It has been a tough ride for longtime Santa Ana Mayor Miguel A. Pulido since his successful re-election last November.  He easily defeated Councilman David P. Benavides in that election, but Bneavides came out on top as part of a City Council that appears to be united in their pettiness towards Pulido.

The City Council fired City Manager Paul Walters, although he saved the city from a massive budget deficit by outsourcing our expensive Fire Department to the Orange County Fire Authority.  And someone on the Council leaked damaging information to the Voice of OC about the embarrassing investigation of Deputy City Manager Jill Arthur, who has always been loyal to Pulido.  She will almost certainly retire and not return to City Hall.

But despite all the attacks on him, Pulido has been in the news, a lot, because he has been heavily involved in two regional issues.  Pulido has been leading the charge to save the fire pits on our Orange County coastal beaches.  He has been doing so in his capacity as a member of the Southern California Air Quality Managment District’s Board of Governors.  Even OC Weekly editor Gustavo Arellano, who has no love for Pulido, has to begrudgingly admit that he is rooting for Pulido: Continue reading→