Chris Daly Twirls His Mustache, Cackles at Ross Mirkarimi as
Chiu Ekes Out Win
By Joe Eskenazi
Watching a man with mutton-chops every bit as stylish as his
white overalls engrave the word "President" on Supervisor David Chiu's office
door, one couldn't help but recall good ol' Will Shakespeare: "Some are born
great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them."
election for Board President will determine how much greatness Chiu earned by
achievement and how much came via thrust. But I tell you this: While Chiu said
his victory was unexpected, he sure did have a nice speech prepared - and he
named every last city noteworthy in the room down to the city librarian. How
presidential.
inexperienced, smart lawyers to win the presidency. When you throw in the racial
pioneering factor - Chiu is the first Chinese-American president of the board,
and, as about 30 people noted today, one of three Asian supes - then you don't
exactly have to be an SAT-prep instructor to make this analogy.
As my colleague Benjamin Wachs noted in his stunningly
thorough live-blogging (a great act to follow; thanks, pal), City Hall was
packed today. It was as if folks were rushing to see a fight to the death
between Chris Daly and Mayor Gavin Newsom - with the prize to the victor being
death. Along with several very cranky television cameramen, your humble
narrator was turned away from the Supervisors' Chambers, despite showing up a
full 25 minutes before the meeting. So, I marched downstairs with at least 300
other folks and watched a man with a crushed velvet maroon jacket and pants, a
red shirt, white tie and magenta socks set up a TV for us to watch.
think I'll go with Angela Calvillo, the clerk of the board of supervisors. She's the one who has to ask for public comment prior to the supes'
vote for board president. First of all - why, God, why? This is not a
plebiscite, ladies and gentlemen. This is back-room politics without the
back-room. These folks are enmeshed in more alliances than
is some local guy with socks and sandals and a bag full of other bags going to
sway them? On that note, while Cavillo refers to public commentary, what she
really means is "let's hear from some folks who can be here at
Down in the overflow room, the commentary did not hold the
crowd's attention; a buzz started rumbling through the masses from back to front
hearking to grade school when some clever kid managed to smuggle a dog into the
classroom. The folks manning the small café did a brisk business. But, just as
the ennui became deadly, a voice from my past bellowed through the television:
"Brothers and sisters!" shouted the man who can only be characterized as King
of the Burnouts. He looked like the detritus that fills the net in a bathtub
drain and wore a corduroy hat. And I knew, just from that intonation, who he
was: He was the hippie who leapt onstage during the 1998 Fugazi Food Not Bombs
concert in Dolores Park that, for reasons I still can't fathom, I mark as the
happiest day of my life. I remember it well. The Burnout King was bodily thrown
from the stage by DJ Disk. Anyway, on to the voting.
will add these observations:
ayes, Ross Mirkarimi had four and John Avalos two (with Daly and Chiu not
getting any), it was clear that some progressive was going to win this. The
only question was who. I had my money on Avalos. Shows you what I know - to
crib from columnist Gregg Easterbrook, "All predictions wrong or your money
back."
not finishing in the top two would drop out, too. A laugh went through the
room. A lady with a gecko shirt and matching fishnets said, "he always has to
be so controversial." Chiu noted that, despite the fact no one had voted for
him yet, he was still willing to be a consensus candidate, "if the need
arises." Well, guess what?
going to vote for Maxwell, and four were locked in for Chiu - leaving Daly and
Mirkarimi. Daly, who had previously voted for himself and then his former aide
Avalos, began voting for himself again. Choose the metaphor you want: twisting
the knife, salting the wounds, or, my personal favorite, pissing on a man when
he's down. Daly was toying with Mirkarimi here, forcing the man many -
including Mirkarimi - viewed as the natural successor to endure the inevitable.
If this vote could be translated into words, it was Daly baiting Mirkarimi:
"How's it gonna be, Ross? How's it gonna be?" So, in Round 7, when Avalos
withdrew and Daly voted for Chiu, Mirkarimi followed suit and put himself out
of his misery.
board president? I mean, aside from his other qualities, he and Barack Obama
share the exact same birthday (same year, too)!
in the last mayoral election (and a Mirkarimi constituent) said a lot of the
same things I've heard whispered: This wasn't political. It was personal. While
Mirkarimi galloped to victory with 77 percent of the vote in District 5, he's
apparently less popular with his co-workers. "When Matt Gonzalez became board
president no one had a word to say regarding his policies," noted Mecke.
Gonzalez got along with people - he famously even got on with Tony Hall.
Get-Along Gang? It wasn't an ideal day for Mirkarimi, but if silver linings
must be unearthed, he can recall the gleaming public commentary he got from his
supporters (at
Unlike Willy Loman - another man whose career didn't go the way he'd wanted -
when it comes to his people, Mirkarimi isn't just liked. He's well-liked.