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| Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg |
Mark Hedlund, the Communications Directir for California State Senate President Darrell Steinberg, issued the following statement regarding the measures which the senate leader has chosen to take regarding the revelations of three state senators indicted or convicted of felonies — all Democrats, despite the subtle black-out from the mainstream media which tends to shield the political affiliation of corrupted or indicted Democrats time and again.
With Hedlund's comments in bold, and the truth behind these statements to follow, the residents of California will find a state senator who is protecting his Democratic majority in Sacramento at all costs, even in the face of a rising tide of corruption, bribery, influence-peddling, and even gun-running.
While the allegations are sickening to the Pro Tem, he has not moved for expulsion because in the cases of Senators Calderon and Yee they have yet to go through the court process and they are presumed innocent until proven guilty. That premise is a foundation of our system of justice. Expulsion is an irreversible act.
Yet even when Roderick Wright was a convicted felon, Pro Tem Steinberg pressured Calderon to resign (not Wright), even though he had been indicted, not yet convicted. What gives? I called out the Senate President for this hypocrisy.
In the case of Senator Wright, while a jury has found him guilty of the charges, the judge has not yet affirmed a conviction. The laws regarding residence and domicile are murky at best, and the judge is still considering defense motions which include overturning the verdict. The judge is expected to rule by next month. If she overturns the verdict there is no conviction. Conversely, if the motions are denied and the judge affirms the verdict, at that time, Sen. Wright is a convicted felon and the Pro Tem has stated he will move to have him removed permanently from the Senate. That is different from the possibility Sen. Wright may appeal to an appellate court. Sen. Steinberg will not wait for that, so the resolution of Sen. Wright’s situation will be within the next several weeks.
This stonewalling is unconscionable. It's not about a judge, but a jury of twelve who convicted Wright, rendering a guilty verdict based on testimony and evidence beyond a reasonable doubt. Next several weeks, huh? What took so long for this announcement in the first place?
And for the record, this back-and-forth did not take place when Republican state senator
It’s important to note that even the LA District Attorney agrees that at this moment, Sen. Wright is not a convicted felon.
So what? A jury of twelve said "Guilty". On top of that, Wright tried to introduce legislation which would reduce non-violent felonies to misdemeanors, just after he was found guilty. Are you kidding me?
As you appear to understand from what’s written below, the State Constitution has no provision allowing the Senate to withhold pay if a Senator is disciplined short of expulsion. Our legislative attorneys have opined that the Senate does NOT have that power. You appear to think it doesn’t matter, that the Senate should move forward anyway and knowingly take action that is illegal under our Constitution. It would be politically expedient to do so and may be a popular decision, but the Pro Tem will not purposely and deliberately take such illegal action.
I am aware that Steinberg has introduce a constitutional amendment which would permit a suspension without pay. In the mean time, expulsion is the proper means, political expediency or not.
The three affected senators will not return to the Senate unless and until they are exonerated. The Pro Tem has strongly called for resignations but they have not. Frankly, it would’ve been politically expedient to expel Senators Calderon and Wright earlier because a special election would have filled those seats before the end of our legislative session with the strong prospect the Senate would then regain a two-thirds majority. But again, Senator Steinberg is trying to balance the rights of the accused with what’s best for the house. The decisions are difficult and not necessarily popular, which shows why being a leader means you have to act with a high level of integrity and take the criticism that comes along with it. As he has done throughout his career, Sen. Steinberg is willing to put what he believes is right above what is popular.
Expedient. Expedient. Expedient.
Whether a special election would or would not fill those seats is not an issue — and besides, such blanket confidence is not warranted, considering that Republicans have scored two victories and two close losses in heavily Democratic seats over the past year.
If the Pro Tem is so concerned about perceptions, he would have moved to expel, which would have been a final move, certainly, and would have granted those local constituencies the opportunity to elect another representative with more integrity and a less checkered resume.
Fine, the three state senators will not return to the legislature until they are found guilty, etc. They are still collecting a pay check, while millions of law-abiding (and in too many tragic cases, unemployed) Californians are struggling from day to day. I have read comments and heard from individuals directly that they want to leave this state. Why? They are tired of the tax-and-spend, regulate-frustrate legislature which caters to unions and not the Union, which spends money that the state does not have, while pushing for carbon taxes, plastic bag bans, and other outrageous legislative addendum which make it harder to start a business, find a job, and prosper.
With so many natural resources waiting to be used, why does the Democratic supermajority insist on pursuing such inimical and unnatural policies? Transgendered bathrooms on public schools, yet the state senate killed a bill which would expand school choice to all California students. Drivers licenses for illegal immigrants, yet at one time State Senator Ted Lieu attempted to triple California driver's registration fee. A local control funding formula which gives poor-performing schools more money, but leaves out the high-performing schools, as if academic excellence does not deserve to be recognized.
I have spoken with school board members who are convinced that the state legislature will pull another financial trick and hold up funding again.
But I have to return to this comment:
The decisions are difficult and not necessarily popular, which shows why being a leader means you have to act with a high level of integrity and take the criticism that comes along with it. As he has done throughout his career, Sen. Steinberg is willing to put what he believes is right above what is popular.
No, Mr. Hedlund, these decisions are not difficult, if the legislators in Sacramento spent more time listening to the voters and even the Editorial Board of newspapers throughout the state of California. Bear in mind that I have been a vocal critic of the liberal-progressive bent of the Editorial writers in many California papers, but their demand for a quick removal of these corrupted and indicted state senators was a proper judgment.
I join with a growing number of California residents and United States citizens, both born and naturalized:
and