Politics

Younger Calif. Democrats Will Jockey to Replace Boxer

Published

9 years ago

January 9, 2015

In this July 13, 1995 file photo, Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif. speaks to reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington to discuss President Clintons decision to approve the Defense base Closure and Realignment Commission base closure recommendations. Boxer, one of the chamber’s most tenacious liberals, announced Thursday she will not seek re-election in 2016 to a fifth term. (AP Photo/Joe Marquette, File)

KEVIN FREKING, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Barbara Boxer’s decision not to seek re-election to a fifth term provides a rare opening for ambitious California Democrats who have been waiting patiently to move up the political ranks.

Boxer, 74, and her Senate colleague, Dianne Feinstein, 81, won election to the Senate in 1992 and have pretty much had a lock on their jobs for as long as they have wanted to keep them. Another venerable Democrat is Gov. Jerry Brown, 76, who was just sworn in for a record fourth term, including two in the 1970s and 1980s.

“The number of Democratic rock stars that have been sitting on the bench is becoming longer and longer,” said Michael Trujillo, a Democratic strategist based in Los Angeles. “Now, I think a lot of these folks are ready to bring their brand to a larger stage.”

Among the Democrats who might try to succeed Boxer: Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a former San Francisco mayor; state Attorney General Kamala Harris; former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa; and Tom Steyer, a retired San Francisco hedge fund billionaire who sought to make climate change an issue in the midterm elections.

While lauding Boxer in prepared statements, none of the potential candidates indicated a possible Senate run.

Democratic Reps. Loretta Sanchez and Adam Schiff are also considered names to watch.

Boxer made it clear she felt no pressure to make room for a new generation of Democrats.

“I don’t think it’s fair to say because you reached a certain age, it’s time to retire,” she said during a telephone call with reporters.

Still, she said she wanted to announce her decision early enough in the election cycle to give potential successors plenty of time to organize.

“I don’t know if one person will come forward or 15 will come forward,” Boxer said.

Boxer has been a staunch supporter of abortion rights, gun control and environmental protections. She has said she is most proud of the vote that she cast against the war in Iraq, but also told reporters Thursday that she wished she had done more to galvanize opposition.

“It just weighs on me,” she said.

Political observers say Boxer’s work to protect the environment is one of her legacies. Boxer authored legislation that has designated more than 1 million acres of land in California as wilderness, a classification that generally does not allow for motor vehicles, new roads and mining. She also led efforts to prevent oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.

However, she has failed to help pass meaningful legislation to curb global warming, a longtime goal that became even more distant when Republicans won control of the Senate and Boxer lost her prized role as chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.

Boxer was elected to the House in 1982 and to the Senate one decade later. That was an election that marked a watershed year for women in politics, with four winning U.S. Senate seats.

Boxer would have been a prohibitive favorite to win re-election in a state where only 28 percent of the registered voters are Republicans. In California’s open primary system, the top two vote-getters advance to the general election regardless of party.

Republicans view the retirement as positive for the 2016 elections in part because it could mean that Democrats will have to spend money to retain the seat, which they probably would not have done if Boxer were in the race. Still, it would be a huge upset if a Republican were to win.

“A California Republican starts every statewide race 15 points behind and is competing against arguably the most effective state political party in the country,” said Republican strategist Aaron McLear.

Elections in California are hugely expensive and could require Republicans to side with a candidate able to fund his or her own campaign, such as Rep. Darrell Issa or business executive Carly Fiorina, who lost to Boxer in her last race and is weighing a run for president. An aide said Issa had no plans to run for the Senate.

One potential Republican candidate is Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin, who ran a competitive race for state controller last year. Her spokesman, Tim Clark, said the mayor had preliminary discussions about the possibility of running for Boxer’s seat and will revisit the issue now that she has announced her retirement. Swearengin cannot run again for Fresno mayor in 2016 because of term limits.

____

Associated Press writers Erica Werner and Donna Cassata in Washington and Fenit Nirappil in Sacramento contributed to this report.

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MAYOR BREED ANNOUNCES $53 MILLION FEDERAL GRANT FOR SAN FRANCISCO’S HOMELESS PROGRAMS

San Francisco, CA – Mayor London N. Breed today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded the city a $53.7 million grant to support efforts to renew and expand critical services and housing for people experiencing homelessness in San Francisco.

Published

5 days ago

April 20, 2024

Oakland Post

Mayor London Breed

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Wednesday, January 31, 2024

Contact: Mayor’s Office of Communications, mayorspressoffice@sfgov.org

***PRESS RELEASE***

MAYOR BREED ANNOUNCES $53 MILLION FEDERAL GRANT FOR SAN FRANCISCO’S HOMELESS PROGRAMS

HUD’s Continuum of Care grant will support the City’s range of critical services and programs, including permanent supportive housing, rapid re-housing, and improved access to housing for survivors of domestic violence

San Francisco, CA – Mayor London N. Breed today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded the city a $53.7 million grant to support efforts to renew and expand critical services and housing for people experiencing homelessness in San Francisco.

