Former Lois Capps supporter mounting 2014 challenge

December 3, 2013

A former liberal Lois Capps supporter is running as a conservative Republican against the15-year incumbent congresswoman.

Santa Barbara City Councilman Dale Fancisco announced at a San Luis Obispo North County Tea Party meeting Monday evening that he will run against Capps, and all other challengers, for California’s 24th Congressional seat in 2014.

“I’m living proof that a liberal can get his head right,” Francisco said

Francisco said he transformed from a liberal to a conservative over the course of many years. The process began with him reading the works of Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman in college and accelerated as he worked as a software engineer for several computer networking companies, including Cisco Systems.

“I realized from the inside that corporations were not these evil entities that they are portrayed as in the liberal mind,” Francsico said. “People love their iPhones. People love their iPads. They are products of corporate America, and they are great products.”

The events of September 11, 2001 sealed his transformation to conservatism because he realized America really had enemies, Francisco said.

The Santa Barbara councilman said he lives five blocks away from Capps, and he runs into her on the street occasionally. Capps is a nice lady, but she needs to be replaced, he said.

“Lois Capps is one of the most fervent believers of Obamacare in Congress,” Francsico said. “She will go down with that ship, I believe.”

Francisco described Obamacare as a debacle and an arrogant attempt to take over 15 percent of the American economy.

He also said the United States must reverse its debt and suggested eliminating 10 federal departments.

Three thousand federal workers are wasting time and money simply figuring out cities’ prevailing wages, Francisco said.

Francisco said he is also conservative on social issues.

“I believe abortion is wrong. I don’t believe same sex marriage is marriage,” he said.

But, he said the federal government should not dictate moral issues and instead leave them to the states to decide.

Francisco said he plans to win the congressional seat in 2014 and reclaim it in 2016, alongside the election of a Republican president.

Former actor and conservative Republican, Chris Mitchum, has also announced plans to run for Capps’s seat. Mitchum lost to Capps and Abel Maldonado in the 2012 primary.

The top two finishers in the June 2014 primary, regardless of party, will advance to the November 2014 general election.