Who Owns Mark Tettemer?

I pointed out a while ago that when he was on the Council from 2004 to 2012 Tettemer took more than $30,000 from special interests, more than $10,000 of which came from developers. Any one who gave Tettemer $1 got what he asked for - zone changes, city contracts, and even appointments to City Commissions.

On the other hand, when the ordinary people (who didn't give him money) asked for something, Tettemer was prone to say “no”

• “No” to stopping the Sheriff from building a maximum security jail on the outskirts of the City.
• “No” to improving the County Animal Shelter, even after Grand Jury reports condemned it.
• “No” to a dog park. We could drive to Irvine where Tettemer worked.

Tettemer is once again loading special interest money into his campaign coffers. His state-mandated reports reveal that he took money from the SOCEC, a Political Action Committee controlled by developers. Now a flyer from the Republican Party is making the rounds, and there’s an interesting story here.

A few weeks ago Tettemer appeared before the Central Committee of the Republican Party of Orange County (RPOC) to ask for their endorsement. It’s not the policy of the RPOC to endorse against a sitting Republican incumbent, but Tettemer’s supporters argued that he was a Party man and would tow the line and do what the Party told him to do, regardless of whether or not it was in the better interests of his constituents. You see, for good or for bad, the RPOC is interested in the Party first.

It didn’t matter to the RPOC Chairman, Fred Whitaker, that City Council races are non-partisan . In fact, Whitaker urged the Committee to spend whatever it took to win City Council races, ignoring the fact that City Council races are non-partisan. Want more on Whitaker - Click Here

Tettemer’s flyer is paid for by former State Republican Party Chairman Shawn Steel (husband of OC County Supervisor Michelle Steel), and FWIW, Robinson and the Steels are good friends. The fact that the RPOC’s fingerprints have been removed from the flyer means that they are trying to hide the fact that they are once more trying to control what happens in Lake Forest.

Why not use the RPOC name itself? Perhaps because the RPOC endorsement isn’t what it used to be. They endorsed against Senator John Moorlach who won handily without their endorsement. They endorsed against Supervisor Lisa Bartlett, who won handily without their endorsement. They endorsed Francisco Barajas and he lost badly. They endorsed Andrew Hamilton and spent thousands trying to keep him in office. You know how that worked out. Trying to interfere in local politics may be one of the reasons that Republican registrations have sunk to a new low. Mayor Pro Tem Leah Basile was a lifelong Republican and changed to an Independent because of this, and she is one of many others.

Going back to Tettemer’s flyer, it’s reminiscent of the Robinson inspired flyer used against me in 2014. One side attacks me and the other side has a former Mayor praising my opponent. Only this time the attack on me is even less accurate. Tettemer ‘s flyer claims there is dysfunction on the Council and his evidence is a quote from a 2016 article in the OC Register, and the article is about the dysfunctionality caused by Robinson himself in his battle with Adam Nick. But the headline makes it look like it is 2018 and the article is about me.

The other quote to prove the Council is dysfunctional is a quote from an article authored by Tettemer’s supporters who do not have the courage to list their names, going instead by the alias of “Lake Forest Council Watch.”

That’s their evidence.

What’s the evidence against them? I covered it a week ago in an article “Candidate Forum – Being Dysfunctional”. Here’s a partial list of our accomplishments –

• Successfully kept a 400—bed homeless shelter from the outskirts of the City.
• Paid off all obligations (unfunded pension and bond) and made the City debt-free – the only debt free city in the U.S.
• Moved forward with the Civic Center project, keeping it on time and on budget, with an expected completion next Summer. (FWIW - "on time and on budget" is something you rarely hear)
• Entitled 3 new hotels in the City, bringing in an estimated $750,000 yearly
• Created a way for people to participate online in Council and all major meetings – the only city in the U.S. to be this far advanced
• Added classes in child safety
• Approved plans to upgrade 10 city parks - construction starting in early 2019
• Doubled our ribbon cuttings
• Produced a weekly video “Mayor’s Minute”
• Transitioned our community services sign-up to 100% online, resulting in 9% increase enrollments and cost savings for staff time.
• Established Mayor’s Councils for HOAs and Businesses, improving communication between important groups and the City.
• Increased our social media presence by 47%, exceeding all of our neighboring cities, and continuing to grow
• Completed 5 year Strategic Plan
• Started revision of General Plan – the first one in 25 years. Established a General Plan Advisory Committee.
• Created a Traffic and Parking Commission
• Created advisory committees on people with special needs and animal welfare.
• Created and implemented a short-term rental ordinance to protect neighborhoods. Already working well.
• Extended Shop and Dine week to month long
• Released Shop and Dine mobile app with thousands of users
• Creating (and soon to release) an “iCity” app that will improve communications between residents and the city.
• Created and launched the South OC Entrepreneur’s Academy
• Established an award for Volunteer Leadership
• Established an award for Excellence in Government
• Produced quarterly “State of the City” reports
• Mandated that City Manager and Council members who represent the City on various boards produce quarterly written reports.
• Revised the city's code of ethics
• Created “Pop Up City Hall” to bring the city to the community
• Re-dedicated Heroes Park to 4 fallen heroes who served the City.
• Rebuilt Village Pond Park and created a Veterans Memorial area
• We opened City Hall 5 days a week every week, instead of the previous practice of closing City Hall every other Friday.
• Helped bring two animal rescue group[s into the city (OC Pet Adoption Center and Reptile Rescue of OC)
• Transitioned the City to district elections, and avoided a major lawsuit that could have cost the City millions of dollars.
• Established a new code of ethics for Council members.
• Changed the way we appoint Commissioners in an attempt to decrease political decision-making.
• Prepared a detailed and comprehensive plan for dealing with the issue of homelessness, organized a multi-disciplinary committee, conducted a census, and hired a team to help with case management.
• Brought term limits to the ballot.

Does that sound dysfunctional? No Council in history has ever achieved so much.

Mark Tettemer is desperate to get back into power. The RPOC, the developers, and the special interests are desperate to have him in power so the balance on the Council can change. Right now we have two corrupt Politicians and three people who are independent and who take no money from special interests. That’s how we have been able to achieve so much.

This election is about the future or the past. We can move forward and achieve even greater heights, or we can slip back into corruption and backroom deals.