I was a Hadley supporter in 2014. After all, he was my state assemblyman, and before that had served as President of the Beach Cities Republicans.
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I voted for him both times, even though we had not been talking for some time.
He had reached out to me shortly after I saw how the history of GOP politics had played out in the South Bay. Great candidates with long resumes would run for Congress and State Assembly, only to cancel each other because of massive primary fights and spending.
Hadley cleared the field in 2014 to ensure that he was the only Republican in the race.
He beat the Democratic incumbent Muratsuchi by 500 votes in the primary, then defeated him in the general election by 706 votes.
For the first time in 22 years, I had a Republican representing me in Sacramento in the State Assembly.
He voted the right way on many issues.
Only two votes crushed me so much, I doubted that I could support him in the general election:
1. Assisted Suicide.
2. Waiver for illegal aliens to purchase health insurance on Obamacare exchanges.
That second vote was so bad, I almost revoked my support for him. I was already to demand that his campaign give me my donation money back!
But I stood with him, since I would still prefer Hadley to Muratsuchi returning to power in Sacramento.
Then he announced his decision not to support Trump or Hillary Clinton in the general election.
At the time, I was convinced that this decision would not hurt him. Trump did very poorly in the 66th Assembly District. Some critics counter that his decision to dump the Donald turned off otherwise committed grassroots activists ready to assist his campaign.
The lack of widespread Republican support definitely hurt him.
He served one term as Assemblyman, not taking a vocal stance on controversial issues. He could have led a vocal fight against sanctuary cities as well as opposition to tax increases, but he said nothing. So many Republican intelligentsia in California are stuck in the identity politics trap, as if the color of one's skin is making or breaking candidates' chances.
Now he's running for Governor? The Los Angeles Times promoted his campaign because he would be the only candidate with legislative experience.
Now that Travis Allen has jumped into the fray, Hadley no longer has that distinction.
Also, Allen won his re-election bid. He has also fought against sanctuary cities, and has worked with conservative grassroots organizations to help the state of California.
John Cox has been vetting and making the case for his bid for Governor for the last six months. He has invested his own money while promoting the neighborhood legislature proposal for ensure more local control and proper representation for all Californians.
Why would another Republican jump into an open primary, which is all but assured to splinter the vote and ensure two Democrats in the Tome Two general election?
Why indeed?
For me, Hadley is the last person I would ever support for Governor.
But of course the media are propping up his bid, especially since his candidacy will guarantee two Democrats in the Top Two.
Check out the fawning press in the Daily Breeze for Hadley:
Manhattan Beach’s David Hadley announces 2018 run for governor
join the already growing 2018 race for governor.
That's a big problem for all of us. I don't want more Republicans. I want one Republican.
Hadley for governor website. He joins Republican businessman John Cox,
Assemblyman Travis Allen, Democratic Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, former Los Angeles
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and state Treasurer John Chiang in the run for what
will be the state’s top post being left open when Jerry Brown leaves office.
The Democratic Party candidates are going to spend multi-millions to turn their burning ambitions into reality. This is really scary, since their determination to flood the airwaves and ad-waves to overwhelm prospective voters could mean another Democratic wipe-out in 2018.
Thanks, David, for making it harder.
Assembly district two years ago but lost in a rematch last fall.
It was an upset–706 vote razor-thin majority, but he won. Why couldn't he carry the seat the second time? What a shame that there is no voter registration drives to shore up numbers, to give Republicans some kind of competitive edge.
the race to succeed Brown, telling the Daily Breeze at the time that he would
emphasize his moderate leanings.
Republican bid an uphill battle. Democrats enjoy a significant party
registration advantage — 3.7 million more than the GOP — in the state.
And there has been little effort to change these numbers. Is California a foregone conclusion? Should the taxpaying patriots hunker down for a political nuclear winter?
the adult in the room,” Hadley said in a March 16 Daily Breeze article. “I’m
going to bring independence. I’m going to bring a bipartisan spirit. I’m going
to bring a track record of having worked well across the aisle with both
parties.”
"Being the adult in the room" is a nice way of saying "I won't stand or fight for anything, and I will not doing anything extraordinary or controversial so that everyone will like me."
That is not leadership. That is not true adulthood. All that that little phrase means is condescension against men and women of substance and style who want to make a difference, even if means that the media will attack you personally and mercilessly!
president last year. In an editorial he wrote for the Daily Breeze, he
contended that both were unfit to hold the nation’s highest elective office.
A clear form of cowardice to many of his otherwise would-be supporters. Does he really think that anyone is going to turn out and vote for him in June 2018, or that he has a chance of making it to the general election in November?
What leadership did he show in the state assembly last year? Last term? Other than passing civil asset forfeiture reform and voting against all tax increases, he seemed dedicated to making as little show as possible as a legislator. He issued very few press releases. He made a lot of visits to local events and city council functions. He met and greeted as many people as he could. Constituent services do matter, no doubt.
“I’ve proven that my style and my views and my
willingness to engage with people, whether I agree with them or not, appeals to
Republicans, to Democrats, independents,” he told the Daily Breeze in March. “I
can truly be a uniting kind of political figure, not a polarizing type of type of leader.”
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Being a Republican in itself is polarizing. Being a Republican entering a crowded field of Republicans and Democrats is infuriating with a jungle primary facing us, and the growing certainty of two Democrats making it into the Top Two.