HUD’s Continuum of Care (CoC) program is designed to support local programs with the goal of ending homelessness for individuals, families, and Transitional Age Youth.

This funding supports the city’s ongoing efforts that have helped more than 15,000 people exit homelessness since 2018 through City programs including direct housing placements and relocation assistance. During that time San Francisco has also increased housing slots by 50%. San Francisco has the most permanent supportive housing of any county in the Bay Area, and the second most slots per capita than any city in the country.

“In San Francisco, we have worked aggressively to increase housing, shelter, and services for people experiencing homelessness, and we are building on these efforts every day,” said Mayor London Breed. “Every day our encampment outreach workers are going out to bring people indoors and our City workers are connecting people to housing and shelter. This support from the federal government is critical and will allow us to serve people in need and address encampments in our neighborhoods.”

The funding towards supporting the renewal projects in San Francisco include financial support for a mix of permanent supportive housing, rapid re-housing, and transitional housing projects. In addition, the CoC award will support Coordinated Entry projects to centralize the City’s various efforts to address homelessness. This includes $2.1 million in funding for the Coordinated Entry system to improve access to housing for youth and survivors of domestic violence.

“This is a good day for San Francisco,” said Shireen McSpadden, executive director of the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. “HUD’s Continuum of Care funding provides vital resources to a diversity of programs and projects that have helped people to stabilize in our community. This funding is a testament to our work and the work of our nonprofit partners.”

The 2024 Continuum of Care Renewal Awards Include:

$42.2 million for 29 renewal PSH projects that serve chronically homeless, veterans, and youth
$318,000 for one new PSH project, which will provide 98 affordable homes for low-income seniors in the Richmond District
$445,00 for one Transitional Housing (TH) project serving youth
$6.4 million dedicated to four Rapid Rehousing (RRH) projects that serve families, youth, and survivors of domestic violence
$750,00 for two Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) projects
$2.1 million for three Coordinated Entry projects that serve families, youth, chronically homeless, and survivors of domestic violence

In addition, the 2023 CoC Planning Grant, now increased to $1,500,000 from $1,250,000, was also approved. Planning grants are submitted non-competitively and may be used to carry out the duties of operating a CoC, such as system evaluation and planning, monitoring, project and system performance improvement, providing trainings, partner collaborations, and conducting the PIT Count.

“We are very appreciative of HUD’s support in fulfilling our funding request for these critically important projects for San Francisco that help so many people trying to exit homelessness,” said Del Seymour, co-chair of the Local Homeless Coordinating Board. “This funding will make a real difference to people seeking services and support in their journey out of homelessness.”

In comparison to last year’s competition, this represents a $770,000 increase in funding, due to a new PSH project that was funded, an increase in some unit type Fair Market Rents (FMRs) and the larger CoC Planning Grant. In a year where more projects had to compete nationally against other communities, this represents a significant increase.

Nationally, HUD awarded nearly $3.16 billion for over 7,000 local homeless housing and service programs including new projects and renewals across the United States.

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Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

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6 days ago

April 19, 2024

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Barbara Lee

Congresswoman Barbara Lee Issues Statement on Deaths of Humanitarian Aid Volunteers in Gaza 

On April 2, a day after an Israeli airstrike erroneously killed seven employees of World Central Kitchen (WCK), a humanitarian organization delivering aid in the Gaza Strip, a statement was release by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA-12). “This is a devastating and avoidable tragedy. My prayers go to the families and loved ones of the selfless members of the World Central Kitchen team whose lives were lost,” said Lee.

Published

1 week ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

Congresswoman Barbara Lee

By California Black Media

“This is a devastating and avoidable tragedy. My prayers go to the families and loved ones of the selfless members of the World Central Kitchen team whose lives were lost,” said Lee.

The same day, it was confirmed by the organization that the humanitarian aid volunteers were killed in a strike carried out by Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Prior to the incident, members of the team had been travelling in two armored vehicles marked with the WCF logo and they had been coordinating their movements with the IDF. The group had successfully delivered 10 tons of humanitarian food in a deconflicted zone when its convoy was struck.

“This is not only an attack against WCK. This is an attack on humanitarian organizations showing up in the direst situations where food is being used as a weapon of war. This is unforgivable,” said Erin Gore, chief executive officer of World Central Kitchen.

The seven victims included a U.S. citizen as well as others from Australia, Poland, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Palestine.

Lee has been a vocal advocate for a ceasefire in Gaza and has supported actions by President Joe Biden to airdrop humanitarian aid in the area.

“Far too many civilians have lost their lives as a result of Benjamin Netanyahu’s reprehensible military offensive. The U.S. must join with our allies and demand an immediate, permanent ceasefire – it’s long overdue,” Lee said.