Amuse Yourself with Embattled Calif. State Sen. Yee's Voter Guide Statement
His job is to prevent corruption, he says.
California State Sen. Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) cannonballed onto the national stage rather than making a simple splash, getting arrested by the FBI in a massive sting operation targeting organized crime in San Francisco. The progressive outwardly anti-gun politician stands accused of corruption and participation in a proposed gun-trafficking operation (read the details here).
We should presume innocence. It nevertheless puts the kibosh on his effort to run for secretary of state this fall and aim for higher offices. But apparently he had bigger fish to fry with his defense team, or it was too late to formally withdraw. His name, and more importantly, his candidate statement, still appears in the primary guide that was just mailed out to California voters. Read it. It gets pretty funny toward the end:
There are states passing laws today to make it harder to vote. California was once a place like that. But Californians moved our state from a place of exclusion to one of inclusion. I wrote the law that gave 911,145 more Californians access to our democracy by registering to vote online. It's your California. Itsyourcalifornia.org is our movement to register a million more Californians. The itsyourcalifornia.org app turns your smartphone into a voter registration site to empower your friends, classmates, and families. You can download the app by visiting itsyourcalifornia.org. By taking personal responsibility and doing our part, we are making California a better place. When Sarah Palin was paid to speak at California State University, I uncovered where the money came from and authored a law to stop government agencies from hiding how they spend your tax dollars. It's your California. I fought to end tuition discrimination against immigrant college students so these DREAMers can pursue the American Dream. It's your California. Together we won the struggle for marriage equality. It's your California. I'm proud of my 100% Planned Parenthood record; my pro-environment record; and my common sense law enforcement record. And we succeeded in finally raising the disgracefully low minimum wage. We have much more to do. Under the Constitution, the Secretary of State's job is to empower Californians to govern California, to guarantee fair elections, expose special interests, and prevent corruption. I am the Democrat who will represent everyone. I hope to be your Secretary of State.
Italics in the original. Also, there's no app to download on the site referenced. Perhaps they don't know the difference between an app and an online form. And attention all politicians: Repeating sentences may make for a nice cadence in speeches or television commercials, but it makes you look stupid in print. At least he didn't mention his gun control efforts.
