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Another GOP Crook - Duncan Hunter indicted

Ted Lange

By Ted Lange
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Ghost of LL

Ghost of LL 15,541

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Posted

This is one of those districts that one assumes is safe right up until it gets swamped by a wave.  This is a Cook PVI of R+11.  But then PA06 was a PVI of R+18, and that one didn't have a Republican facing indictment.

This is a weird district.  It's incredibly poorly educated--fewer than 30% have college degrees.  Fewer than half its residents are registered to vote, and of the half that's registered, fewer than half will vote in the midterm.  It's not a place the Democrat should do well (and from all initial appearances, it isn't).  But damned if this doesn't change the calculus.

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Gil Bang

Gil Bang 26,035

Posted
Posted
 
 
Column | 

GOP was given a Hunter backup plan but passed on it

 
Rep. Duncan Hunter in a mock swearing in to Congress in 2011 by then-House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio as his wife Margaret looks on. Both Hunters were indicted Tuesday on charges including wire fraud and campaign finance crimes. (Associated Press)

They might have had a way out of this.

San Diego Republican leaders were presented with a backup plan earlier this year in case Rep. Duncan Hunter got indicted, but they balked.

 
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As the investigation into the misuse of campaign funds by Hunter and his wife, Margaret, ground on, El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells entered the the congressional race this year not so much to offer himself as a Republican alternative, but as a fail-safe option.

Under California’s primary system, the two candidates with the most votes advance to the November general election, regardless of party affiliation. It was more than plausible that both Hunter and Wells could have won in the super-red 50th Congressional District that covers large swaths of east and north inland San Diego County and part of southern Riverside County.

 

If Hunter went down, Republicans could turn to Wells.

But Hunter’s father, former Rep. Duncan Hunter, pressured potential contributors not to donate to Wells, effectively drying up his funding. Republican leaders appeared to stay out of it.

It might not have taken a lot to get Wells on the November ballot with Hunter. The incumbent finished first in the June 5 primary with 47.3 percent of the vote. Democrat Ammar Campa-Najjar finished second with 17.8 percent, trailed by Wells with 13 percent.

“If they had put up a little effort, or at least not blocked me as hard, I think we would have saved the seat for the Republicans,” Wells said Tuesday.

Wells still thought Hunter had a shot of winning in November and emphasized that he deserves his day in court. If Hunter wins and is convicted and has to step down, Wells said he would run again.

Now there’s no way to get another Republican on the November ballot. Under the top-two primary system, write-in candidates are only allowed in the primary, not in the general election, so that’s not an option. Even if Hunter resigned between now and November, his name would remain on the ballot, unless ordered off by a court for some reason.

In any event, Campa-Najjar may have advanced to the fall even with a more robust Wells campaign. He’s not the kind of sacrificial Democrat that typically has run against either Hunter in the past. Campa-Najjar, a former public-affairs official in the Obama administration’s Labor Department, is a new generation Democrat who leans progressive but has a pragmatic streak necessary to run in a heavily Republican District.

Importantly, he has raised a lot of money, is articulate on the stump and waged a serious campaign. He began attracting support from outside groups and is certain to get a lot more help from the national Democratic Party this fall.

 

This is a potential bonus district for the Democrats. Of the California Republican districts the Democratic Party initially believed it needed to win in order to gain the majority in the House of Representatives, the 50th wasn’t one of them.

“I would think the (Democratic National Committee) is licking its chops,” said Republican John Dadian, a consultant long involved in East County politics.

“...I won’t go as far as saying (Hunter) can’t win,” he added. “But clearly one of the strongest Republican districts in the nation could could go Democratic.”

Dadian, who has known the Hunters for years, said the breadth of the indictments is stunning and, stating the obvious, suggests that the congressman in in big trouble.

“I’ve got to be honest. I don’t think they get it,” Dadian said. “(Rep. Hunter) honestly didn’t believe he’d be indicted. He honestly didn’t think he did anything wrong. I don’t know if he’s in denial or what.”

The congressman, whose wife also was indicted, claimed on Tuesday the investigation was politically motivated. It’s a theme he raised weeks before the indictments. In a hard-edged speech on the House floor at the end of July, he accused Department of Justice officials of partisanship and said the agency “is corrupt, answerable to no one and uses the law to extort the American people and effect political change.”

Mayor Wells said that resonates among some voters in the district.

“I had people angry at me, scold me, for being involved because they perceive this as a conspiracy, much in the same way they do with the president,” he said.

As the investigation dragged on, it seemed that Hunter’s constituents gave him the benefit of the doubt. The Hunter name had long been respected in East County, in large part because of his father’s tenure in Congress. The father essentially handed his seat off to his son in the 2008 election without much fuss from anybody. Voters knew the younger Hunter had much of his father’s conservative point of view and appreciated the family’s strong sense of duty.

The father was an Army Ranger who fought in Vietnam and the son was a Marine artillery officer who waged battle Iraq and Afghanistan. Thus, of all the sordid details alleged in the indictments, this one may sting the most:

“On or about March 20, 2015, when Duncan Hunter told Margaret Hunter that he was planning to ‘buy my Hawaii shorts’ but had run out of money, she counseled him to buy the shorts at a golf pro shop so they could falsely describe the purchase later as ‘some [golf] balls for the wounded warriors.’”

