Trump, Sanders visit our well-armed region, thanks to Scott Jones
Good morning. On behalf of The Sacramento Bee’s editorial board, welcome to The Take, your opinion-politics newsletter. Please sign up for it here.
We welcome Donald Trump to our fine city, and Bernie Sanders to Davis, and renew our invitations to each to drop by the editorial board for a chat. We have a few questions for them both, and for Hillary Clinton. Dan Walters plumbs Jerry Brown’s history with the Clintons, and our attention turns to the cost of Sheriff Scott Jones’ liberal gun permit policy, the phenomenon of write-in candidates, and the glory of Northern California sports. We must add, as The Chronicle’s Joe Garofoli chronicled, Sanders brilliantly played his visit to Oracle Arena to cheer on Steph Curry and the men the other night.
Take that
Republican Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones, running for Congress against Rep. Ami Bera, is fulfilling a promise he made when he ran for sheriff by granting concealed weapons permits to law-abiding residents who request them. But there’s this caveat on the Sheriff’s Department website, written in red for emphasis:
“CCW Permit Applicants/Holders are prohibited from carrying firearms in the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department buildings pursuant to Sacramento County Code.”
We’re all for safety first. But if gun permit holders are so steady and trustworthy, why shouldn’t they be allowed to pack their heaters in Sheriff’s Department buildings? Why should patrons of shopping malls, grocery stores, bars, movie theaters and other public places enjoy all that extra protection?
Take a number: 0
Yes, zero isn’t a number. But like Assemblyman Kevin McCarty, we’re struck by how easy it is to become a write-in candidate in California. McCarty and his wife, Leticia Garcia, were walking door-to-door for Darrell Steinberg when a canvasser asked Garcia if she would sign his petition to become a write-in candidate against McCarty. Loyal wife that she is, she demurred.
An actual Assembly candidate must pay a filing fee of $1,001.13. But write-ins pay nothing. So long as they gather between 40 and 60 valid signatures, they will be considered qualified write-ins. And if they place second in the June 7 primary by, say, getting 50 votes, their names would appear on the November ballot.
One of the two Republican write-ins seeking McCarty’s Sacramento seat, Ryan K. Brown, is active in Sacramento State College Republicans. The other, Ralph Merletti, told The Take he’s running on a pro-life platform, and recalled that McCarty once declined to accept abortion-related literature from him.
Twenty-one Democrats, Republicans and Libertarians are seeking their places on the November ballot via write-in for Assembly seats. If they succeed, the nominees would become delegates to the state party conventions, with the power to vote on party platforms and leadership. Plus, with $2, they could buy a small cup of coffee.
Our take
Editorial: Sheriff Scott Jones’ liberal gun permit policy costs all taxpayers.
Editorial: It’s winning time in Bay Area sports. We’ll definitely be rooting for Sacramento’s own Urijah Faber in his title quest Saturday night.
Dan Walters: Jerry Brown endorses Hillary Clinton despite his 1992 duel with Bill Clinton.
Elise Sanguinetti: Arbitration clauses are a threat to consumers.
Ken Barnes: Arbitration clauses are good for consumers.
Their take
The Orange County Register: Treasurer John Chiang, entering the 2018 governor’s race, has history of fiscal prudence.
The Mercury News: Donald Trump’s claim that “There is no drought” is just stupid.
Lexington Herald-Leader: Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, seeking political advantage, engages in ugly politics by joining 11 other states suing the Obama administration over public school bathrooms.
William Kristol of The Weekly Standard: Isn’t the elevation to the White House of Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump worth resisting? Isn’t such resistance the least we can do to help secure such an inestimable jewel?
Syndicates’ take
David Brooks: Big love is hopeful, but today pessimism is in vogue.
Ruben Navarrette: Question to anti-Trump protesters: Are you secretly working for Trump?
Kathleen Parker: Democracy, freedom, civilization – it all hangs by a thread.
Tweet of the day
Bill Kristol @BillKristol
I gather Donald Trump said I’m a loser. I’ve won some and I’ve lost some, but one thing I’ve always tried not to be is a roaring jackass.
And finally,
Please come to The Sacramento Bee at 2100 Q St. at 6 p.m. today for a conversation with columnist and foreign affairs expert Markos Kounalakis. It’ll be worth your while. Tickets are available at the door.
This story was originally published June 1, 2016 at 5:31 AM with the headline "Trump, Sanders visit our well-armed region, thanks to Scott Jones."