New Santa Ana | Category Archives: Sal Tinajero

Tinajero decries leaked release of the Miguel Pulido City Investigation Report

Posted on October 14, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Civic Affairs, Miguel Pulido, OCDA, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 7 Comments

Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Sal Tinajero Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 14, 2014

Contact: Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Sal Tinajero, 714-913-3515

Sal Tinajero Distances Himself From The Release Of The Miguel Pulido City Investigation Report

Santa Ana Mayor ProTem Sal Tinajero was surprised and disappointed when he found that the investigation report on Mayor Miguel Pulido had been leaked to the media. Tinajero stated, “I have always respected the opinion of the Orange County District Attorney’s office. From the very beginning I informed the public that I would not release the report if I found that doing so could potentially damage the ongoing investigation.”

It was made public that the office of the Orange County District Attorney urged the city of Santa Ana not to release the report. Continue reading→

Mayor Pro Tem Tinajero drops his endorsement of Councilman David Benavides

Posted on October 12, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Alex Padilla, David Benavides, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 11 Comments

Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Sal Tinajero Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 12, 2014

Contact: Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Sal Tinajero, 714-913-3515

Mayor Pro-Tem Sal Tinajero drops his endorsement of Santa Ana Council Member David Benavides

Santa Ana – It has been a tumultuous relationship for Santa Ana Mayor Pro-Tem Sal Tinajero and Ward 4 Santa Ana City Council member David Benavides. Tinajero begged Benavides, in 2010, not to give an award to Minuteman Lupe Moreno and her racist colleagues, but Benavides held on to his stubborn position and did it anyway.

In 2010, Benavides was caught working with OC GOP Central Committee member Thomas Gordon and Helen Martinez in a vote-splitting scheme to oust Tinajero from Ward 6. The scheme backfired when Gordon did not get enough signatures to qualify to be a candidate for the 2010 election. The OC Weekly ran a story that produced emails to prove that Benavides was a part of the plan. Continue reading→

Councilwoman Martinez says she won’t mind if she isn’t reelected in November

Posted on October 10, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Alfredo Amezcua, Angelica Amezcua, David Benavides, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Mirna Velasquez, Orange County, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 27 Comments

Santa Ana Councilwoman Michele Martinez, told NBC News this week that she “will not mind if she isn’t reelected in November.” She was interviewed after this week’s City Council meeting had to be canceled after a punk in a “F*ck the police” hat wouldn’t leave.

“As I sat here and listened to all the comments, it’s really disheartening. People want to come here and threaten us,” said Martinez. “At the end of the day let me tell you I can go to sleep at night, so I don’t care if you feel that I have not done a job that you’ve asked me to do.”

The sad reality for Martinez is that she has been pandering to the FTP crowd for some time – but as she saw on Tuesday night they are insatiable. They are anarchists and nothing she or any other politician does is going to mollify them. Continue reading→

Tinajero caught at the Angels game while blowing off the Chamber of Commerce’s Candidates Forum

Posted on October 2, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Baseball, Mike Gonzalez, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 20 Comments

Sal Tinajero at the Angels Game

Picture courtesy of the OC Political Blog

It was a rough night for Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Sal Tinajero. He blew off the Santa Ana Chamber of Commerce’s candidates forum – but then he got caught playing hooky when he showed up on tonight’s telecast of the Angel’s playoff game in Anaheim. In fact Tinajero showed up at least twice!

Now I know that Tinajero is a huge Angels fan, and it has been awhile since the boys in red made the playoffs but tonight’s no show at the Chamber’s candidates forum comes at a bad time for Tinajero. He is not running much of a reelection campaign – he has no campaign website and I have seen no evidence of any precinct walking or any other campaign activities. It just seems like he is going through the motions this year – even though he has a challenger in the form of businessman Mike Gonzalez, who is campaigning very hard for Ward 6. Continue reading→

Why isn’t Mayor Pro Tem Tinajero running much of a reelection campaign?

Posted on September 23, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Alfredo Amezcua, John Palacio, Mike Gonzalez, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 21 Comments

Santa Ana’s Mayor Pro Tem, Sal Tinajero, is up for reelection in Ward 6, in this November’s General Election, but you would hardly know that as he still doesn’t have a campaign website. Tinajero has a personal Facebook page but hasn’t even bothered to launch a Campaign Facebook page.

What is up with Tinajero? I know he is a busy guy but the message he is sending to the voters is that he isn’t interested in their vote.

