Marcos Bretón: Early flubs in Sacramento mayoral race

Before a flawed idea gets more traction, could we please stop calling Sacramento's mayoral race a mini version of Hillary Clinton vs. Barack Obama?

Mayor Heather Fargo is no Hillary Clinton. And former NBA star Kevin Johnson is no Barack Obama. Knock it off, already.

If anything, the past few days have exposed weaknesses in the local candidates that stand in contrast to the strengths and credentials of Clinton and Obama.

For example: Fargo proved in no time flat that she is politically tone deaf and is surrounded by people who give ineptitude new meaning.

Her strength over Johnson is her grasp of local issues and her experience in government. So what does she do right out of the gate? She hurls slimy accusations at Johnson that prove to be completely baseless.

It took Bee reporters 2.3 seconds to establish that Johnson doesn't owe $45,000 in back taxes as Fargo had breathlessly claimed moments after Johnson announced his candidacy last Wednesday. Proof was in the documents that Fargo's staff provided to The Bee, but apparently they didn't read them.

On Saturday, after speaking to leaders in Sacramento's Asian/Pacific Islander community, Fargo was not backing down – the facts notwithstanding. Fargo was well-received and has many supporters in the Asian community.

But I can think of one Asian American who may have a beef with her. In an interview published today in The Bee, Fargo was asked about rumors that she would step aside for City Councilman Rob Fong before her next term ended if re-elected this year.

"Huh? Probably in Rob's dreams," Fargo laughed.

Yeah, that's real smooth. Mock a guy who put aside his own mayoral aspirations to back you, even though many of his supporters were begging him to run.

For his part, Johnson has his own problems. A former teacher who worked for Johnson at Sacramento High School dredged up an old accusation that Johnson had inappropriate conduct with an underage female student.

Sacramento police investigated and found the claim to be baseless, but that didn't stop the teacher from hanging a sign in front of his Oak Park house that used a vile word clearly directed at Johnson.

So far, Johnson has not answered the issue directly. His movements are being closely guarded by political consultants and public relations people.

On Saturday, after speaking to the same group as Fargo, Johnson bolted from reporters before the questions got serious. Still trim at 42, Johnson hotfooted it like he used to when he ran fast breaks as an All-Star point guard for the Phoenix Suns.

Whenever he moved that fast in Sacramento back in his NBA days, legendary King Mitch Richmond was giving chase. This time it was two female reporters from local television stations.

It wasn't a pretty picture. There is no denying the allegations are disturbing, but the police say there is nothing to them.

If you're going to claim that you're accessible and transparent, then do it. Voters can smell a smear campaign, so why are you running away?

Moreover, at some point soon, Johnson is going to have to provide some specifics on what he will do as mayor of Sacramento. His initial remarks have offered more platitudes than substance.

It's an interesting race we have for mayor, no question. But Obama vs. Clinton? No way.

About the writer:

• Call The Bee's Marcos Breton at (916) 321-1096. Listen to him at 8:40 a.m. Tuesdays on NewsTalk 1530 KFBK. Back columns, www.sacbee.com/breton.