SAN DIEGO — If the Trump-led Republican party should somehow implode, don’t worry, there still would be a contentious two-party system in the United States. Democrats, as is their habit, would immediately fall upon each other and quickly divide into two categories: moderates and “progressives.”
Yes, I put the word “progressive” in quotation marks, because there is nothing progressive about threatening or bullying office holders who might disagree with you. It’s downright regressive.
We saw the Democratic party’s schism on Thursday when the brand new San Diego City Council met to pick its new president. Over 200 callers in an organized presentation via Zoom hookup informed the 9-member Council who the “people” wanted to be the leader of the City Council. In their mind, that person clearly was City Councilwoman Monica Montgomery Steppe, the lone African-American on the council.
Some of the callers commendably complimented Montgomery Steppe, noting that she had lead the council in its steps toward establishing racial justice in the City of San Diego, and that she has made herself accessible not only to constituents in her own 4th Councilmanic District but to constituents in the other eight councilmanic districts as well.
But other callers utilized a different tactic — one that was both incredibly arrogant and self-defeating. They, in effect, told the City Council, which includes five new members, that if they didn’t vote to make Montgomery Steppe their leader, they would be 1) guilty of racism, and 2) deserving of defeat for reelection, or even recall from public office. Furthermore, they said, a vote against Montgomery Steppe, and in favor of Dr. Jennifer Campbell (the eventual winner) would be tantamount to an admission that they are in the pockets of the Police Officers Association and the Greater San Diego Chamber of Commerce.
Perhaps to demonstrate to the City Council how vituperative they could be, these callers not only praised Montgomery Steppe, but denigrated Dr. Campbell as being inaccessible to her Second District constituents and for favoring a ballot measure last month that was approved by city voters: the removal of a height limit in the Midway/ Sports Arena District in order to permit densification and urban renewal.
Some went so far as to label Campbell and the lone Republican on the Council, Chris Cate, as “corrupt,” while praising Montgomery Steppe and the fourth continuing member of the City Council Vivian Moreno as far more representative of the people of San Diego.
Now let’s try to look at this from thee standpoint of the new City Council members. Two of them–Joe LaCava and Sean Elo-Rivera–rallied to Montgomery Steppe’s cause, Elo-Rivera having been a longtime friend and associate of Montgomery Steppe. Three others–Stephen Whitburn, Marni von Wilpert, and Raul Campillo–supported Campbell, who was widely believed to be the choice of Mayor Todd Gloria. As Gloria did not take a public position, this has yet to be verified.
So, in trying to decide whom to support, the new council members were faced with a choice between someone their fellow Democratic mayor reportedly favored, and someone whom a coalition of community, racial justice, and environmental groups had decided would be the person most sympathetic to prioritizing their various causes.
Imagine yourself being just sworn in as a new council member, and being told that if you don’t vote the way a self-appointed group of “progressives” recommend, that you’ll be vilified, and even become subject to a recall. You’d have to wonder if Monica Montgomery Steppe were to be elected as Council President, whether she would embrace the same kind of bullying tactics we saw employed by her supporters. You’d wonder if you didn’t vote for this or that proposal of hers, would she strip you of a committee assignment? Would she encourage her supporters to publicly denounce you?
Those kinds of tactics certainly are no way to build trust.
Throughout the meeting, Dr. Jen. Campbell sat silently, absorbing the verbal punishment. Yet after she was elected, she issued a conciliatory statement, praising Montgomery Steppe and urging all the members of the City Council to vow to work together for the good of the City.
I can’t help but think that Montgomery Steppe’s supporters, in the long run, hurt her more than they helped her.
It’s a shame that “progressive” activists in the Democratic party don’t attempt to achieve consensus with the moderate members of their party. Minus their self-righteous “we know best” attitude, they would find that the moderates more often than not can be their allies on policy issues.
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Donald H. Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com
Wow, is this article misleading, slighted if not outright disengenuous?
Democrat Jen Campbell recieved only 14 public comments in support in a 2 agenda item city council meeting that spanned 11 hours. Only one Caller identified themselves as a District 2 resident that supported Campbell. Monica Montgomery Steppe received 268 calls of public support, some of which whom waited over 9 hours to from every district in the county, and from over 60 cvic groups including the ACLU and the Sierra glub. Her support was unprecedented in San DIego History
Democrat Campbell conspired with the Republican to obtain a nomination that she would not have received from any Democrat on the Council, in a quid quo pro exchange for his nomination to Council Chair. Jen Campbell constiutents, the majority of which are furious with her, for being completely MIA throuought the entire pandemic. Her office does not return emails and there hundreds of phonecalls to her staff that have never been replied to since she took office. And she was facing the very real threat of a recall when she was elected President of the City Council.
Very well stated. I do think that Campbell would help even moderate Democrats by being more transparent in general. It’s difficult to understand how she campaigned ardently against AirBnB type rentals then shifted her position. The difficulty with our city is there are 3 income boundaries: above the 8; below the 8 and below the 94. So as President of the City Council she has to balance these needs. While I adamantly disagree with the tactics used by Montgomery-Steppe supporters, I believe in their vision of a more equitable San Diego and erasing those income boundaries once and for all.