This is the wrong year for Tinajero to take a vacation during campaign season as he has a challenger who is working hard and who is known in the community, in the form of Miguel “Mike” Gonzalez. Continue reading→

Santa Ana parents should demand the return of the fired school crossing guards

Posted on September 12, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Carlos Rojas, Civic Affairs, Education, Politics, Public Safety, Roman Reyna, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, SAUSD 3 Comments

Santa Ana pedestrian accidents

Santa Ana parents are demanding that city officials reverse their decision to remove school crossing guards without warning, saying the move is putting children’s lives in danger, according to the Voice of OC.

About 25 crossing guards were removed near Santa Ana schools as of the start of the school year last Tuesday, according to police officials.

But parents from at least one campus protested, and the city has since reinstated a crossing guard, at least temporarily, near Santiago Elementary School, according to the O.C. Register. Continue reading→

How we stopped the mosquito spraying operation in Santa Ana

Posted on September 8, 2014 by Editor Posted in Disease, Health and Medical, Janet Nguyen, Orange County, Orange County Vector Control District, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 11 Comments

Santa Ana Mosquito Gate

Officially the Orange County Vector Control District is saying that they canceled this week’s proposed mosquito insecticide spraying due to the weather and while it is true that the weather this week is not optimal for spraying the insecticide in question there is a lot more to this story.

When I first posted the first press release, last Friday, announcing that the mosquito spraying operation was going to begin this Monday, Sep. 8, 2014, I wondered why only Santa Ana was being targeted. I later received a phone call from a former Santa Ana Council Member asking me to follow up the press release with more information about the spraying in question.

I wrote that post and posted the link on the Facebook pages of various local elected officials and community/political organizations. The post included a full list of the local elected officials including their Facebook pages, phone numbers and both personal and government emails. And then the Facebook community responded… Continue reading→

City Council’s ongoing attack on Mayor Pulido comes up empty again

Posted on September 3, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, David Benavides, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, OCDA, Politics, Roman Reyna, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 10 Comments

Tinajero, Martinez and Benavides

Santa Ana City Council members voted Tuesday in closed session to release to the public the city attorney’s report on Mayor Miguel Pulido’s property swap case on Sept. 30 if District Attorney Tony Rackauckas or the state’s political watchdog don’t file criminal charges against the mayor by then, according to the Voice of OC.

What is this all about? In 2010, members of the Pulido family traded a parking lot they owned to Rupen James Akoubian, owner of NAPA Orange County Auto Parts, in exchange for a house in Westminster. According to the public assessor’s appraisals, the fair market value of the house was more than twice as much as the Pulidos’ lot, according to the Voice of OC.

The family later transferred the house solely into the mayor’s name, and he ultimately sold it for nearly $400,000, netting a $197,000 profit. Meanwhile, Akoubian’s store received a $1.35 million, no-bid city contract to supply auto parts to the municipal vehicle fleet.

So did Pulido break any laws? Let’s look at this point by point: Continue reading→

Ward 2 candidate Mirna Velasquez earns OC Labor Fed’s co-endorsement

Posted on September 1, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Civic Affairs, David Benavides, Democratic Party, Elections, Labor, Michele Martinez, Mirna Velasquez, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 2 Comments

Mirna Velasquez

The Orange County Labor Federation’s granted their COPE (Committee on Political Education) General Election endorsements to the three incumbents running for the Santa Ana City Council – Michele Martinez (Ward 2), David Benavides (Ward 4) and Sal Tinajero (Ward 6) but they also endorsed Ward 2 challenger Mirna Velasquez.

All of these incumbent candidates are Democrats and OC Labor tends to stick to the blue party. But Velasquez, the last time I heard, is a Decline to State voter. That she received a co-endorsement is pretty astounding and a good sign that she is indeed an electable City Council candidate.

Mirna’s bio: Continue reading→

All the Santa Ana City Council incumbents will be opposed this November

Posted on August 11, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Alex Padilla, David Benavides, Elections, Gilad Salmon, Mark I. Lopez, Miguel Pulido, Mike Gonzalez, Mirna Velasquez, Politics, Roman Reyna, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 15 Comments

Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido tells the Nicholas Academic Centers’ 4th Annual Thanksgiving Dinner Celebration that the NACs are profoundly changing education

Well the dust has finally cleared and we now know who is running for the Santa Ana City Council in this November’s General election.

