Good evening council, staff, and people in the audience and watching on TV. I’m Jeff Rubin. At the January 10 Candidates’ Forum, Maria Alegria said her Form 460s were available to the public, so I thought I’d have a look.

I see where the International Association of Firefighters, the union representing the Pinole firefighters, has given Maria another $3,200 since January 1. That brings the firefighters union’s investment in Councilwoman Maria Alegria for their upcoming contract negotiations with the city of Pinole to $10,700 over the last four years. That’s roughly 16% of the more than $65,000 Maria has raised since 2004, most of it from special-interest groups, some of which, such as TKG Development, have contracts with the city on which Maria votes. Additionally, Councilman Stephen Tilton has accepted $3,500 from the International Association of Firefighters since 2006, including $1,500 since January 1, a period in which he did not declare any expenses. Stephen, why are you accepting money when you’re not spending it?

By contrast, Mayor Peter Murray and Councilwoman Mary Horton have accepted no money from the firefighters’ union, or any other union, during that time.

The Pinole firefighters’ contract expires in a few months. I have heard they will negotiate for retirement at FULL PAY at age 50. Can the city afford to allow ANY employee to retire at age 50, with the possibility that employee will live another 20 to 40 years, while the City of Pinole pays FULL medical benefits AND retirement pay?

Pinole is already in debt. Are Maria and Stephen willing to bankrupt the city to pay back the firefighters’ union for their massive campaign contributions? The city should pay only what it can afford to its firefighters - and to all of its employees. It’s highly unethical when elected officials accept such huge amounts of money - $10,700 for Maria and $3,500 for Stephen - from an organization whose contract they’re going to negotiate and vote on. Maria Alegria and Stephen Tilton have accepted the money. It appears that their votes have been bought. The purchase of political favors cannot - and will not -be tolerated in Pinole.

Both of them need to be recalled.

Earlier in the campaign, Maria Alegria a Recall target charged with mismanagement and incompetence, had called Recall supporters “thugs” in a hit piece paid for by the firefighters union angling for a big payday in upcoming contract negotiations with Alegria.

Members of Concerned Citizens of Pinole, responding to repeated thefts of Recall signs and signs belonging to those running in the election - especially those of Debbie Long, whose signs have been replaced with Ivette Ricco signs at several locations in the city - decided to form a stakeout to try to catch the thief. Tuesday was the first night of the stakeout.

CCOP members Dave Vida and John Bender had been on duty for only a few minutes when, around midnight, they saw the suspect race out of the bistro, cross the street, and begin removing signs from Parkview Plaza. As it happens, a police cruiser saw the suspect, who fled back into the bistro, out the back door, and threw the signs in the bistro’s Dumpster. A total of three police units responded. After arresting the suspect, police took photos of the signs in the Dumpster, then released the signs into CCOP custody.

Question for Maria Alegria…who are the thugs and hooligans? Shame on you and your supporters, including labor and democratic party deniers that support this sort of ham-fisted illegal campaign of intimidation.

A crowd of 100+ looked on as Political Editor, Lisa Vorderbrueggen, of the Contra Costa Times, expertly moderated the debate before a well-behaved audience that clapped loudly and at length at the end for the Pro Recall side, while a deafening silence greeted Maria Alegria’s closing statement.

Ms. Trego repeatedly pressed the case of mismanagement, abuse of power and incompetence by the incumbents and Recall targets, Alegria, Tilton, and Cole. Alegria defended herself by not disputing facts but by asserting, that (1) the Pear St Bistro was not her fault; (2) that when people disagree with her it should be considered a personal attack; (3) that it’s all OK now that vague procedures are finally in place, and that (4) she enjoys the very tenuous support of the labor-democrat political machine looking for a sweet contract negotiation payday.

See Recall Photos nearby.

The forum is scheduled for Jan 10 at 6:00 p.m. at the Pinole Senior Center. The Pinole recall debate will precede, the traditional candidate night debates sponsored by the LVW and Times.

On Thursday, according to the Times, Tilton e-mailed Common Cause saying he “cannot be a part of the ’spectacle’ they (Trego and Rubin) are attempting to have you help them create.” Debate moderator and Times political columnist Lisa Vorderbrueggen is scrambling for possible proxies to represent the anti-recall side, with the absence of a commitment so far from Alegria.

Tilton earlier had sent an e-mail to the recall group, published first here at Halfway To Concord (see comments below post), saying he would be happy to address all concerns, but now plans to duck having to explain his and councils’ actions to voters in an open, neutral forum that the recall targets cannot control with innuendo, calling recall supporters thugs, and threats of law suits and intimidation, coupled with wild accusations of death threats that were dismissed after police investigation.

