Post by josesuko on Oct 13, 2005 23:16:28 GMT -5
here's an article on the type of character alex spanos is. basically this guy owns most of stockton and is well known in ultra right circles within the republican party. this is the type of people we are going against.
by the way, spanos is the guy that is throwing the fundraiser for arnold. the money will be used, most likely, for a media blitz in the days prior to the election.
two weeks ago a comrade was engaged in a campaign with ACORN to raise the minimum wage in New Mexico, which is at $4.15, well below the national level. in the 3 days prior to the election, finance capital launched a campaign based on fear to defeat ACORN's proposition to raise the minimum wage. a week prior to the election, raising the minimum wage had a 89% support from voters. in three days, that support dropped to 53%. at the end, the minimum initiative was defeated by 1% (1400 votes).
it is expected that arnold and his cronies will be launching a similar media blitz based on fear. that is why it is important to have as many bodies at the rally to get FREE media coverage for our position.
salud!
Spanos spending millions on ballot
Developer aims to get Prop. 77 passed
Hank Shaw
Capitol Bureau Chief
Published Wednesday, Oct 12, 2005 SACRAMENTO -- Stockton billionaire developer Alex G. Spanos is writing megachecks to help Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger pass a series of ballot initiatives next month.
Spanos is one of the Republican Party's biggest campaign contributors, and this fall his focus is on Proposition 77, an initiative that would strip lawmakers' power to create their own districts and give it to a panel of retired judges.
On Friday, Spanos contributed $500,000 to Redistrict California and $500,000 to Schwarzenegger's California Recovery Team, a political action committee fighting to pass ballot initiatives that the governor calls his "reform agenda."
All told, Spanos has given Schwarzenegger and his allied committees $2 million this year. He has contributed an additional $1.1 million to the governor and his causes since 2003.
Add $1.5 million to the California Republican Party and $5 million to the conservative political action committee Progress for America, and Spanos stands atop the United States' highest echelon of GOP donors.
But Spanos doesn't limit himself to big-time politics. Last year, he contributed to school board races, local ballot propositions and legislative races.
He even gave Stockton Mayor Ed Chavez and San Joaquin County Supervisors Gary Giovanetti and Leroy Ornellas $20,000 each last year.
Spanos has contributed so much to the national GOP he's earned the title "Republican regent."
He counts as friends Schwarzenegger and President Bush, who used Spanos' jets to fly around the country during last year's presidential campaign.
Schwarzenegger spent Monday evening in San Diego with Spanos watching the San Diego Chargers lose to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Spanos owns the San Diego football team.
”I'm here to support Alex Spanos' team and to support the Chargers," Schwarzenegger told "Monday Night Football" announcer Al Michaels.
Earlier this year, Spanos told The Record that he has been friends with every Republican president since Gerald Ford.
”I've been very close to all of them," Spanos said. "Every single one of them. Reagan and I, I can't tell you. When he was governor, when he was president, I can't tell you how close we were. President Bush called me last week just to say hello."
Spanos spokeswoman Natalia Orfanos said her boss rarely talks about his politics.
”We don't usually make comments on our contributions," Orfanos said. "But redistricting is a fairness issue."
Orfanos did note that several of the governor's other favored propositions are also "fairness issues," such as Proposition 75, which would require public-employee unions to get written permission from their members to use their dues for political purposes.
”In an ideal world, we would contribute to all of them, but we just chose to contribute to this one," Orfanos said. "It was just an internal decision."
Supporters of Proposition 77 say it will add up to a dozen more-competitive political seats in California, which in turn will moderate the polarized debate that dominates Sacramento and Washington.
Far-right and far-left candidates tend to win districts tailor-made for their parties, because all they need to do is win the little-noticed primary elections dominated by party activists.
Opponents call Proposition 77 a Republican power grab and say the panel of retired judges will be no less partisan than the lawmakers.
”The governor is turning to billionaires in this state to be his ATMs," said Steve Maviglio, an aide to Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez who works for the Alliance for a Better California, a group fighting Schwarzenegger's proposals.
”If there was any doubt over whether this special election was about putting the views of right-wing conservatives in the state constitution, these contributions tell the story," Maviglio said.
Maviglio noted that Schwarzenegger has vetoed several bills that would have reined in developers and recently replaced the state's flood-control board with what he called developer-friendly members.
A Record analysis of state records confirms that the real estate and development industry is Schwarzenegger's largest source of campaign funds.
Orfanos said her boss does not ask for political favors.
”Alex Spanos has never had an agenda," she said. "What he does, he does because of how he feels."
