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Sam Blakeslee not running for reelection

January 28, 2012

Sam Blakeslee

State Sen. Sam Blakeslee, R-San Luis Obispo, officially announced he will not seek reelection shortly after the California Supreme Court validated redistricting maps slated to give the Democrats an edge.  [Tribune]

On Friday, the high court decided that senate maps drawn recently by a 14-member independent commission will be used for this year’s legislative elections, even though a pending referendum challenging the maps is expected to qualify for the ballot.

The ruling greatly increases the Democrats chances of gaining a super majority in the state senate needed for it to pass tax or fee increases. Many opponents and proponents of the maps agree that the new boundaries give the Democrats a good chance of gaining two new seats by unseating Blakeslee and Tony Strickland of Moorpark

Blakeslee has spent the past 15 years in public service with six years in the State Assembly and about two years in the Senate.

All of San Luis Obispo County sets in the 24th District. Under the new boundary lines, the district contains 17 percent more Democrats than Republicans largely because of the addition of a larger portion of liberal Santa Cruz County.


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Frankly, it is a surprise to me why someone who has embraced a career in politics would rather suddenly drop out.


I am sure their are many theories positive or negative… we’ll all just have to wait and see if there are any follow up stories. Did he decide to spend more family time? Is he the new executive director of Mothers for Peas? There are always reasons… we probably haven’t heard what they are.


As for who might run and replace him, I really don’t think it matters too much. It’s not like a dissenting voice matters in Sacramento… although I applaud a few of our Governors very courageous decisions, I am concerned that his own party will not let him go where he apparently wants to go to fix the state economy. Increasing taxes and abolishing Prop 13 sit on top of a long list of very stupid Democratic ideas.


Anyway, there are great Republicans like Abel Maldonado who take tough stands… but they are few.


Roger


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Roger, like always, you are clueless…or willfully ignorant.


Republicans are SELFISH WHORES !


Some times not so nice to have to look into the mirror of honesty…not that you will. Your conceit is an acid to your soul…not that you ever really had one.


Some time… I don’t care when…All of you TOXIC Republicans will realize that you are SICK and come crawling for help.


Too bad !


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Once again, more written proof that liberalism IS a mental disorder.


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If I’m not mistaken Side_Show_ didn’t you last appear in a straight jacket? Aren’t you continually foiled by a young boy and girl. Well for a Yale graduate you are you are a typical inept Republican.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sideshow_Bob


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Yep it looks like a bad case of echochamberpotdittothinkia you may have picked it up drinking from it. LIBERALISIM


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Thank you for the compliment as the definition attached to the link for LIBERALISM \is something I am proud to be associated with. As “dittothink” is an affliction made popular by the CONservatives I think you have your definitions reversed. LIBERAL is an intellectual doctrine while conservatism is a reactionary and regressive philosophy practiced by the feeble minded.


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Slowerfaster,


1) Life is too short to read Roger’s posts, he’s a bitter old man full of hate.


2) Side_show_bob is over the top whacked, he’s a crazy man full of hate.


Just two facts about two of my least favorite posters on CCN. They are so full of hate that I don’t usually even bother with them.


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TQ …Oh I know, and believe me, I am WAY past trying to inform, reform, or even argue with such fatuous blather any more. So much disinformation goes unchallenged or even accepted as valid points , such as “Increasing taxes and abolishing Prop. 13 sit at the top of a long list of very stupid Democratic ideas”.

The type that spout this nonsense are so used to being given a pass by weak-kneed ‘kumbaya’ pretend liberals that they never know how to react to a ‘Harry Truman’

fighter like myself that calls them what they are.


It is not these ‘lost causes’ that I seek to educate, but those that would swallow their noxious snake oil unawares.


Eventually, anti-civilization legislation as epitomized by Prop. 13 will be overturned or replaced. It will be recognized as creating the dynamic of turning a once prosperous state into perpetual deficit and third world poverty.

And here’s the kicker: You know who ends up paying HIGHER property taxes because of Prop. 13 ? Everyone that needs to buy a Newer home or has to relocate. This effectively keeps alot of possible upwardly mobile EARNERS from ever doing so !


Now, there are aspects of Prop. 13 that make sense , such as LOW Fixed income owners qualifying …but it should have had a ‘means testing’ criteria. so that miilionaires could not skate with grandfathered low property taxes on multiple estates.


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Good riddance! He, along with Katcho, didn’t have the guts to stand up to the Tea Pastsies and allow the citizens of the state to vote on whether we wanted a tax increase to balance our budget. Just another coward protecting his own behind.


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I don’t care which side you are on, I simply say don not re-elect anyone, republican or democrate. It seems clear that none of the current elected can work together so throw them all out.


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Baloney !


We have ONE group of ‘My way or the highway’ intransigents that simply refuse to co-operate, compromise, or in any manner attempt to work together for the common good with anyone of different philosophical, political, or ethnic makeup.

Where the nation has suffered so greatly is when these bullies have been capitulated to by careerist cowards that won’t stand up for the people they are supposed to represent.


Part of the reason Blakesly is dropping out is because he has become a pariah in his own party for even attempting bipartisanship. His party will now nominate some crazy teabagger type and go down in flames.


