While the liberal press obsesses over President Obama's recent gaffe regarding Kamala Harris, there has been little coverage of his proposed 2013 budget.

Obama is now openly promoting cuts to Social Security in the form of "chained CPI" -- a measure of inflation that assumes that if real food becomes too expensive, the poor will simply survive on something cheaper, such as cat food.  Although this has been dismissed by many in the press as a mere "tweak," the real consequence will be a cut to Social Security benefits of between 5 and 10%, depending on the age of the recipeient.

Obama's proposed budget also includes deep cuts to Medicare (beyond even those proposed by Tea Party Republican Paul Ryan), as well as tax increases on the middle class.

Obama's statement mourning the late Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan is yet another indication of how far the spectrum of mainstream US politics has moved in just a few years.

How Green is Your Supervisor?

This is a report card for the 2012 Board of Supervisors. It shows the most important votes in 2012, from a Green Party perspective, and whether each Supervisor supported or opposed our position on legislation. Some of the votes are on amendments to legislation.

We plan to release a report card every year on key Supervisorial votes.

If you don't know which district you live in, click here for a map.

Key:

Details

Sharp Park Restoration (1/10/12) - did the Supervisor vote to override the Mayor's veto of a proposal to transfer Sharp Park to the National Park Service? SF currently spends hundreds of thousands of dollars annually to maintain Sharp Park, a golf course on the coast of San Mateo county. The park is home to several endangered species, and maintenance will cost more in the future as climate change causes sea levels to rise. This proposal would have transfered the park to the National Park Service, who would have paid to convert the park to be used for recreational purposes (such as hiking and camping) that would not require expensive maintenance or further endanger the wildlife. This proposal required 8 votes to pass, so it failed.

Sunshine Task Force Purge (5/22/12) - did the Supervisor vote to purge progressives from the Sunshine Task Force? Conservatives on the Board removed Bruce Wolfe and other long-time members of the Sunshine Task Force, after the Task Force blew the whistle on the Board of Supervisors' violations of open meeting laws during their approval of Parkmerced redevelopment in 2011.

Wall on the Waterfront (6/12/12) - did the Supervisor vote to build more luxury condos for the super-rich along San Francisco's waterfront? The developers of this project got an exemption from the area's height limit, and plan to build a wall of high-rise luxury condos that will provide great views for their residents but create a canyon-like experience for those of us stuck at ground level.

Beach Chalet Soccer Fields (7/10/12) - did the Supervisor vote to support an appeal of the project's Environmental Impact Report (EIR)? The SF Rec & Park department is planning to replace a natural field on the west side of Golden Gate Park with artificial turf fields made from toxic recycled tires. The fields will be lit up at night with bright lights that will be visible from the beach. The complex will be rented to for-profit soccer teams, including many from outside of SF. The appeal of the EIR would have helped to stop this project.

CleanPowerSF (9/18/12) - did the Supervisor vote to challenge the PG&E monopoly by giving residents a choice to buy renewable power? This proposal required 8 votes to forestall a threatened Mayoral veto, and passed 8-3.

Mirkarimi Removal (10/9/12) - did the Supervisor vote to support Lee and Gascon's attempt to overturn the Sheriff's election and install another Mayor-appointed puppet? See the SF Green Party's statement on why we supported Mirkarimi remaining in office. This proposal required 8 votes to pass, so it failed.

Nudity Ban (11/20/12) - did the Supervisor support legislation that allows police to selectively ticket people (even children as young as 5 years old) for public nudity? Why are the supervisors who voted for this so concerned about naked children? Do they want the SFPD to take even more resources away from solving violent crimes and instead patrol City playgrounds looking for children mooning each other?

Free Muni for Low-income Youth (11/20/12) - did the Supervisor back a pilot program to provide free Muni passes to youth from low-income families?

The SF Green Party endorsed the SF Labor Council's resolution regarding the murder of Alan Blueford at our Jan 23 meeting, by consensus:

Whereas a Black person is killed by law enforcement once every 36 hours, per the Malcolm X Grass Roots Movement’s study;

Whereas the federal report monitoring the Oakland Police Department states that the Oakland Police Department pulls guns on Black and Latino people disproportionately to the number of times guns are pulled on whites;

Whereas two new reports by a federal monitor, criticized the OPD’s handling of officer-involved shootings and Occupy Oakland protests;

Whereas Alan Blueford, an 18 year old Black youth, who was about to graduate from Skyline H.S., was killed by OPD Officer Masso on May 6.

Whereas OPD has provided at least four versions of what happened the night Alan Blueford was killed, including the claim that the Officer Masso was shot in a gun battle with Alan Blueford, when he later admitted that he shot himself in the foot;

Whereas the OPD:
A. Engaged in racial profiling and violated numerous OPD policies;
B. Engaged in a cover-up (Made numerous false statements and repeatedly changed their story);
C. Showed complete disregard for the life of Alan Blueford and the dignity of the family;
D. Had the coroner’s report withheld from the family for 3 months, and the police report for5 months;

Whereas, the Coroner’s Report reveals that Alan Blueford had no gun residue on his hands, no alcohol or drugs in his system, and implies that Alan Blueford was shot while lying on his back;

Whereas Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley declared she will not charge Officer Masso for the killing of Alan Blueford. Her report shows strong bias as, for example, relying on Masso’s statement that Alan was standing when he first shot him, despite 11 out of 12 witness statements to the contrary;

Therefore, be it resolved that the San Francisco Labor Council pass a resolution seeking Justice For Alan Blueford and demand that the Federal Monitor take strong action against OPD including:
1. Stopping the OPD from racial and ethnic profiling and violence against people of color;
2. Instituting stricter background checks, training, apprehension and gun use policies within the OPD;
3. The firing of Officer Masso;

Further be it resolved that the San Francisco Labor Council demand that the Alameda County District Attorney immediately charge Officer Masso with murder.