Contact Capitol Bureau Chief Hank Shaw at 916 441-4078 or sacto@recordnet.com
by the way, spanos is the guy that is throwing the fundraiser for arnold. the money will be used, most likely, for a media blitz in the days prior to the election.
two weeks ago a comrade was engaged in a campaign with ACORN to raise the minimum wage in New Mexico, which is at $4.15, well below the national level. in the 3 days prior to the election, finance capital launched a campaign based on fear to defeat ACORN's proposition to raise the minimum wage. a week prior to the election, raising the minimum wage had a 89% support from voters. in three days, that support dropped to 53%. at the end, the minimum initiative was defeated by 1% (1400 votes).
it is expected that arnold and his cronies will be launching a similar media blitz based on fear. that is why it is important to have as many bodies at the rally to get FREE media coverage for our position.
salud!
Spanos spending millions on ballot
Developer aims to get Prop. 77 passed
Hank Shaw
Capitol Bureau Chief
Published Wednesday, Oct 12, 2005 SACRAMENTO -- Stockton billionaire developer Alex G. Spanos is writing megachecks to help Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger pass a series of ballot initiatives next month.
Spanos is one of the Republican Party's biggest campaign contributors, and this fall his focus is on Proposition 77, an initiative that would strip lawmakers' power to create their own districts and give it to a panel of retired judges.
On Friday, Spanos contributed $500,000 to Redistrict California and $500,000 to Schwarzenegger's California Recovery Team, a political action committee fighting to pass ballot initiatives that the governor calls his "reform agenda."
All told, Spanos has given Schwarzenegger and his allied committees $2 million this year. He has contributed an additional $1.1 million to the governor and his causes since 2003.
Add $1.5 million to the California Republican Party and $5 million to the conservative political action committee Progress for America, and Spanos stands atop the United States' highest echelon of GOP donors.
But Spanos doesn't limit himself to big-time politics. Last year, he contributed to school board races, local ballot propositions and legislative races.
He even gave Stockton Mayor Ed Chavez and San Joaquin County Supervisors Gary Giovanetti and Leroy Ornellas $20,000 each last year.
Spanos has contributed so much to the national GOP he's earned the title "Republican regent."
He counts as friends Schwarzenegger and President Bush, who used Spanos' jets to fly around the country during last year's presidential campaign.
Schwarzenegger spent Monday evening in San Diego with Spanos watching the San Diego Chargers lose to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Spanos owns the San Diego football team.
”I'm here to support Alex Spanos' team and to support the Chargers," Schwarzenegger told "Monday Night Football" announcer Al Michaels.
Earlier this year, Spanos told The Record that he has been friends with every Republican president since Gerald Ford.
”I've been very close to all of them," Spanos said. "Every single one of them. Reagan and I, I can't tell you. When he was governor, when he was president, I can't tell you how close we were. President Bush called me last week just to say hello."
Spanos spokeswoman Natalia Orfanos said her boss rarely talks about his politics.
”We don't usually make comments on our contributions," Orfanos said. "But redistricting is a fairness issue."
Orfanos did note that several of the governor's other favored propositions are also "fairness issues," such as Proposition 75, which would require public-employee unions to get written permission from their members to use their dues for political purposes.
”In an ideal world, we would contribute to all of them, but we just chose to contribute to this one," Orfanos said. "It was just an internal decision."
Supporters of Proposition 77 say it will add up to a dozen more-competitive political seats in California, which in turn will moderate the polarized debate that dominates Sacramento and Washington.
Far-right and far-left candidates tend to win districts tailor-made for their parties, because all they need to do is win the little-noticed primary elections dominated by party activists.
Opponents call Proposition 77 a Republican power grab and say the panel of retired judges will be no less partisan than the lawmakers.
”The governor is turning to billionaires in this state to be his ATMs," said Steve Maviglio, an aide to Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez who works for the Alliance for a Better California, a group fighting Schwarzenegger's proposals.
”If there was any doubt over whether this special election was about putting the views of right-wing conservatives in the state constitution, these contributions tell the story," Maviglio said.
Maviglio noted that Schwarzenegger has vetoed several bills that would have reined in developers and recently replaced the state's flood-control board with what he called developer-friendly members.
A Record analysis of state records confirms that the real estate and development industry is Schwarzenegger's largest source of campaign funds.
Orfanos said her boss does not ask for political favors.
”Alex Spanos has never had an agenda," she said. "What he does, he does because of how he feels."
Contact Capitol Bureau Chief Hank Shaw at 916 441-4078 or sacto@recordnet.com