The Right Choice For San Jose

            The mayoral race in San Jose is getting a lot more heated as we approach the November 4^th election. There is little more than a month left and both sides are in crunch mode. The attack ads have been flooding mail boxes city wide over the last two weeks. While both candidates are democrats, they are divided by stark differences. A slew of key issues and each candidate’s stance will determine the outcome of this critical election. Whichever candidate wins more voter support will win the title of mayor and get to decide how San Jose will move forward to grow as a city and confront its problems. An article published by Mike Rosenberg in the San Jose Mercury News on September 28^th suggests that while many issues are being considered, one in particular is likely to define this election.

            The primaries were very close and competitive and showed that clearly this would be a tough race. With the two top candidates now decided, Sam Liccardo and Dave Cortese are neck and neck in the recent polls. The biggest difference between the two democrats comes down to the pension reform Measure B that was passed in 2012. With rising pensions and no clear plan of how to pay them, the city council, led by Mayor Chuck Reed, made a difficult decision to cut back on public workers’ pensions in a last chance attempt to keep our city out of debt. As a councilmember during this time, Sam was one of the 7 out of 10 to favor this much needed reform. Alongside the city council was the support of 70% of the voters. Dave Cortese believes that this reform has led to a decrease in public safety by forcing police officers to join other departments to keep their pensions. He is running his entire campaign on the promise that, as mayor, he will repeal measure B to fix what he believes are rising crime levels. On the other hand, Sam realizes that repealing Measure B will do nothing but send San Jose backwards. He believes that we can spend smarter without spending more money to rebuild our police department.

            Many reputable individuals and organizations have come out and publically endorsed Sam’s campaign. He has received support from the San Jose Mercury News; four former mayors, including sitting Mayor Chuck Reed; six former vice mayors; and virtually every single sitting city councilmember. It is clear that Sam has the support of the public and not only specific special interests. Mr. Cortese, however, has the endorsement of the labor unions that represent the city workers who are unhappy with Measure B, as well as five former police chiefs. If we take things at face value, we can clearly see that Dave’s biggest supporters are those that want to repeal Measure B as he promises to do. The reality of the situation our city finds itself in is that repealing Measure B with no plan of how to pay off the extremely high costs of rising pensions will ultimately lead to a crippling deficit. While there is clearly more to be done in order to completely restore our police force, repealing Measure B is equivalent to taking a step backwards.

            Sam Liccardo is the right choice for mayor of San Jose. He will move our city forward through a series of innovative plans and policies that will restore us to proudly being the heart of the Silicon Valley. Councilmember Liccardo had proven through a lucrative career that he has what it takes to make the tough decisions necessary to get San Jose back on track. He plans to take care of the homeless issue by taking advantage of the many unused motels throughout the city. He has suggested that our police force actively work with the public to use their privately owned security cameras to help solve criminal cases. Sam has many more creative plans to restore safety, spend smarter, broaden access to high-wage jobs, and confidently move our city forward safely and smartly into the future.

Rosenberg, Mike. "San Jose Mayor's Race Heats up as Candidates Battle over Key Police Issue." San Jose Mercury News. San Jose Mercury News, 28 Sept. 2014. Web. 29 Sept. 2014. <http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_26626118/san-jose-mayors-race-heats-up-candidates-battle>.