Tilton touting the support of Assemblyman DeSaulnier and Senator Tom Torlakson is hilarious, when both electeds would rather see this embarrassing fiasco just disappear…we would not call that “enthusiatic support.”

Also note the that Pinole Councilwoman Mary Horton, a Democrat who supports the recall, was not allowed to speak even for four minutes. And that a motion by Brian Lawrence to postpone the vote so there would be more time to study the issue was not considered.

Apparently both the Democrat and Republican Central Committees in Contra Costa County need to be disbanded; or at least be sent to charm school.

“6) DISCUSSION OF PINOLE RECALL.

“City Councilwoman Mary Horton asked the DPCCC to look into the issues surrounding the recall, or to not get involved, as the situation is much more complicated than it appears. Mayor Maria Alegria stated that the issues surrounding the recall are not that complicated and come down to the fact that she and Councilman Tilton voted not to renew the City Manager’s contract. As a result, they were threatened that they would be the victims of a recall. Mayor Algeria asked for the DPCCC’s support in opposing the recall. Councilman Tilton described the recall as “personal politics” and expressed his opinion that the recall would take Pinole back 20 years. He stated that the following are opposed to the recall: Assemblyman DeSaulnier Contra Costa Sheriffs Senator Torlakson and asked that the DPCCC vote to oppose the recall.

“7) DPCCC OPPOSITION TO PINOLE RECALL.

“M/S/C that the DPCCC supports Mayor Alegria and Councilman Tilton in opposing the Pinole recall. Motion Made By: Cecilia Valdez Motion Seconded By: George Van Hasselt

“Note: Councilwoman Horton was refused the opportunity to rebut the proponents of the resolution; A request from a Committee member to give the Councilwoman four minutes to speak, was also denied; Brian Lawrence presented a motion to postpone voting on the recall for a month, so that DPCCC members could have time to review the issues; This motion was seconded by Secretary Obringer, but not accepted by Vice Chair Valdez as a friendly amendment.”

PINOLE, December 24, 2007 - Councilman Stephen Tilton, the subject of a recall in Pinole brought about by the citizens group Concerned Citizens of Pinole (CCOP), has threatened the CCOP with legal action as the recall heads into its final six weeks before the February 5, 2008, election.

Tilton and the former mayor, Maria Alegria, who still sits on the council, are the subjects of the recall. A third Pinole councilman, David Cole, was also a target, but he resigned his seat before he could be recalled. CCOP volunteers collected more than enough valid signatures on petitions to recall all three.

In an e-mail letter to CCOP spokesman Jeff Rubin, Tilton said, “I need a physical address where my attorney can serve papers. As the spokes person, I am asking you who should receive legal papers that are being drawn up? Kindly respond in a timely manner. As you know, it can not be a P.O. box.

“I have been threatened and intimidated and it does not feel good. I have simply asked several people, besides you, to address lies on the web site or at least delete them and it has never been addressed. So my attorney is now addressing it in the proper forum.”

“The CCOP web site features numerous articles that were published in the Contra Costa Times over the last year,” says Jeff Rubin, spokesperson for the CCOP. “The lies he says that appear on our web site appeared in the Times and other newspapers that are part of the Bay Area News Group, which include the Oakland Tribune and San Jose Mercury-News. If Tilton has a problem with the information in those articles, he should be suing the newspaper, not us.

“Since the recall began during the summer, Alegria and Tilton have said that it is based on lies, innuendo, political agendas, and personal vendettas. All of their anti-recall flyers carry the same message. So, I’m not surprised that Tilton has threatened us with legal action. I expect that Alegria will do the same in January.

“If Alegria is recalled her political life, at least as an elected official, will be over. I expect Alegria, with the help of her consultant Kevin Reikes, who boasts about producing political hit pieces, will use everything in her bag of tricks to try to mislead the voters and demean recall proponents at the same time. It seems to be the only way she knows how to campaign.”

The Concerned Citizens of Pinole (CCOP) is a grass-roots group that is spearheading the recall of former Mayor Maria Alegria and Tilton. Their efforts began in June, when volunteer recall supporters began circulating petitions for citizens’ signatures. In only two months, CCOP volunteers had collected several hundred more valid signatures from registered voters in Pinole than needed to have the recall placed on the February 5 ballot, the same day as the California Presidential Primary

The League of Women Voters and Common Cause, in partnership with the Contra Costa Times, will sponsor a recall debate and candidates’ night on Thursday, January 10, 2008, at the Pinole Senior Center. The event begins at 6 p.m. with a debate between Alegria and Tilton vs. two recall proponents. The candidates’ debate will follow.

END OF PRESS RELEASE