Jackie Speier Loses CA Primary- Dog Owners Say My Dog Votes!

Jackie Speier Loses CA Primary- Dog Owners Say My Dog Votes!

Jackie Speier - Thy Name is Mud.

Dog-owning Democrats must have carried the message that My Dog Votes to the polls in this week's primary election.

Ms. Speier - the California state senator favored to win the Democratic primary in the race for Lt. Governor - LOST THE ELECTION - due perhaps in no small part to dog owners. 

Yes - you did read that correctly - dog owners.  Dog owners may be the biggest political constituency you never heard of ............................

A Sleeping Giant

a sleeping giant comprising of almost 44.% of U.S. households - that is until now.  And those same dog owners may have tipped the California primary, ending Ms. Speier's aspirations to become California's Lt. Governor.

Bye -bye, Jackie!

Dog-owning Democrats are taking credit for Senator Speier's loss at the polls, in what can only be described as a backlash against Ms. Speier, for authoring the now infamous CA SB861, opposed by virtually every credible canine organization in the country.

Ms. Speier authored SB 861, which exploited the tragic death of a child and deliberately circumvents California state law against breed discrimination, allowing individual municipalities to determine which breeds of dogs they would deem dangerous - sans any scientific or factual basis.

The result of Ms. Speier's political opportunism so far has been the inability of many loving and responsible dog-owning homeowners and renters in California to obtain liability insurance for their homes - followed by marked increase in dog surrenders to shelters and rescues to organizations like Bay Area Boxer Rescue.

Since its passage, SB 861 has been discriminating against good dogs - and good dog owners, and breaking up loving families.

Dog-owning Voters Have Spoken

Mary Lou Schaeffer, member of the Pacific Coast Patterdale Club writes,

"Jackie Speier went down to ignominious defeat in the Democratic primary aided in large part by her attack on the dogs of  Democrat voters of California. Voters told the author of the draconian SB861 that "My Dog Votes" in no uncertain terms.  Ms. Speier is currently looking for a new job. We, as dog owners, wish her more bad luck!!!!! The same goes for more Democrats in this state who persist in their attempts to infringe on the property rights of California voters and for our Republican "gobernator" who signed Jackie Speier's infamous bill".

According to The Daily Journal, opponent John Garamendi had 43.8 percent of the vote to Speier’s 38.3 percent, with Ms. Speier conceding the race to Garamendi.  State Sen. Liz Figueroa, D-Fremont, finished a distant third with 17.9 percent of the vote.  Both Speier and Figueroa have been termed out of their Senate seats - and both voted in favor of SB861.

Kiss Off, Gavin - Watch Out, Arnold

The bill, SB861, was strongly supported by San Francisco Mayor, Gavin Newsom, passed in a vote that split pretty much along party lines, with Dems voting in favor of the bill.  The measure was signed into law by Republican Governer, Arnold Schwarzenegger.

According to a press release from 11/15/2005 on the California Senate Democratic Caucus website,

"Senator Jackie Speier today applauded San Francisco’s leadership for protecting public safety by unanimously, 10-0, approving a new local ordinance that creates spay/neutering and breeder rules for specific breeds of dogs" and "While Speier’s SB 861 allows local governments to enact rules affecting specific dog breeds, the new law does not allow any dog breed to be banned. Previously state law prohibited cities and counties from passing any laws that target a breed of dog".

“San Franciscans can thank Mayor Newsom, his leadership team and the Board of Supervisors for taking public safety seriously and passing this life-saving ordinance,” said Speier. “Ultimately, both human and canine lives will be saved because they had the courage to act today in the face of virulent opposition from well-organized and angry dog groups.”   Sen. Jackie Speier

Well, Jackie  - maybe those "virulent and well-organized angry dog groups" are also a bunch of angry dog-owning Democrats - and just maybe they went to the polls to vote you out of office.  And just maybe there are a few more surprises in store for the Democrats who voted to support SB861. I'd bet good money on that.

Now that Dems with dogs have kicked Jackie to to curb - what about Rebublicans?  Will there be a voter backlash against Arnold, aka The Breed Exterminator, for signing SB861 into law?

