Get the party started

A month ago, I wrote about the lack of dynamic political debate in

Newport-Mesa because, for all intents and purposes, it’s a one-party

town (yes, towns, of course, but that fails to make a fulfilling

image).

We’re seeing effects of that single-party perspective on two

political fronts, one that may end within days, one that promises to

stick around for a year.

In Costa Mesa City Hall, no matter how much they will admit it,

Republicans have to be trumpeting their good luck that Democrat Karen

Robinson has moved on, leaving her seat empty.

A number of residents are wishing there was a mute in their trunk,

though, because city races are supposed to be “nonpartisan.”

In reality, as anyone who has received City Council campaign

literature knows, they aren’t. Political affiliation (along with

support from fire and police departments) is a mainstay in fliers and

mailers.

It also was obviously a serious requirement -- in political lingo,

a “litmus test” -- for anyone hoping to replace Robinson. It seems

experienced Democrats -- former Mayor Linda Dixon and Planning

Commissioner Katrina Foley -- need not have bothered applying.

Like them or not, anyone should be able to see that cutting down

on the pool of talent for reasons wholly unrelated to city issues

would hurt Costa Mesa. It was an automatic reduction in the diversity

of the candidates and their ideas (maybe with 26 hopefuls, that was

OK, when I think twice about it).

It meant that possible unusual pairings were immediately doomed.

For instance, I think most people would have been surprised by the

work that would have been done by a council that included Gary

Monahan and Foley (perhaps themselves included).

Now, the city may end up with a Councilman Eric Bever or a

Councilman Mike Scheafer, unless the deadlock from two weeks ago

proves unbreakable.

Not everyone agrees that the litmus test was simply to weed the

donkeys from the elephants.

Councilman Chris Steel contends he’s looking for someone

“conservative,” not necessarily Republican. Of course, this comes

from a man who claims as great-grandfathers John Steel and Chris

Magee, who Steel said were original founders and delegates of the

U.S. Republican Party in 1856.

Still, to play fair, Steel also once told the Pilot: “I’ve always

been a Republican. In my family, I’d better be. But I’m conservative

before I’m a Republican. I’m conservative across the board.”

Anyone remember when Bill Clinton ran as a conservative Democrat

-- in the sense of being middle-of-the-road? It’s kind of hard to

imagine Steel supporting someone in that vein.

Of course, today it might be hard to imagine Corona del Mar

Republican Cristi Cristich supporting Clinton. But, as has been

played almost ad nauseum already in the GOP primary race for the 70th

Assembly District (a race to be decided 11 months from now), Cristich

did back Clinton against former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, a

move that’s become the first great issue in the primary.

Cristich, not surprisingly, is trying to distance herself from

this party swapping, and one of her opponents, Chuck DeVore, is doing

everything possible to remind people of her unfaithfulness.

Setting aside the argument that there must be more pressing,

current issues to debate (the state’s budget, reduction in college

classes), the question is whether this unfaithfulness is

unforgivable.

One side sees Cristich’s vocal and public support of a Democrat

through the lens of the “character issue.” From this point of view,

her Clinton-backing (rather than the more familiar Newport-Mesa

Clinton-bashing) shows a lack of loyalty, trustworthiness and

commitment. It will be hard to convince them that her actions don’t

deserve a divorce.

The other sees Cristich holding firm to moderate social values and

the pro-business policies Clinton held. There is a consistency there

that argues against the idea that she “flip-flopped.”

Is there a meeting ground in the middle? Time might tell, but

right now the only thing that seems certain is that voters will have

ample time to decide which side they are on.

* S.J. CAHN is the managing editor. He can be reached at (949)

574-4233 or by e-mail at [email protected].