By NICHOLAS KUSNETZ
Political blogs were in a tizzy this week about the appointment of a man to the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. No, that man was not David Campos (though he was appointed to the district on Tuesday). It was David Snyder.
David who? You may ask.
David it-doesn’t-really-matter. It wasn’t the man. It was politics. And Campos was key in the controversy.
It all started back in March, when our fearless supe became the swing vote opposing the appointment of a labor boss to the seat on a body that operates the bridge, buses, and ferries that cross the Golden Gate. Traditionally, the seat goes to a union rep. It was the progressives of the board versus the “conservatives,” with the conservatives backing the labor man, Larry Mazzola Jr. The progressives said Mazzola wasn’t fit to serve. The conservatives said District 6 Supervisor Chris Daly was simply seeking revenge for when Mazzola backed a smear campaign against him in 2006.
Tuesday, the full board was to vote on the matter, but it got a little nasty. Supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier seemed to allege the whole debate was nothing more than a grudge and an inability on the part of Daly to move on after winning in 2006.
“I find it absolutely appalling that any person would come before a committee of this body and have to talk about political attacks during a campaign,” she said. APPLAUSE.
Campos followed.
“As a member of that committee,” meaning the Rules Committee, where the debate began, “my focus is only on the qualifications of the individual that comes before the committee,” he said. “Whatever happened or didn’t happen in a political campaign I believe is not relevant.” NO APPLAUSE
Once the grievances were aired, the progressives (Avalos, Campos, Chiu, Daly, Mar, Mirkarimi) had their way, edging out the rest (Alioto-Pier, Chu, Dufty, Elsbernd, Maxwell) by one vote. Appointment Snyder. Who by the way is the transportation policy director at San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association, a think tank that focuses on urban planning.
The Board moved on, and Campos called on a couple of young immigrants to give them commendations. With all the bad news about immigrant youth in recent months, he said, it was time to show that young ’uns can be a positive force as well.
The first, Jesus “Chuy” Ballote swaggered up past the podium, in a way that only pants-sagging can induce, and swaggered right through the gate to where the supervisors sit. But no worries. He soon realized his mistake and returned to the podium. Campos was quick on the draw with a joke and Ballote demonstrated a sense of humor as well.
“Some day I think you probably will be sitting up here,” Campos said, “but for today, let me say a little bit about Jesus.”
With a smile, Campos commended the Yucatan native for pulling himself out of the street-life and the juvenile justice system—he has completed a tattoo removal program—to become a model citizen. Now he’s involved with a number of community-based social justice organizations and is scoring high marks at the Life Learning Academy.
“I really feel really happy right now for this, and I feel really excited,” a beaming Ballote said. “And I feel real nervous too, and I want to thank everyone for this.” APPLAUSE.
It was a welcome change in mood from the acrimony in which the previous applause was given.
Earlier in the week, Campos showed up to support immigrants at a joint hearing of the Immigrant Rights and Human Rights Commissions. The commissions were gathering information on the impact of a change in the city’s posture on undocumented immigrants. Check out this Mission Loc@l report for more.