COSTA MESA — Appointed City Councilman Steve Mensinger has a problem with people who don’t live in Costa Mesa voicing their opinions about the plans he and his buddies on the Costa Mesa Junta (Council) have to outsource city services to the lowest bidder. Mensinger, has this wild notion that the unions representing city employees are not interested parties since they (I guess he means all employees) do not live in the city. Such a narrow-minded thought process is about what I would expect from Mensinger and his colleagues. But what I don’t understand is that if he has so much trouble with outside influences, why are he and his colleagues working closely with the Orange County GOP, and national GOP strategists brought in by the GOP, to further their outsourcing agenda.
Here is a portion of what Mensinger had to say on Tuesday night:
“I hear clearly a lotta people out there, some people that are employees and some people that are not employees , some are residents and some are folks just from our town. The people that live here, your opinion matters to me, clearly. OK, I wanna make that clear. The people that don’t live here, your opinion is important but it really is noise, because this is our community, and I want to make that clear to the folks from the unions, and the folks that are friends of the unions and the folks that come in here and parade their ideas on the microphone, it’s noise. You can speak every single meeting. You have a perfect right to do it, but your opinion does not really matter as much as a person that lives in our community. So, while I appreciate it, a lot of the people in my community are beginning to complain a lot about this particular issue. And that is outside interference in our internal city politics.”
Here is the link to the Council Meeting Video. If you choose to view Mensinger actually articulating these words go to the video and drag the scroll bar over to just before the 2:12:00 point. (H/T Geoff West)
Take for example this video of the OC GOP’s Chairman Scott Baugh praising and encouraging support for their outsourcing agenda.
OCGOP Chairman Scott Baugh’s Speech to Costa Mesa Tea Party from OC GOP on Vimeo.
Note to Steve: Your city workers, speaking in solidarity through their unions, are not outside influences you can ignore. They are directly interested in the outcome of your actions. The people who are telling you to change your course are not outside interests. They are residents, taxpayers, and city workers who live in and care about Costa Mesa and it’s future.
Geoff West over at Bubbling Cauldron has a great take on this HERE.
Mensinger’s right about the outsiders. You’ve got malcontent slobs like Gus Ayer, the former Fountain Valley Council Member and one-time (only) Mayor who was voted out in 2008 — the only incumbent in the County who lost a seat that year out of 34 cities, five Supervisorial Districts and dozens of other board and committee positions. Ayer was instrumental in crafting FV’s current deficits and fiscal problems. He thinks he’s a an expert on municipal finance, but you won’t want to believe a word he says. He’s easy to find — look for the big belly trailing behind Sandra Genis.
Your whole post is discrediting a guy for losing his seat on city council while supporting a guy who was never voted on.
Mensinger was appointed.
I honestly don’t know anything about Ayer, but to use that as your argument completely discredits your opinion.
GREENSTER! Aka, Roy Reynolds, the “pollster” used by Colin McCarthy’s crew to justify their draconian and unnecessary actions. What’s the matter, you didn’t like Mayor Quimby’s post exposing your shoddy push-polling methods?
Scott Baugh is a very pushy fellow! Some years ago, he literally shoved me aside to exit Mariners Church in a hurry. I was so taken aback by his rudeness and lack of caring in that instance. UGH!
Menssy is an appointed blight on my city of Costa Mesa. He’s a pseudo-intellectual elitist who texts and smirks at everyone from the dais.
Mr. Prevatt——You may be right about Mensinger being inconsistent. It’s pretty clear he has enlisted in Team Taft-Hartley to break the city union. But its pretty much par for the course for councilmembers and school board members to give great weight to the views of local residents and tune out everyone else—unless of course they agtree with their point of view.