Tustin Mayor Jerry Amante, the target of a recall effort, has stated publicly that if a recall does become a reality, he’ll fight it. But in a sign that those behind the RecallAmante effort are progressing well on the signature gathering front, the Mayor is hosting a fundraising BBQ in Old Town Tustin — an ironic site given Amante’s documented distain for Old Town residents.
The BBQ will be held on August 25 fropm 5:30 to 7:30 PM at Quinn’s Old Town Grill; Jerry’s consultants are looking for a minimum of $99 per person up to $1,000 to be a sponsor. Checks payable to “Friends of Jerry Amante” (a club of about six people, right?). Nice of Jerry to hire consultants from Temecula.
Now that the Amante crowd has identified some of the Tustin residents associated with the recall effort, some of Amante’s “associates” are contacting civic organizations these Tustin residents are members of to criticize individual member roles in the recall effort. We’ve been sent the emails. It’s a nasty guilt-by-association play that Amante would certain cry foul if, for example, we were to suggest that Il Duce of Tustin was, as State Rep. Don Wagner once put it, any Italian who isn’t a member of the Mafia or commits insurance fraud offended by suggestions they might be in the Mafia or committing insurance fraud . Now clearly, being Italian does gain Amante entry into “the Family,” but Amante’s friends need to do a better job of being more…. subtle.
Back to the Old Town BBQ fundraiser for a moment. Amate has a troubled history with Old Town. From Sherri Loveland’s blog post on the Recall Amante website, there is this post:
Property owners in Old Town Tustin are up in arms over Jerry Amante’s ongoing battle to sabotage property rights that were established six decades ago.
And since we’ve including information on suporting Amante, let’s show some equal time to the Pro-Recall Group. They don’t need nearly has much money as Amante does. From the Recall Amante website:
In order to carry out the effort to Recall Amante and get him out of our City Hall, we need funds. We need to purchase yard signs, postcards, and door hangers. We cannot succeed without funding.
Please send a donation today and forward this letter to all of your friends who support our efforts. To make a donation, please click on the red tab on the right side of any page of this website, or send your check, made payable to “Tustin Supporters for the Recall of Amante” and mail to: 345 W. Sixth Street, Unit A, Tustin, 92780.
Every little bit helps. Only you and your friends can make this work. Remember, this is a volunteer effort and we are depending on you. Any donation of $99 is recorded as an anonymous donation and your name will not go on the campaign report. You and your spouse may each donate $99.
In addition to financial contributions, we need volunteers to walk their neighborhoods to collect signatures. There is a great deal of interest in the Recall effort, creating long conversations with residents. We are spending, on average, 10 minutes with each person who signs the petition. With 7,100 signatures to gather, this takes quite a bit of time. Please call (714) 582-5115 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (714) 582-5115 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or email recall@recallamante.org if you would like to gather signatures in your neighborhood.
I’d like to thank that member of the Tustin PD who stayed across the street from the meeting in a commerical parking lot for the duration of the meeting. PLease contact me if you need my license plate number and the contact information of those who attended. My camera phone takes great photos.
Check http://ourtowntustin.wordpress.com/2011/08/15/is-this-a-coincidence/. As you can see, my phone doesn’t take nearly as good a picture. But, I think, readers get the idea.