Rumors were flying the past few days about a dramatic new disclosure coming from another victim of sexual harassment by San Diego Bob Filner (Democrat).
The tales were wrong… but only in the fact they didn’t fully convey the scale of disgusting behavior offered up by our city’s chief executive.
During a press conference with women’s rights attorney Gloria Allred, a nurse said Filner touched her and pressured her to go on a date after she met with him to request help for a wounded Marine.
I am trying to imagine what Filner could to that would be lower than this:
The meeting took place on June 11 in Filner’s office, Allred said. [Michelle] Tyler and the former Marine, Katherine Ragazzino, were following up a meeting they had had with Filner when he was still a congressman, Allred said. They wanted the mayor to help resolve a status dispute Ragazzino was having with the Veterans Administration, Allred said.
A Veterans Administration representative was at the meeting. Filner encouraged the representative to resolve the issue and then asked everyone but Tyler to leave his office, Allred said.
When the two were alone, Filner said, “Wow, you’re really magnificent,” and began rubbing Tyler’s arm, according to Allred. “Relax. You are incredible. I will help your vet, but I want you to go out to dinner with me and spend time with me.”
Tyler said she was shocked by Filner’s behavior. She tried several times to steer the conversation back to getting help for Ragazzino, but Filner continued to ask her out and said he would like to kiss her.
However, the most startling statement was made by the wounded Marine, Ragazzino: “I don’t appreciate being used as a bargaining chip to fulfill (Filner’s) sexual desires.”
The San Diego community is home to many military families, so the lines to all our local talk shows are burning up with outrage. And with about 77% of the city wanting Filner to resign, you would think a recall effort might be a done deal if Filner fails to go voluntarily…especially if “tea party” types get involved.
That isn’t quite the case.
Dean Riehm, one of our savviest San Diego bloggers, is skeptical of the call for a recall. Filner serving is just desserts for the voters’ failure to do due diligence:
We’ve been calling it our salute to the low information voter. To wit, has anyone who has been paying attention to this guy over the years really not thought he was a massively flaming [dolt] of the highest order and thus not fit to serve as the mayor of our fine city? At age 70, he did not suddenly turn into this acerbic, arrogant, bullying perv… he’s been this way for years and aside from the specific allegations of unwanted sexual advances, this has been common knowledge as to the man’s character and behavior….
The recall effort is going to be lengthy and costly and to our knowledge, the city charter is vague on the specifics leaving the un-codified recalling mechanism up to the City Council to figure out. To our thinking, this is a recipe for a bureaucratic and legal disaster.
… Call it tough love or taking the medicine or us just having a little temper tantrum over here in the corner but we want this one to sting.
And having recently been involved in several petition-based campaigns that failed, I find it hard not to disagree.
In a San Diego Union Tribune compendium of “Letters to the Editor” on this subject, Art Bell of Mission Valley concurs with Riehm (while cleverly likening Filner to Caligula): [I]t would be better for San Diego if the voters were to pay more attention to electing stable mayors rather than just creating the position of strong mayor. The signs were all there that Filner was an incipient tyrant and narcissist.
San Diegan Bruce Skovmand says, “[H]e’s just a dirty old man and he can stop this whenever he wants.”
Sadly, San Diegans cannot stop Filner’s term whenever they want. He is going to be the gift that keeps giving from our “low information voters”.
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Comments
All female staffers should demand to be relocated to a remote office far from Filner. They can use the phone, email, Skype and gotomeeting to communicate with him. Put him in isolation.
Filner’s behavior is misogyny. He needs to be called out as a mysogynist.
For how long is San Diego stuck with him?
In the City of San Diego, the Mayor serves a four-year term and is limited to two successive terms. Eight years, max.
Thanks. So, three more years, unless the scandal gets so out of control that Democrats demand his resignation. It seems highly unlikely that he will return from two weeks of “therapy” as a non-lecher. He’ll continue his offensive behavior, because he really doesn’t think it’s offensive.
