OB Rag Reporter Geoff Page One of Panelists
From Lori Saldaña for City Council
Three local investigative journalists will conduct an educational forum on Sunday, May 22 at 7:00 PM, to discuss a San Diego Political Action Committee (PAC) that is filling District 2 mailboxes with false and misleading attack ads.
The ads began in early May, and are intended to suppress votes in support of San Diego City Council candidate and former California Assemblywoman Lori Saldaña.
Panelists include retired journalists JW August (KGTV) and Paul Kreuger (KNSD) and current investigative reporter Geoff Page. Page has written detailed articles in the OB Rag investigating the blatant lies included in direct mail pieces being delivered to voters throughout District 2, starting in early May as ballots arrived.
According to Page, when describing one mailer: “The problem is this hit piece provided no facts to back up either of these lies about Saldaña.” Related, a May 18 San Diego Reader article described how money is funneled into the “New San Diego” PAC from developers and corporations like Sempra ($2500), who have business deals before the city.
On May 16, Mayor Todd Gloria’s name appeared on a “New San Diego” email sent to thousands of San Diego voters, listing his personal endorsements- including Saldaña’s opponent, District 2 incumbent Councilwoman Jennifer Campbell who failed to endorsed by the San Diego County Democratic Party in her bid for re-election.
This disclosure appeared at the bottom of the email:
Documents filed with the City Clerk’s office show individual PAC contributions from Rachel Laing, the Mayor’s Communications Director, and Gil Cabrera, former San Diego Ethics Committee Chair and current Airport Authority Chairman. Cabrera was identified as the “Controlling Officer” on a document filed to create the Political Action fund.
Corporate contributions include money from local developers, unions, and lobbyists. They also list investor-owned utility Sempra Energy, according to FPPC filings, even as ads criticize Saldaña for accepting Sempra contributions.
See articles below for additional details.
- Why Is Gil Cabrera – Chairman of Airport Authority Board and Founder of New San Diego – Publishing Smear Mailers About Lori Saldaña? (obrag.org)
- The San Diego Establishment Is Really Afraid of Lori Saldaña (obrag.org)
- Dark Money Hit Piece Against Saldaña in District 2 San Diego City Council Race – ‘A Pack of Lies’ (obrag.org)
- Sempra funded anti-lobbying attack group against Saldana | San Diego Reader
Date: Sunday, May 22, 2022
Time: 7pm | Location: Zoom (register for the link) – https://bit.ly/zoom4lori
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
And the dirty hits keep coming, this time with taxpayer-paid Rachel Laing and fellow Todd Squadder Will Moore (last seen in the Todd Talk video last September in appropriated rap drag, https://youtu.be/eKDNVc1bNQc?t=82) piling on on Twitter, https://twitter.com/LaPrensaSD/status/1528171569813475329. Having this crop of cronies aligned against her is the strongest recommendation for her.
I have just caught the Airport Authority in a pretty big lie related to their FAA funded study, although Kim Becker was the CEO who signed off on the contradicting documents. Lying seems to be systemic and pervasive within this group.
Care to explain what the “pretty big lie” you say the SDCRAA made is? I’m curious.
I think everyone should be contacting (a) Badiee Development Inc. at (888) 815-8886, 1261 Prospect Street #9, La Jolla, CA 92037, to ask them why they felt obliged to donate $50,000 to Gil Cabrera in support of this effort, (b) Gil Cabrera at his law office, info@cabrerafirm.com, (619) 500-4880, 600 West Broadway, Suite 700, San Diego, CA 92101, or at the Airport Authority Board, clerk@san.org, (619) 400-2408, to ask him why he felt compelled to form a General Purpose Committee of one (1) to pollute our mailboxes with (at least recyclable, but nonetheless fallacious) hit pieces on Lori Saldaña, a fellow Democrat, (c) the KPBS and UT newsrooms to suggest that they pick up and amplify Geoff Page’s excellent investigative reporting on this scandal (with attribution — interview him!). If there are local journalism awards, Geoff should also be nominated for one. Disclosure: I don’t know Geoff Page from Adam — I only discovered that there was even such a thing as the OB Rag last night when I went on an internet search to find out who was behind these outlandish, annoying, obviously shady and costly mailers we keep getting (we got our third or fourth one — I’ve lost count, because they all go immediately into recycling — yesterday). A big hat tip to the OB Rag and to Geoff for pursuing this story so doggedly; we are indebted to you for clarifying who to vote for!
Well, thanks Robert and thanks for pushing this issue by including the information you did. We all need to speak up.
These expensive, full color, glossy ads that are full of lies about Lori Saldana are coming every other day to our mailboxes from New San Diego. Lori has been one of the best pro-environmental protection electoral officials that we have had in CA government, proven by the legislation she has gotten passed and the positions she has held over the years. Yet these opponents have tried to frame her as an anti-environmental person. Anyone who takes the time to look at her record knows that this is a joke. She is one of the best governmental officials we’ve ever had on climate change and environmental protection.
Interesting that 1261 Prospect Street #9, La Jolla, CA 92037 is a residential apartment. A small 1 bedroom if I recall.
Except for the fact, if you do a street view in google maps, it isn’t an apartment. It even says “Badiee” right on the building…..