Dear Secretary Gutierrez, You previously promised to hold a hearing in Southern California to gage the publics feelings on the proposed 241 Toll Road through San Onofre State Beach. The venue you chose for this hearing felt that the expected crowd was beyond their abilities serve properly. This intense public interest is even more reason for you to follow through on your promise and reschedule the hearing to an appropriate venue at a later date. As a member of the public I deserve the opportunity to have my voice heard on this issue.
Please do not silence my voice on this important decision.
Congressman Gary Miller (R-Diamond Bar) has jack-assed his way back into the news. Seems he owns $20,000 in toll road bonds. What's the big deal? Miller is a big-time toll-road supporter, putting his signature on letters of support to the project as well as garnering earmark after earmark of pork-barrel tax-payer dollars for the project, the completion of which is necessary for the return of Miller's money.
The Register tried out a new tactic this week and actually did some reporting for a change:
"Financial disclosures for Rep. Gary Miller, a land developer who represents Orange, San Bernardino and Los Angeles Counties, show he purchased $20,000 in Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency bonds in 2000. The bonds pay investors a fixed rate and are repaid by drivers' tolls."
Though Miller has repeatedly signed financial disclosure forms listing the bonds, he expressed surprise when asked about that investment. Miller said his wife must have purchased the bonds and added that she is largely responsible for the family's investment decisions.
The whole kerfluffle is reminiscent of a 2006 Weekly piece, "Ken Ryan and Friends," regarding then-mayor of Yorba Linda (and chair of the Foothill/Eastern Board) Ken Ryan:
As a principal for EDAW (Eckbo, Dean, Austin and Williams), Ryan is working on the Carrari Ranch Project in San Bernardino County, on land belonging to G. Miller Development Co., owned by Congressman Gary Miller (R-Diamond Bar). Miller is the same congressman whom Congressman Ken Calvert (R-Corona) thanked for his work on the 2006 Transportation Equity Act, which diverts $8 million in federal funds to the 241 project—despite the fact the toll road is supposed to be a private venture. It was classic pork: The act also included $2 million for sound walls in Yorba Linda and Anaheim. Ryan, Miller and Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle gathered on Feb. 17, 2004, in an Anaheim mobile-home park to commemorate the occasion.
In a 2002 Riverside Press-Enterprise article, Ryan is listed as a spokesman for Lytle Development. In the 2004 election, Lytle Development was Miller's top donor.
In 2003, Congressman Miller requested more than $3 million to build a pedestrian bridge over the Imperial Highway in Yorba Linda, where his friend Ryan was known as "Mayor Ryan." Miller was also one of five signatories to a Feb. 17 letter to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in support of the 241. The other four? Calvert, Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach), Darrell Issa (R-Vista) and John Campbell (R-Irvine). Miller, Calvert and Rohrabacher all list real-estate firms as their top campaign contributors in 2004.
Congressman Miller phoned up the Weekly when that article was published, sounding mighty pissed off—butt-hurt, as the kids would say. He claimed we were manufacturing information, alleging impropriety where none was to be found. In short, he was dancing around accusations of libel. We said we had no idea what he was talking about. He said how there was nothing wrong with getting money for the toll road, declaring, "I wish it had been TEN million!" Of course he did. The more federal money he earmarked for the project, the faster it might get built and the sooner he'd get back his twenty stacks.
"Rep. Gary Miller says he will sell his investment in the Foothill/Eastern tollway if the Transportation Corridor Agency is ever successful in building the southern extension to the road…. Miller's congressional spokesman, Scott Toussaint, said in an e-mailed statement that Miller wants to 'make clear that he is committed to upholding the ethical responsibilities of his office.'
"'If TCA ever completes Foothill-South, I will sell my bonds before completion of the project to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest,' Miller said in the statement."
Is there anything illegal about Ken Ryan, Yorba Linda City Councilman and sometimes-mayor, working for a company which then became top donor to a Congressman who earmarked money for projects to benefit Ken Ryan's town and toll road? Probably not. Does it sound bad when phrased that way? Hell yes.