The election still must play out. But patience with the Hunter dynasty in East County may be wearing thin.

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Hugo Stiglitz

Hugo Stiglitz 23,367

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Posted

He & his wife Margaret—now facing 60 counts of criminal charges—allegedly have no assets & charged groceries and utility bills to campaign credit cards. 

There is ONE reason why Duncan Hunter has been the congressman for California's 52nd District, mostly exurban & rural San Diego County: He has the same name as his father, Duncan Hunter, who was congressman there for 28 years until passing it to his son like an inheritance.

I lived in Duncan Sr.'s district for many years, and he was a lifelong far-right jerk who spent his career attacking the environment, immigrants, women & working people in general, while never failing to shovel your money & resources to billionaires. 

Now, after four decades of these morally vacant creeps controlling a district that has always been mostly working class & is increasingly Latino, there is a good chance of putting this dirty family's name in the trash & electing Ammar Campa (@ACampaNajjar), a good person. /end

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Gil Bang

Gil Bang 26,035

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Posted (edited)

I think it's  noteworthy that this shit all started with the Union-Tribune doing some real reporting.  

The story led to the investigation, that led to the indictment.


The same paper wrote the initial pieces on Duke Cunningham's dirty home sale, which eventually sent "Duke" to prison. 

Journalism is the watchdog of and for the people.  Support your local newspaper, folks. 

Edited by Gil Bang
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Gil Bang

Gil Bang 26,035

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3 minutes ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

You have to imagine that the GOP will strongly push the campaign to be that the public should vote for Rep. Hunter, who will then either refuse to serve or resign.   Promptly a special election at some point in 2019.  Avoid the seat falling into the hands of the Dem.  

If he resigns or refuses to serve, the seat WILL be filled by a Dem, unless John Cox manages to get himself elected Governor, which is unlikely. 

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lemonlime

lemonlime 5,503

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7 minutes ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

You have to imagine that the GOP will strongly push the campaign to be that the public should vote for Rep. Hunter, who will then either refuse to serve or resign.   Promptly a special election at some point in 2019.  Avoid the seat falling into the hands of the Dem.  

The same GOP that encouraged the public to vote for a pedophile?  They'll just blame the libtard DOJ for Hunter's criminality.

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Js1

Js1 85,587

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14 minutes ago, HenryJames said:

 

Just when I think the Democrats fucking suck at everything, they went and lost to Trump but somehow gained full control of the DOJ without anyone realizing it. Impressive.

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Gil Bang

Gil Bang 26,035

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Posted

STATEMENT FROM CAMPAIGN OF CONGRESSMAN DUNCAN HUNTER

I believe in our American system of justice, I support our system of justice.  I cannot say the same, however, for those within our justice system that have a political agenda to harm those with whom they differ. 
 
One of the pillars of our country since its founding is that those tasked with enforcing the law would do so in an unbiased manner, allowing evidence to dictate how cases should run, with nothing impeding the rule of law.  Unfortunately, this is not the case today.  The fact is that there is a culture operating within our Justice Department that is politically motivated. 
 
We are seeing this with President Trump; we are seeing this with my case.  This is evidenced by the fact that after two years of investigating, the Department of Justice decided to take this action right before my election. For over two years, I have made myself available to cooperate with this investigation in any manner.  To date, I have not been asked one time to answer any questions or address any issue.  I have not had one opportunity to present my side of anything in this investigation or to counter any allegations against me.
 
All the while, there has been a constant barrage of misinformation and salacious headlines in our media regarding this matter.  I purposely choose to remain silent, not to feed into this witch-hunt and trust the process.
 
I have focused on one thing; doing the job with which I was elected to do.  I have worked to represent my constituents, voting on policy issues that I believe would benefit our nation and opposing those that would do us harm.  I have helped those having problems with federal agencies and advocating for those who have fallen through the cracks of bureaucracy.  This is what I will continue to do, these efforts will not stop, and I am not going anywhere.
 
The actions of the Justice Department speak for themselves.  It is a sad state of affairs when those entrusted with upholding the law have no appreciation for following the rule of law.  Consider this; overwhelming evidence indicated that Hillary Clinton took direct action to circumvent investigations into her campaign, she was interviewed and no action was taken.  After two years of investigation into my campaign, I have never been interviewed and they made a decision to prosecute. 
 
Additionally, three prosecutors, two of which are directly involved this case, attended a fundraising event at a private home in La Jolla in 2015, one of which was the individual who signed the indictment.  We know these individuals attended this event from 9:00-12:00 noon during working hours.  We are told that this was at the request of Secret Service to officially assist law enforcement with protection, but this explanation is disputed by former U.S. Attorneys familiar with the responsibilities of their office.  The obvious question is why would the Secret Service need three prosecutors at a fundraising event?  The answer is they are partisan prosecutors.
 
My constituents are not easily misled.  I know they can recognize a political agenda when they see it and they can disregard empty rhetoric when they hear it.  I fought for our nation against terrorists in the Marine Corps.  I fight for my constituents in the halls of Congress.  I will fight this in the same manner and with the same level of determination because I believe in what I am fighting for and still have faith that evidence and the rule of law will trump political agendas and bias.

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