Are We Just Engaging in "Political Harassment"?

Allan Hoffenblum, co-publisher of the nonpartisan California Target Book, said the early effort from Democrats amounts to little more than "political harassment," considering the electoral makeup of Miller's district.

As an example, Hoffenblum said Republican long-shot Richard Mountjoy beat Sen. Dianne Feinstein by 11 points in the 42nd District. Feinstein, a Democrat, won the statewide vote by 24 points.

"They are wasting their time," Hoffenblum said. "The only way (Democrats are) going to beat Miller is if he has handcuffs behind his back and is being taken to the federal pen, which I don't think is very likely."

So did Hoffenblum tell The San Bernardino Sun the real truth? Is the DCCC just "wasting time"? Is Gary Miller truly unbeatable, even after this?

Miller used IRS Code 1033, which allows individuals to shelter proceeds from a forced sale, to avoid paying millions of dollars in capital-gains tax after he sold the land to the city in 2002.

Federal agents have since obtained the 2000 council video from Monrovia officials as part of their investigation into the congressman's land dealings.

Miller's spokesman, Scott Toussaint, dismissed the ad as a cheap political stunt and said the congressman is unconcerned about the Democrats' early efforts against him.

So I guess it's a "cheap political stunt" to reveal Gary Miller's true record of service to developers (including himself) and disservice to the voters of the 42nd District. Oh, how I want to shed tears of sorrow for poor little Gary (NOT)!

And oh yes, the DCCC is not stupid. And no, I don't think they're really interested in "wasting their time". They only commit resources to races they think are winnable. And obviusly, they're starting to sense that this race is winnable.

DCCC officials said Miller is vulnerable, citing the federal investigation and his vote totals in 2006, when he ran unopposed, as evidence that they can win the heavily Republican district. Miller got about 130,000 votes last November, in a district with about 347,000 registered voters.

"We are actively recruiting to have someone run against Miller" in 2008, said Fernando Cuevas, western regional press secretary for the DCCC, adding that Sen. John Kerry, a Democrat, got more than 40 percent of the presidential vote in the district in 2004. He declined to say how much the committee has spent on the ads, which have only run on the Internet.

Cuevas said it was too early to name any potential Democratic candidates in the district, where Republicans make up about 50 percent of registered voters versus the Democrats' 29 percent, according to the California Secretary of State's Web site.

Cuevas said the DCCC is not naive about the numbers but that last year's elections were evidence of a change in the political landscape that can benefit the Democrats.

"The 2006 election showed that Democrats can win Republican districts that are represented by members plagued with ethics problems," he said. "Gary Miller certainly fits that bill - the FBI is investigating him."

Neither Democrats, nor Republicans, nor Independents, appreciate a member of Congress who is being investigated by the FBI for his questionable land deals. Voters do not like someone who misuses his position of power to enrich himself while ignoring the best interest of the people in the district. Simply put, the more the people here find out about Gary Miller and his very dirty ways, the less they can tolerate it.

This is not political harassment. And it's not wasting time. It's democracy. And it's about time that Gary Miller and his pals realize that.