SAN JOSE Mayor censured over garbage contract

[davidinalameda]

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/12/14/BAGSTG7GO21.DTL

After four hours of impassioned debate, the San Jose City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to impose its most severe punishment on Mayor Ron Gonzales for misleading the council over a contract with Norcal Waste Systems.

The council voted 10-0 to censure Gonzales, who repeatedly apologized and said he would spend the final year of his term earning back the city's trust.

The city also voted 9-2 to drop an independent investigation into the affair. The three-month, $100,000 independent probe essentially backed up a Santa Clara County grand jury report from June that said Gonzales had cut a deal with Norcal that increased the city's garbage collectors' pay by $11.25 million.

Gonzales sat impassively during the proceedings and excused himself from the censure vote.



looks like his career is cooked, which is a shame because he was one of the up and coming stars of the party

[Coastie for Truth]

1. Failure of Privatization of Governmental Services

Doesn't matter if it's garbage collection or military logistics -- too much fraud, waste, abuse, graft. This is not specific to the level of government or to any one city or region.

I have or lived or worked (on temp assignment) in a dozen states -- happens everywhere at every level.

I do not blame Gonzales or Norcal -- it is inherent in privatization.

By experience--->

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[cascadiance]

2. We're at a time we have to CLEAN HOUSE!

Get rid of ALL of the "Culture of Corruption". Not just Rethugs (where we have more of a field day now at least). But get rid of the bad Democrats too! We still need to find ways of getting divorced from the DLC, where I suspect much of the corruption is centered too. We just got rid of two Dems on the San Diego City Council who were also guilty of bribery, etc. too from the strippergate scandal, and one (Zuchette) served like a day or two as temporary mayor before he went down after Murphy left. Now we just need to elect a "good" Gonzalez (Loreena Gonzales) in the runoff to take his place.

Bring on "Clean Elections" legislation where this corruption gets exposed. It's happening here in San Diego. Thanks Raw Story for even noting that at the end of the article on Duncan Hunter! I've been saying that all along, and I think these incidents will only help us put a better system in place later when the voters get fed up enough!

[Coastie for Truth]

3. A lot of this seems to go hand in hand with "Privatization"

[cascadiance]

4. Privatization of some things are good...

But "privatization" to me is a symptom of campaign finance corruption problems, especially with corporations buying off too much control over our government, which is being done EVERYPLACE at us the taxpayer's and American citizen's expense. Our corporate charters, corporate personhood "rights", campaign financing rules (we need "clean elections" public financing of elections, period!), etc. all need an overhaul too if this country is to not go down the tubes soon!