, etc.

The Gang of 3 are basically “do nothing” Council members who mindlessly approve anything the City Manager puts in front of them. They have no real agenda except to keep power and gave benefits to the people who support their campaigns. The sooner they are gone the better the City will be.

YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

You can make a difference.

If it wasn't for the actions of Bob Holtzclaw, we would never have a dog park. He made that happen by finding out that Shea Baker planned to cancel the dog park, alerting me, and the rest is history.

If it wasn't for the actions of Leah Basile, this recall would never have happened. Now thousands of people are involved. She was disgusted with the behavior of the Gang of 3 and their disregard for the safety of our citizens, and took action.

You can make a difference.

In the next few days, you can collect signatures and add to the total. The more signatures that the recall people turn in, the bigger is the message you can send. If more people want them out than voted to put them on the Council in the first place, that’s a powerful message. It may be powerful enough to convince them to resign and spare the City the costs of the recall election.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Jim Gardner is on the City Council for Lake Forest. You can check him out on LinkedIn and/or Facebook and you can share your thoughts about the City at Lake Forest Town Square on Facebook. His comments are not meant to reflect official City Policy.

Dr. Gardner has office hours every Tuesday from 4 pm to 6 pm at the City Hall. In addition, he holds a Town Hall meeting every quarter. The next meeting will be on August 13 at 2 pm at the Foothill Ranch Public Library