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Baloney is right!


I hadn’t thought of the ramifications of Blakeslee dropping out, you raise some interesting and valid concerns. You and Ted had better get on your knees and pray (as I know you two have a close relationship with God) to keep the tea bags away from our wonderful central coast. It’s bad enough that we have K. McCarthy, we can’t afford to have any more tea bags infiltrating our beautiful area.


You are probably right, I would imagine that his party would turn on him if they have a bagger in the wings to take his place.


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Great news!


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Sam could do himself and the district a favor and switch parties.

He doesn’t belong in that party of psychopaths, bullies, and just plain nasty people.


If people of legitimate conscience were to wake up, join together with the 99% , and throw out the 1% bums that mess everything up so that THEY stay rich; we could be on the way to recovery and true human civilization.

This is what happened in Norway and Sweden after the 1930’s: They FIRED the 1% that were stealing from everyone else. They did it peacefully, and it took time and hardship…but the Scandinavian democracies are in far better shape than the ole USA is now in. They live longer, they’re smarter, they have better paying jobs with decent benefits. And you know what? They STILL have rich people. They just can’t be rich thieves or rich slave-owners…unlike the corrupt and criminal United States of Corporations.


Switch party, Sam. You’ll feel alot better, and you won’t have to lie so much.


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“psychopaths, bullies, and just plain nasty people”. Seriously? Because in all the history of crime and disgust, there has never been ANY commiting such that were Democrats? Tell me, how do you define “nasty”? A President who uses a cigar for sexual aid with a woman who works for him? If this is okay to you, then you have bigger issues than mere ineptitude.


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Strawman from over a dozen years ago ?


DESPERATE !


I reiterate, Sam would be better off jumping off of the Clown Car of racists, bigots, and professional haters that are currently the shock troops for the 1% in the USA.


In the Scandinavian countries, it was the uncaring attitudes of the 1% that finally drove the farmers, workers, and even the merchant class to rebel against their oppressors.


Yeah, I’d say my ‘issues’ are bigger than whether two adults have consensual relations.


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“Nasty” is when a Vice President is allowed to control the administration and has his surrogate, Baby Bush, send thousands of our countrymen and woman to their deaths for political reasons which had no relation to the defense of our country. But the biggest “nasty” is a cowardly constituency that allowed this massacre to occur our of fear for their own butts.


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Absolutely, when taking votes on who out does who on the nasty factor the right wins head over heals. From Nixon to Bush they’ve showed how nasty and low humans can be. I agree 100%. But I really don’t believe that Blakeslee can be put in that nasty box with the rest of them, he is one of the exceptions IMO. I don’t agree with everything he does but I don’t agree with everything that anyone does. I feel that we need more people that can cross party lines and bring people together and I honestly feel that Blakeslee is one of the few that can do that.


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That is why I suggest Sam look at the situation, and switch.

He can be reasoned with.. He has a sense of humor. He has compassion for humanity.

Therefore HE IS NOT A REPUBLICAN. They HATE EVERYTHING , if they cannot own it, they will DESTROY it.

Republicans = HATERS of HUMANITY.

Simply the WORST humans in flesh. Confederates. Fascists.


THAT is what they are !

CONFRONT THESE ENEMIES of all creation at all TIMES .

CALL OUT their idiocy !

Make them CRAWL back under their rocks !


Republicans have PROVEN themselves to be the VERMIN and COCKROACHES of creation !


I HAVE the EVIDENCE !


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Switch parties? He’d still be Sam with the same beliefs. This is a sorry indictment of the California voting public – we vote based on a party label and not on the candidate? Maybe the legislature isn’t the problem after all – maybe the problem is the horde of lemmings that can’t evaluate a candidate and just look at a label.


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Switching parties may be a good idea, but it sorta comes across to some folk like the act of a ‘traitor’ thus a loss of trust in the man’s true beliefs, one would think.


All is not well in Sweden according to Sweden’s News in English namely ‘The Local’. In this mornings edition the Swedish E-U minister Brigitta Obisson suggested “Sweden needs the American dream”. However, if you read the rather long comment section, that didn’t set well with many local & E-U folk.


Also, the good folk in Stockholm would humanly and perhaps thumpingly do well to think outside of the hutch for a better way to co-exist with bunnies and keep Sweden warm, rather than feed 6000 of them to the heating plant.


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It would be silly to put the money and effort in to running. Sam’s made a smart decision. With the addition of even more dirty hippies into the fray, there’s no way he’d make it.


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I met Sam once or twice, he seems like a genuinely nice person. He attempted to do a good job for our district, with his help ASH is supposedly a little safer (perhaps just a little “less” dangerous than it used to be?) and I appreciated his environmental efforts. I just wish that he could have stood up to his party leadership and voted his true feelings instead of towing the party line as much as he did.


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I agree with Typoqueen, Blakslee’s appeal crosses party lines. He’s one of the few politicians that I truly like and trust. His decisions seem to always be well thought out and based on facts. Pleae reconsider Sen. Blakslee!


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I feel that this is a big mistake on Blakeslee’s part. I believe that he would have support from both parties and there’s very few politicians that can do that.


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