The Mayor’s race lost many of the candidates who had pulled papers, including State Senator Lou Correa and Santa Ana Councilman Vince Sarmiento. The incumbent, Mayor Miguel Pulido, is running again and he will be facing off against first term Council Member Roman Reyna and a fellow named Mark I. Lopez, who is an entrepreneur/soldier, according to the Voice of OC. Continue reading→

Mike Gonzalez announces his campaign for Ward 6 on the Santa Ana City Council

Posted on July 17, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Democratic Party, Mike Gonzalez, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 2 Comments

Miguel “Mike” Gonzalez has announced his campaign for Ward 6 on the Santa Ana City Council. That seat is currently held by Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Sal Tinajero, who works as a public school teacher and debate team coach in Fullerton.

Gonzalez’s campaign website states:

Born in California and raised with one sibling, Miguel Gonzalez, learned early on the value of hard work, teamwork, and perseverance. He graduated at the top of his high school class and led his football team to a state championship victory, all while working a part-time job as a security guard.
Continue reading→

The Santa Ana City Council runs for cover as they reject their own raise proposal

Posted on July 15, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Ballot Measures, Civic Affairs, David Benavides, Lou Correa, Marijuana, Michele Martinez, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 8 Comments

The Santa Ana City Council unanimously rejected their own ballot measure proposal, which was Agenda Item # 65A, to give themselves what amounted to a 700% pay raise. We have been hammering them on this issue for weeks – even posting an article about how much this Council really makes. I surmise that they finally realized this was going to kill their re-election campaigns. Council Members Michele Martinez and David Benavides as well as Mayor Pro Tem Sal Tinajero are all up for re-election this November.

The ballot measure proposal they killed included revisions to the Code of Ethics and to their own campaign finance rules. Remarkably the Council was proposing to accept campaign contributions from residents and business owners who were asking for licenses or permits.

I think the gorilla in the room tonight was the possibility that State Senator Lou Correa will be running for Mayor of Santa Ana. This rumor has now been confirmed by multiple sources and I believe he will be running regardless of what Mayor Miguel Pulido decides to do. You can bet that Correa will win and I am certain that he will find candidates to oppose the Council Members who are up for re-election if they don’t start getting in line. Continue reading→

How much does the Santa Ana City Council really earn?

Posted on July 14, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Civic Affairs, David Benavides, Miguel Pulido, Roman Reyna, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 7 Comments

The Santa Ana City Clerk has re-posted the Council Members’ total compensation and benefits today however a key piece of the puzzle is missing. The Santa Ana Open Government website does not include how much the City Council Members are paid to serve on various County Commissions.

I emailed the City Clerk, Maria Huizar, about this discrepancy and she pointed me to a different page – the Mayor and City Council page, where this information is found when you click on “Form 806.” Who in the public would know what the heck that is? The good news is that Huizar said she will look into my recommendation to put this information with the Council’s pay, on the Open Government page. We need to make it easier, not harder, for the voters to find out how much the City Council members really are earning.

As we posted this weekend, the Santa Ana Council Members are going to try to place a measure on the November General Election ballot that will result in a huge increase in their pay. But shouldn’t the City of Santa Ana be more transparent about how much the Council Members really earn when you factor in the pay and benefits that stem from their service on various County Boards?

Here is what the Council Members make by serving on various Boards: Continue reading→

Three Council Members seek to ban medical marijuana collectives

Posted on July 12, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Angelica Amezcua, Civic Affairs, Crime, David Benavides, Drugs, Marijuana, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Roman Reyna, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 25 Comments

Three Santa Ana City Council Members, including Michele Martinez, David Benavides and Angie Amezcua have placed an 85A item on the agenda for this Tuesday’s City Council meeting, regarding medical marijuana.

These Council Members would like to place a measure on the November General Election ballot that would allow voters to vote against the sale of medical marijuana by collectives/dispensaries. Continue reading→

Pulido lawyers up – should the Council Members do so as well?

Posted on May 29, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Civic Affairs, Crime, David Benavides, Jose Solorio, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 9 Comments

Mayor Miguel Pulido

Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido has received at least $25,000 in contributions toward a legal defense fund that he established in January as he is being investigated by the state’s political watchdog agency, according to the OC Register.

The “Miguel Pulido Legal Defense Fund” was set up in January, shortly after City Attorney Sonia Carvalho began investigating a real estate swap involving Pulido that ethics experts say looks like a bribe and could have violated state conflict of interest laws, according to the Voice of OC.

My sources tell he that a few of the Santa Ana Council Members may want to set up legal defense funds of their own. One pajarito in particular told me last week that the FBI is looking at conflict of interest by the Council Members with regard to real estate development on Bristol and Seventeenth and at the property formerly known as the Honer Plaza which is now called the Bristol Marketplace. Continue reading→