AD71 Watch: Ledesma Hitching His Assembly Star To Illegal Immigration Issue

On Monday The Mission Viejo City Council adopted an ordinance requiring city employees and city vendors for participate in the Department of Homeland Security's Basic Pilot Program.

As Larry Gilbert noted on Orange Juice, there were several TV news cameras on hand, no doubt hoping for the protestor fireworks a la Costa Mesa.

Although all five Mission Viejo councilmembers voted for the ordinance, it is Mayor Pro Tem John Paul Ledesma who is busily wrapping himself around it like a cheap suit.

Not coincidentally, Ledesma is also running in the 71st Assembly District GOP primary -- and methinks he's looking to ride the illegal immigration issue into the Assembly.

It makes a certain sense. It's doubtful Ledesma will raise much of a warchest, let alone be competitive with his primary competitors like Corona Mayor Pro Tem Jeff Miller or RSM Councilman Neil Blais.

Personally, I hadn't taken Ledesma seriously as a candidate until I learned had hired Joe Giardiello as his consultant. Joe resuscitated Mike McGill's Assembly campaign from life-support to almost beating Supervisor Jim Silva, and ran the Trung Nguyen for Supervisor campaign that defied all conventional expectations to finish in a virtual tie for first.

Within hours of the council vote, this press release crossed the transom:

MISSION VIEJO PASSES LANDMARK MEASURE TO FIGHT ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

Sponsor John Paul Ledesma Calls on Orange County Cities to Follow Suit

MISSION VIEJO – With the leadership of Mayor Pro Tempore John Paul Ledesma the Mission Viejo City Council, by unanimous vote, has passed landmark legislation to assist in the fight against illegal immigration.   Under the ordinance, introduced by Ledesma, the city will participate in the Department of Homeland Security's Basic Pilot Program.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, "Basic Pilot is a voluntary, online verification system that allows employers to confirm the eligibility of new hires by checking the personal information they provide against Federal databases."

The ordinance requires that city employees, and those contracted by the city, are legal residents and are authorized to work in the country.   

"I'm tired of being told there is nothing we can do at the local level to fight illegal immigration," said Ledesma after the ordinance passed. 

Ledesma continued, "The state and federal governments do nothing but talk about solving the illegal immigration crisis.   It's time we showed them how it's done.   The cities of Orange County must show a united front in our support for the rule of law.  That's why I am calling on   every  city council in the county  to adopt a similar ordinance."

Ledesma proposed the ordinance after a local resident shared his concerns about illegal workers in Mission Viejo.   Earlier this year Ledesma introduced a no-trespassing ordinance as a way of fighting illegal alien day laborers. 

Mission Viejo has almost twice as many voters as the next largest Orange County city in the district.   The 71st is currently held by Assemblyman Todd Spitzer, who is termed out.

Coverage of the council vote snagged Ledesma a guest spot on KFI-AM's John & Ken Show yesterday. Cracking down on illegal immigration -- regardless of how tenuously -- is a sure-fire way to land some  laudatory free air time with the Southland's most popular radio talk show hosts it also means the invitee must never be perceived as wavering even an iota, lest John & Ken turn and rend the unfortunate).

It's a perfect way for an underfunded candidate to build name recognition, possibly start an Internet small-donor fund-raising operation and tap into voters for whom illegal immigration is vote-determinative.

Still, I only give Ledesma a shot because he hired a very good consultant who can accomplish a lot with a little. Ledesma is a ubiquitous as political functions around the county (or at least around AD71) and tries to present himself as a conservative leader, but it's a claim that should be taken with a boulder size grain of salt given his June 2000 vote to grant lifetime medical benefits to city employees. Not very farsighted steward of tax dollars.

Comments

[Karl Rove]

Jubal,

You made some good points. This little grandstand ploy which was really the idea of a resident is all Ledesma can hang his hat on. He has no other claim to having done anything of any substantive significance in his own city, so one certainly cannot expect him to be very effective as an assemblyman. And the voting public and monetary supporters know this.

Your last point about his vote to provide lieftime medical benefits to retirees was interesting. I didn't know that, and that should not sit well in the conservative circles of the party.

As I posted over on the Red County Riverside Blog, I think Blais is the best candidate of the three, but I would pick Miller over Ledesma any day.

[Com]

Nothing but a cheap publicity stunt orchestrated for the purpose of manipulating gullible voters into thinking he's "tough" on illegal immigration.