BART board director admonished for using racist term during meeting
Ted Cruz passes on bet with Eric Swalwell
—MCPARTLAND WORDS—Nobody in Alameda County politics gets away with so-called “slips of the tongue” more than BART Board Director John McPartland.
—McPartland, who represents Castro Valley, Hayward, and parts of East County, used the phrase “cotton-picking” during a BART Board meeting last Thursday.
—Perhaps, it was just McPartland using aged vernacular, but the remark was made within the context of a board discussion on the transit agency’s racial equity initiatives.
—BART’s general manager issued a statement of Wednesday. “The language was insensitive and unacceptable to the staff delivering the presentation as well as embarrassing to the district.” McPartland has apologized to staff, the statement added.
—In 2020, McPartland said during a BART meeting that confederate statues should not be torn down and that Robert E. Lee was a good general.
—A year earlier, McPartland praised a Black woman who speak at a BART meeting, saying she was articulate and should go to law school. The speaker was from the ACLU and had already graduated from law school.
—OAKLAND IN THE WHITE HOUSE—Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao attended the Golden State Warriors meeting with President Biden at the White House on Tuesday. Thao, like many East Bay mayors was already in the capitol this week for the U.S. Mayors Conference. Thao later posed for a photo with Biden in the Oval Office.
—BLEE DIDN’T SPEAK FOR HT—While the timing of the conference and the celebration for the Warriors was fortunate, it’s too bad it didn’t occur earlier. Thao could have lobbied Biden for the $182 million federal grant for Howard Terminal.
—There is an unwritten rule in Alameda County that forbids any negative talk when it comes to Rep. Barbara Lee. But quite a few Oakland insiders have been critical towards Lee when it comes to missing out on the $182 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. Lee is the federal representative for the area, and she did not deliver, is a common refrain.
—LIBBY RE-EMERGES—The biggest parlor game in East Bay politics for almost two years was rampant speculation about former Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf’s next move. A partial answer to that question emerged today.
—At least for the short-term, Schaaf will serve as the interim executive director of Emerge California, the influential political organization that has groomed an increasing number of future female elected officials, including Schaaf.
—“I’m thrilled to be stepping in to support an organization I owe so much to personally and whose mission is so impactful and urgent,” Schaaf said in a statement on Wednesday. “More than ever, we need diverse women at the decision-making tables, so all Californians can thrive.”
—The announcement will not satisfy the insiders, but it’s may serve Schaaf well in the interim. So many high-profile elected officials have come through the program and its pipeline of future prospects is consistently strong. Whatever Schaaf’s future holds, having the support of Emerge graduates in the fold can’t hurt.
CONGRESS
—SWALS’ BIG GAME BET—East Bay congressman and leader of the Twitter caucus Eric Swalwell posed a friendly bet with Texas Republican Rep. Ted Cruz for this Sunday’s big playoff game between the San Francisco (Santa Clara) 49ers and Dallas Cowboys.
—The loser was to refrain from tweeting for the rest on the month, Swalwell offered. But Cruz wanted none of it. In a response on Twitter, Cruz offered, instead, “How about we bet a Chinese dinner instead?”
—That’s a reference to Fang Fang, the alleged Chinese spy who infiltrated Swalwell’s congressional office. (Full disclosure: Over the weekend, Facebook suggested I befriend Fang Fang. I did not accept.)
—Swalwell has used this schtick before. Back in 2014, Swalwell and a North Carolina congressmember made a friendly bet on the 49ers and Carolina Panthers playoff game. Swalwell won that bet.