What's odd is that Miller staunchly defended his relationship with Ryan in 2006; what could have changed to make him so sensitive? So tender? So raw? Could it be that, in terms of appearances of impropriety, Congressman Miller's toll road bond investment is Strike Two?
In fact, we're being generous by limiting the strikes to toll-road-related impropriety. Why is Gary Miller a vertex on the California Democratic Party's Triangle of Corruption? Look it up at here but I'll give you a quick summary: garnering earmarks to support the projects of his top donors, not to mention pursuing public funds for the purchase of land he owned. No wonder Miller assumed I was alleging impropriety when I made the Ryan-Lytle-Miller connection; it seems to be something with which he's overly familiar...
We were informed this weekend that UC Irvine's Bren Center will NOT play host to the Commerce Department’s public hearing on the 241 Toll Road on July 25th. They feared that the turnout from supporters of San Onofre State Beach and Trestles would overwhelm the facilities at UCI, estimating that over 10,000 of you would show up.
Clearly there is strong community opposition to this destructive highway project, and those voices need to be heard. Unfortunately no other venue has been identified, and the Commerce Department has made no definitive decision on how or when to move forward with the hearing. We will keep you informed as the situation develops, but for now we are assuming there will be NO Hearing on July 25th at the Bren Center.
In the meantime, make sure that the Commerce Department knows that you still want the opportunity to be heard. Send an email to Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez demanding that they reschedule the hearing so that he can hear from the community on this issue. Copy and paste the text below or write your own letter, and send it to gcos.comments@noaa.gov
Dear Secretary Gutierrez, You previously promised to hold a hearing in Southern California to gage the publics feelings on the proposed 241 Toll Road through San Onofre State Beach. The venue you chose for this hearing felt that the expected crowd was beyond their abilities serve properly. This intense public interest is even more reason for you to follow through on your promise and reschedule the hearing to an appropriate venue at a later date. As a member of the public I deserve the opportunity to have my voice heard on this issue. Please do not silence my voice on this important decision.
Sincerely, NeoN D SuRFeR
We will keep you informed about any changes. Thanks for your continued support to protect Trestles and San O!!
For years, Chris Mauro took a 10-mile detour on his way to work each morning to check out the swells at his favorite surf break and plot the best location for his after-work wave-riding.
But with gas approaching $5 a gallon, Mauro recently cut out his daily ritual in favor of the savings.
Looks to me like you will not need that Toll Road Chris...
.
The Department of Commerce announced today the hearing for the TCA's appeal of the Coastal Commission decision will be held July 24th and/or 25th. As always, it takes some time for government agencies to nail down the exact date, but at least we know it will be July 24th and/or 25th. The hearing will more than likely be at the Bren Event Center of the University of California, Irvine.
We'll get more details as they come in…. including the exact date, meeting format, agenda, etc... so stay tuned!
Also, we'll be renting buses again (more than likely leaving from LA and San Diego). So if you are interested in riding the bus, please send an email to: savetrestles@surfrider.org with the subject line: buses to hearing. We need you at this hearing! Please make sure our Federal Government upholds California laws and decisions. Remember, in February 2008 the California Coastal Commission voted to deny the toll road through San Onofre State Beach. Following a 14 hour hearing, attended by thousands, the Commission listened to reason and law by rejecting the toll road application.
The people in D.C. need to hear from people who care about San Onofre and Trestles! Your voice is needed! Don't let the TCA's lobbyists be the only influence on this important decision !(remember a few weeks ago when we told you the TCA is spending nearly $50,000 a month on lobbying...?).
