PRpond - In El Dorado County Endorses Beth Gaines

The endorsement of Assemblywomen Beth Gaines over challenger Andy Pugno was not difficult.  Beth Gaines ran her prior campaign on a pledge of supporting small businesses and fighting against bloated government.  Her record since that election has proven her to be good to her word.  Although Beth Gaines may not be conservative enough for some in the Republican Party and is described by some as “squishy” she is what she claims to be and she does what she says she will do.  For her strong, pro-business voting record Gaines received an “A” grade from the National Federation of Independent Business, the nation’s top advocate for small businesses and job creation.  Beth Gaines has received the endorsement of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association PAC . “Assemblywoman Gaines has a strong record on behalf of taxpayers,” said Jon Coupal, President of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.

Her opponent, Andy Pugno, is a staunch conservative but is the kind of politician that we cannot support for ethical reasons.  He has a good grasp of the issues and he wrote Proposition 8, the initiative banning same-sex marriage. It was during his Primary election that problems with Pugno arose.  Early on in the campaign he committed not to use the Legislature as platform for pushing wedge causes but toward the end of the primary his extreme rhetoric did not match his prior promises.  Additionally he made a public pledge on the campaign trail that he broke before he even had a chance to get elected.  Pugno made a pledge not to run against Gaines if she ended being the top vote getter in the primary.  Well, she was the top vote getter in the primary, so he changed his mind and ran against her anyway.  Some say it was a foolish pledge, others say it was to pay off campaign debts, but either way, Andy Pugno has demonstrated that he is not the kind of politician that will honor his pledges made to voters.

This year’s election endorsements by PRpond & In El Dorado County are based on the Economy, Ethics, and Responsiveness to Voters.

When we say "Economy" we are specifically referring to small businesses.  These small enterprises account for 52 percent of all U.S. workers, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration.  Success of small businesses are critical to the recovery of the economy of California.

Regardless of good policymaking, there is no place for a politician that will use their position of public trust to enrich themselves or their friends.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, an elected politician must be responsive to the voters.  Too often, we have seen politicians that will say anything to be elected only to ignore those pledges made on the campaign trail and then follow an agenda that was not disclosed to the public during the campaign.  The public has the right to know where a politician will take the office before they are elected and if they cannot be honest in their responses to the voting public, they have no place in an elected position.

These are the candidates that we are endorsing.  You may click on the link to find out why we are endorsing one over the other.

Click here to read other Endorsements: http://inedc.com/1-2593