This city on California’s coast that loves to call itself “America’s finest city” has been rocked by a political bombshell with the news that San Diego’s controversial Mayor Dick Murphy has resigned as criticism continues over a $1.2 billion deficit in the city’s pension fund. The San Diego Union-Tribune reports:
Amid demands by the city attorney that he quit and a week after being named by Time magazine as one of the three worst big-city mayors in the United States, Mayor Dick Murphy announced he will resign effective July 15.
“I now believe to be effective the city will need a mayor who was elected by a majority of the people and who has a clear mandate to take this city forward,” Murphy said. “A good leader needs to know when it is time to move on and I believe it is time for me to move on and time to bring a fresh start to our city.”
Murphy was re-elected last fall in a three-way race with County Supervisor Ron Roberts and write-in candidate Councilwoman Donna Frye, narrowly edging out Frye after several thousand write-in ballots were disqualified.
The bottom line is this: Murphy suffered a brutal one-two punch in recent weeks. He tried to pooh-pooh the Time magazine ranking, but in a city that considers itself one of the sparkling gems of California it didn’t help him and he never really recovered. Then City Attorney Michael Aguirre called on him to quit. Murphy did not have a large base of support left after the bitterly disputed election and outlook for him was not good. Plus, as the UT notes, the overall context for the Mayor was increasingly awful:
Murphy’s announcement follows a spate of bad news for San Diego government. The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating city finances and allegations of securities fraud. The U.S. attorney and the FBI are conducting a criminal investigation into possible public corruption. Wall Street rating firms have barraged the city with bad news for a year, repeatedly downgrading the city’s bond rating. Murphy also had face rumblings of a recall movement, which by law couldn’t begin until June 9, six months and a day after he had been sworn in.
Overall, not a pretty political (or legal) picture. Meanwhile, the LA Times’ Tony Perry adds some useful perspective on Murphy:
Murphy is earnest, cordial and detail-oriented, a straight-A student from the Midwest from his button-down collar blue shirts to his oxblood loafers. He sees politics as a calling, not a crusade… He listed 10 goals when he first ran for mayor in 2000 and has stuck to them, despite calls to be more aggressive in tackling the city’s $2-billion pension deficit and the legal, political and financial problems it has spawned……
He was appointed to the City Council in 1981, sponsored by then-Mayor Pete Wilson. From there, it was a short jump in 1985 to a gubernatorial appointment to the San Diego bench, where he spent 15 years.
Murphy initially said he would not seek reelection, and changed his mind when boosters said they would take care of fundraising and campaigning details, the sort of activity that Murphy viewed as a distraction from his mayoral duties. Even some supporters have said they wished Murphy had more outward passion and a willingness to take risks.
Murphy recently refused to distance himself from three council members indicted on federal charges for allegedly taking bribes from a strip club. His lack of flamboyance has been a kind of gentle joke at City Hall, brought up by reporters at news conferences and even by City Council members during their inaugural speeches.
Citizen Smash(who also lives in San Diego) has a lot of details including:
Once the resignation takes effect, Deputy Mayor Michael Zucchet, or another person to be designated by the City Council, will take over as Acting Mayor. A special election will then be called for November, to fill out the remaining three years of Murphy’s second term.
Zucchet’s succession of Murphy is in some doubt, however, as he is currently awaiting trial on federal corruption charges. Zucchet and fellow city councilmen Ralph Inzunza and the late Charles Lewis were indicted in 2003 on charges of taking money and gifts from a local strip club owner in return for a vote to change a law restricting lap dancing.
The trial could be concluded by July 15. But if it is not (or if Zucchet is convicted), expect the City Council to select one of their own to fill the mayor’s seat until the special election is held.
All in all, San Diego’s often-sedate local political scene will be very much in the headlines in coming months. The mayor’s job hasn’t always led to bigger and better things but it did in one notable instance: Mayor Pete Wilson went on to become senator and governor. So it could be a springboard for someone with some ambition…and political skills. One mayor who had legal troubles and left office, Roger Hedgecock, went on to become a highly popular local talk show host and is now also a highly popular national talk show host when he fills in for Rush Limbaugh.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.