Assault On Property Rights

The passage of SB 861 has been viewed by dog owners of both major parties as an all-out assault on dog ownership, and the underlying property rights of citizens.

Dog owners are taking more of a political stance concerning dog-related legislation in California - and elsewhere - wanting to know where candidates stand on insurance and breed discrimination - as well as other legislation that negatively impacts dog ownership.

Dems Put Dems On Notice

Dog owners are taking the assault on property rights quite seriously, refusing to roll over for political opportunists and animal rights extremists - so all you lurking political analysts out there - you've been put on notice.

California dog owner and lifelong Democrat Geraldine Clarke posted her letter to Jackie Speier on a a web board.  Her letter echoes the sentiments on dog owners in California and throughout North America:

Dear Ms. Speier:

I have voted for you in the past and I very well might have done so again last Tuesday except for one thing - SB 861. That absolutely wrong-headed bill shows a total lack of understanding of canine ethology and a willingness to capitalize on a family's personal tragedy for political gain, trampelling the rights of all California dog owners in the process. I know dozens of Democrats among my fellow dog enthusiasts who also did not vote for you for exactly the same reason.

The rights of dog owners may seem to be a small thing in the greater scheme of things but I am finding that the way politicians deal with people's relationship to animals to be an excellent indication of their thoroughness and honesty in other areas. Unfortunately, we dog owners were not as well organized when SB 861 was enacted as we were recently when Loni Hancock tried to foist AB2110 on California; we are learning how to make our voices heard and we will continue to organize and get stronger.

I am a life-long Democrat but I will never again vote for any Democrat who tries to abridge the rights of animal owners. In the fight against AB2110, we learned that most Democrats were inclined to vote for it because it was the "party line". Unfortunately, it seems that the Democratic Party has bought into the agenda of the radical "animal rights" movement. The Party had better reconsider this position or it will lose me and many others as members.

Sincerely,
Geraldine Clarke

Are They Listening?

Now, Democratic Insurance Commissioner, John Garamendi, will face Republican Tom McClintock, a property rights advocate, in the fall in the race for Lt. Governor. 

DogPolitics.com reader Sharon Sundy points out that "Tom McClintock voted against SB861 and was the only Senator to write a letter to the Governor urging him to veto it".

Calls for comments on Ms. Speier's election loss to both the John Garamendi and Tom McClintock campaigns on the issue of SB861 went unreturned, but we hear that McClintock's campaign has kept an eye on DogPolitics since we unabashedly bashed Jackie last fall.  And maybe Garamendi thinks he won the primary on merit alone, but Dems with dogs think otherwise.

The bottom line?  Dog-owning voters want to know which candidate will go to the wall to protect their property privacy and privacy rights.

Wake Up & Smell The Dog

Hey Tom - hey, John- you listening?  Dog owners -44.9% of U.S. households.  Big numbers -   Maybe that number will sink in.  Maybe you better wake up and smell the dog.................

My Dog Votes!

Comments

[jean johnson]

Hoping all Californias support John McClintock in the Fall, we need more wins to show that "Our Dogs Vote". Every win in every state for politicians that denounce any form of BSB and infringement on dog owners rights is a win for us all. It is the only way to turn the tide for many dog owners and getting specific breeds to florish in responsible owners hands again. This issue is bigger than just dogs, it is time to let our Politicians know we are Americans and we are tired of them just trampling our rights.

[Maureen Hill-Hauch]

Hey Jackie,

Too Bad So Sad!!! All the way from Virginia, can you hear the cheers..get a job Jackie!....

Ta ta Jackie HELLO John!

Maureen Hill-Hauch

[Mahlon Goer]

I wonder if Ms. Speier can hear the hearty Bronx cheer floating her way from New York.

buh-bye, Jackie! and hooray, California!

[jan cooper]

Let us take a stand and support John McClintoch this fall for Lt. Governor of California.
HE ALONE stood up on the legislative floor and denounced SB 861 last year. He is for the dog owner's rights and now that we have shown our strength at the ballot box, let's put our dog's friends in office.
VOTE FOR McCLINTOCH in NOVEMBER!!