After eight years as a Palo Alto councilmember and Mayor, I’ve seen how state officials too often drift apart from their communities and focus on big donors, special interests and ideological pressure groups. They end up doing very little, while telling voters it’s a lot. The contest over this year’s Proposition 36, the “Homelessness, Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act,” a crime bill, is a good example of this.
Prop 36 also divides our Assembly District 23: I myself support Prop 36 and recommend a “Yes” vote, and if elected I’ll support related measures where sensible; whereas my opponent, Marc Berman, has been a leading opponent of Prop 36.

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