Please call your congressional representatives today - Demand impeachment hearings and accountability - Capitol Hill Switchboard: (202) 224-2131 , (800) 828-0498
1. Article I - Creating a Secret Propaganda Campaign to Manufacture a False Case for War Against Iraq. 2. Article II - Falsely, Systematically, and with Criminal Intent Conflating the Attacks of September 11, 2001, With Misrepresentation of Iraq as a Security Threat as Part of Fraudulent Justification for a War of Aggression. 3. Article III - Misleading the American People and Members of Congress to Believe Iraq Possessed Weapons of Mass Destruction, to Manufacture a False Case for War. 4. Article IV - Misleading the American People and Members of Congress to Believe Iraq Posed an Imminent Threat to the United States. 5. Article V - Illegally Misspending Funds to Secretly Begin a War of Aggression. 6. Article VI - Invading Iraq in Violation of the Requirements of HJRes114. 7. Article VII - Invading Iraq Absent a Declaration of War. 8. Article VIII - Invading Iraq, A Sovereign Nation, in Violation of the UN Charter. 9. Article IX - Failing to Provide Troops With Body Armor and Vehicle Armor 10. Article X - Falsifying Accounts of US Troop Deaths and Injuries for Political Purposes 11. Article XI - Establishment of Permanent U.S. Military Bases in Iraq 12. Article XII - Initiating a War Against Iraq for Control of That Nation's Natural Resources 13. Article XIII - Creating a Secret Task Force to Develop Energy and Military Policies With Respect to Iraq and Other Countries 14. Article XIV - Misprision of a Felony, Misuse and Exposure of Classified Information And Obstruction of Justice in the Matter of Valerie Plame Wilson, Clandestine Agent of the Central Intelligence Agency 15. Article XV - Providing Immunity from Prosecution for Criminal Contractors in Iraq 16. Article XVI - Reckless Misspending and Waste of U.S. Tax Dollars in Connection With Iraq and US Contractors 17. Article XVII - Illegal Detention: Detaining Indefinitely And Without Charge Persons Both U.S. Citizens and Foreign Captives 18. Article XVIII - Torture: Secretly Authorizing, and Encouraging the Use of Torture Against Captives in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Other Places, as a Matter of Official Policy 19. Article XIX - Rendition: Kidnapping People and Taking Them Against Their Will to 'Black Sites' Located in Other Nations, Including Nations Known to Practice Torture 20. Article XX - Imprisoning Children 21. Article XXI - Misleading Congress and the American People About Threats from Iran, and Supporting Terrorist Organizations Within Iran, With the Goal of Overthrowing the Iranian Government 22. Article XXII - Creating Secret Laws 23. Article XXIII - Violation of the Posse Comitatus Act 24. Article XXIV - Spying on American Citizens, Without a Court-Ordered Warrant, in Violation of the Law and the Fourth Amendment 25. Article XXV - Directing Telecommunications Companies to Create an Illegal and Unconstitutional Database of the Private Telephone Numbers and Emails of American Citizens 26. Article XXVI - Announcing the Intent to Violate Laws with Signing Statements 27. Article XXVII - Failing to Comply with Congressional Subpoenas and Instructing Former Employees Not to Comply 28. Article XXVIII - Tampering with Free and Fair Elections, Corruption of the Administration of Justice 29. Article XXIX - Conspiracy to Violate the Voting Rights Act of 1965 30. Article XXX - Misleading Congress and the American People in an Attempt to Destroy Medicare 31. Article XXXI - Katrina: Failure to Plan for the Predicted Disaster of Hurricane Katrina, Failure to Respond to a Civil Emergency 32. Article XXXII - Misleading Congress and the American People, Systematically Undermining Efforts to Address Global Climate Change 33. Article XXXIII - Repeatedly Ignored and Failed to Respond to High Level Intelligence Warnings of Planned Terrorist Attacks in the US, Prior to 911. 34. Article XXXIV - Obstruction of the Investigation into the Attacks of September 11, 2001 35. Article XXXV - Endangering the Health of 911 First Responders
ESTP - "Promotor". Action! When present, things begin to happen. Fiercely competitive. Entrepreneur. Often uses shock effect to get attention. Negotiator par excellence. 4.3% of total population.
Content, emotionally stable, outgoing, social, group oriented, finisher, does not like to be alone, open, decisive, likes external praise, likes to be center of attention, always joking, adjusts easily, likes crowds, self confident, neutral moods, good at getting people to have fun, disorganized, messy, talented at presentation, can be easily annoyed...
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