Neither elected ‘rats or their base give a hoot about stuff like this. It’s no different than America having to suffer obastard’s corruptions, racism and support for our enemies.
The left’s forty-year dominance in the “education” system is paying off for them. People in this country become more ignorant each year.
Democrats have already demanded his resignation. The toad is still hanging in. Theory is, he wants to stay through the end of December so he’ll qualify for a pension.
The low info’s don’t care; as long as their Obamaphones work, the food stamps keep coming, and hey, there’s a new Section 8 complex down the block.
I wish laws could be changed so that only the working or property owners could vote.
I will also add as voting qualifiers marriage, or military service.
Okay with me if deliberate slugs and/or ignorants are left on the sidelines.
Gloria Allred…Gloria Allred…Gloria Allred
I am sooo over that weasel woman
Even when she gets a reasonable “victim” to represent, she still makes me tend to favor her opponents.
Uhh, not this time
Have you seen the MUG on this guy ?
I mean, come on, he looks like something a trout on drugs would have a bad dream about ….
I think this story sells to the unemployed. Because anyone who works in an office that holds more than five people … knows of the gal who takes off her underpants when she goes into her boss’ office.
In today’s world you can add males and females in many combinations.
Also, if you’ve ever gone into a bar on a Friday night, after work, you’d see gals coming onto guys … just like that!
And, once Gloria Alred shows up you know these gals aren’t about sex at all … but about money! Taxpayer payout settlements for absolutely no justifiable reason at all!
Go ahead, convince yourselves that only Filner does it.
OK – but the big difference is Filner is an elected official. Different rules apply.
If these gals came upon a bus accident; and, they weren’t even on the bus to begin with. They’d stand there. And, as soon as they could they’d run around screaming “whiplash.”
What’s whiplash? It’s a person saying they’ve lost motion of their necks … but nothing shows up on X-ray. And, there are no bruises. They can claim “whiplash” for years and years …
Just another name for insurance fraud.
With Filner you can add sex. None of these gals were virgins. None suffered damage. And, most made sure they were wearing sexy underclothes. And, very fragrant perfumes.
A long time ago women like these knew how to operate their fans. Which had feathers at their tops … And, they’d look at you over the feathers.
Hmmmm … sounds like you support the claim that scantily clad women deserve to be raped because of the clothes they wear. I like sexy women as much as the next guy, and my eyes work great, but I can keep my hands to myself in all situations.
I agree with not having a recall. You have to realize that with Democrat vote fraud and the goolie-less, gormless Republican party in California; Filner is almost certain to survive the recall and be able to claim, if not innocence, at least public approval and acceptance of his past and future actions.
Electoral means are no longer really a feasible way to remove incompetents and sociopaths of either party. The game is rigged. What counts now is drawing the lines for whatever is to come. Let him continue to be the low life that he is. Rub the noses of not only Democrats but all the residents of San Diego in what Leftist rule really is like. They voted for it, let them wallow in it. Until it becomes intolerable. That is the only way that they will learn, the school of hard experience. No amount of reason will reach them.
For the military and dependents there, the lesson of the reality of what life will be like under the Leftists may be learned.
Subotai Bahadur
WTF is with the logic here? By definition, Low-info Voters do not even KNOW they’re being screwed. The notion of keeping Filner in as punishment for them is self-contradictory.
Then there’s the Plain Wrong-headed Voters. Even now, these people are defending his imperial moves on land use, his union-coddling, and his pointless re-arrangement of Balboa Park. There’s no “punishing” them either.
And perhaps people outside San Diego don’t realize how badly Filner is hated right now. A recall petition WILL succeed. What we get in Filner’s place is anyone’s guess. Republican Carl DeMaio lost narrowly with Obama’s behemoth voting machine in 2008, but a special election might more accurately reflect the wishes of San Diegans.
DeMaio, by the way, is now running for Congress.
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