2 posts tagged “gavin newsom”
The 'Victory of Chickens' Day video footage is hilare! SFist Rita and I were invited to speak on camera as we left Fake Question Time. I'm only putting me first because I don't want to have to follow Rita. More citizens can be found at obivouslyhuman's YouTube page.
For more coverage, check out SFist Jon and SFist Rita's writeup over at SFist, more chicken-tastic footage from GavinWatch, including the Wade Crowfoot drinking game, Angela Alioto caught with her chicken leggings down and Gavin possibly pulling pre-written questions from his pocket during the "audience feedback."
Getting started a little late.Photos are being uploaded over at Flickr -- I'm guessing I can thank the SF Party Party for the team wearing chicken outfits.
10:20 Gavin just finished the opening monologue. Topic: homelessness. He's doing the Gravitas thing very well.
10:22 You know you're a wonk when you spell Yomi Agunbiade correctly on the first try.
10:24 Gavin: "You know we found somebody with an electrical cord, power access." Angela: "We should hire that guy."
10:29 They want one way bus tickets, to go home! 111 people now out of the park, says Trent Rohrer.
10:31 Ooooh, what should I put on the question card? "Gavin, what products constitute your 'personal blend?'"
10:34 Angela Alioto gets misty-eyed about the Summer of Love. Hilare! Then: Gavin Newsom, first mayor to ever "face homelessness face on face."
10:38 Angela fishes for applause. "The greatest city and county in the nation."
10:41 It's one thing to drag the clergy into this, but does he have to wear robes?
10:46 Angela Alioto: 95% of chronic homeless are still in permanent supportive housing. Gavin says this disproves the myth that the homeless don't want services.
10:49 The plan is to make the west end of the park more attractive to tourists. Ron Miguel: "When you activate an area, it's easier to control non-wanted activities." Down to six full time park patrol.
10:50 Ron Miguel shamelessly panders to the SK8R BOI vote.
10:53 Gavin asks Trent what he's doing about the weather. Trent says only 100 vacancies out of 1500 beds, relaxed curfew,warming centers in the central city, MAP vans saved 22 people in the last few days, extra blankets.
10:55 Call 431-7400 for a MAP van if you see somebody who needs help. Gavin: "Will a human being answer? Somebody check with a Cell phone! Oh, by the way, we'll have 311 in a couple of months."
10:57 Trent Rohrer starts in on the "Quality of Life" talking points. Yeesh.
11:01 Just checked with Rita -- no supervisors on hand. Though Assemblywoman Fiona Ma is here with a puppy in a bag.
11:05 Angela: "Do me a favor, instead of sitting around in chicken outfits, do something."
11:07 Father: "I just want an amen." Angela: "Amen." Father thinks we do need shelters. Why, with a little city funding, we could open up some fine Catholic ones!
11:10 Question: "What's your federal advocacy, especially considering the change in congress, regarding more...Section 8 funding." Wonderfully wonky! I wouldn't put it past the chickens.
11:13 Gavin's hand-picked panel is doing a good job of boring the audience into submission. A bravura performance.
11:19 Battery is wearing down, let's wrap this up. Angela's starting to fantasize about "Hidden homeless money."
11:20 I think Gavin skipped a hair coloring treatment to guild the gravitas lily.
11:22 We're pinning our hopes on Nancy Pelosi. God help us all.
11:23 Gavin would roll with a pit if we was on the streets, dawg.
Going offline. I'll continue uploading photos. For the rest of the meeting, check the SFGTV archives.
Summary: Well, Gavin is still incredibly good at scripted events, even at being 'off the cuff' when not reading from a script. That doesn't mean that he and his hand-picked panel weren't well rehearsed with talking points, and that from the get-go every measure was taken to make sure he wouldn't be faced with some ugly incident like actually taking a question directly from a San Franciscan.
The best part that I didn't cover due to my dead battery was when Gavin fairly looked over at Eve, Rita, Jon and I and quipped about the "professional critics" out there who will just never give him any credit, and are too busy talking about his hair product (and his drinking) but won't give him credit for all the really good things he's doing. Really. Good things.
Especially interesting was to see how Angela Alioto was totally in the Gavin Camp -- even the one contentious moment between she and Gavin seemed like it was forced and insincere. Wonder if I'd be such a pushover if Gavin created an office just so he could appoint me to it?
