This story was reported for San Diego News Network on November 12, 2009.
California’s 50th Congressional District has had more than its share of the national spotlight, and not always for flattering reasons.
Let’s start with words like “fraud” and “indictment” based on the Duke Cunningham bribery scandal (the former representative of the 50th District is now in federal prison), which caused comedian Stephen Colbert to poke the district on his show.
Now let’s go to “frivolous spending.” After Cunningham resigned, the district was in the news for two costly campaigns that exceeded $20 million in less than a year.
More negative words follow the district, as in “scandal” and possible “assault.” Earlier this year, some of the biggest headlines in the North San Diego County district involve a sheriff’s deputy and about 50 middle-aged women.
Now some of the biggest political news in the district is the number of candidates seeking to unseat incumbent Rep. Brian Bilbray (R-Calif) who has been in office since 2006.
Even though the election is a year away, four candidates (three Democrats and one Libertarian) are actively campaigning and raising money. They are Francine Busby, who has run against him two times before; Tracy Emblem, a former supporter of Busby and appellate attorney; Dave Roberts, a Solana Beach councilmember; and solo Libertarian Wayne Dunlap, owner of a local Web technology company and who is currently traveling around the world with his wife.
These candidates are hoping to turn the district into something more than being known for punch lines and raised eyebrows.
Although the campaigns are in full swing, Bilbray remains focused in Washington D.C. In fact, his campaign manager didn’t respond to my request for an interview, and his Congressional office continues to tout what the representative has been working on at the Capitol. He’s even raised more than $500,000 – which exceeds the amount raised by his three Democratic challengers, Busby, Emblem and Roberts, combined.
Republican Party insiders expect that Bilbray will easily win the Republican primary in June and the general election in November. But he’ll see competition nonetheless, at least if you ask the three Democratic candidates who expressed enormous confidence during their interviews with me. Libertarian Dunlap emphasized his solutions to the country’s pressing concerns in an email. While there were clear differences among the candidates, all agreed that it’s time for Bilbray to leave office.
Francine Busby: Can’t get enough
Francine Busby entered the political limelight in 2004, running against former Rep. Duke Cunningham. When Cunningham’s scandalous dealings were revealed and he resigned, she tossed her hat back in the ring for the 2006 special election. It was then she would encounter Bilbray for the first time.
In a heavily-populated Republican district, the idea that Busby, who garnered just 37 percent of the vote in 2004, could come close to winning the seat against conservative and well-liked Bilbray was far-fetched. She exceeded expectations and gained 45.5 percent of the vote. Later that year, during the general election, she gained 43 percent of the vote compared to Bilbray’s 53 percent. The two Busby vs. Bilbray campaigns would spend over $20 million.
Busby, who is generally seen as the main contender in the Democratic race, touts change as though she’s Barack Obama’s sidekick. She has a life-sized stand of the president and a photo of her with him on the wall of her campaign office. She’s riding his tail when she mentions that the 50th district voted for Obama over Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).
“Everything is different this time,” she says smiling with confidence. “I think the biggest change is the voters, the voters in this district. In 2004, they elected George Bush with an 11-point margin. In 2008, they elected Barack Obama with a four-point lead. I think that shows a sea change in the priority of the voters. The priorities I’ve been running on, I’ve been working for and that I hope to take to Congress with me.”
But why is she back… again? And after two failed attempts against the same man?
She’s back again, says Busby, because she reflected the “hope for change” in 2004 and that the district’s constituents deserve another voice.
She’s back despite receiving advice that, possibly, she shouldn’t run again. She believes that she’s still the best person for the job. She’s back and she says because she still holds the same beliefs, regardless of what others say.
“I decided to run because I thought it was important for this district to have a viable alternative… To have every voice be heard and to make sure that people knew they could speak, they could believe there was a possibility for change here,” Busby says, who seemed aware that this question would be posed to her during the interview. “I’m very aware of the pros and cons of me running again but I still have the same convictions… My motivation for running again is the same.”
Another major difference this time around is simply Busby’s name. She’s well known after having served on the Cardiff School Board for years and being involved in various organizations around town.
And if people didn’t know her a few months ago, they certainly did following a fundraiser in June, where a county sheriff deputy made headlines during one of her fundraisers. (A district attorney investigation would later determine the sheriff deputy responded appropriately).
And Busby knows it.
“Name recognition is very important,” Busby says. “In this particular instance, I have as much name recognition as Brian Bilbray.”
In fact, Busby is so confident in herself and her campaign, she has opted out of funding anything personally.
“I’m not investing my own money,” she says. “I believe if people want to elect me, they’re going to support me and they’re going to contribute to this campaign. I have no desire or means to buy a campaign or to buy an election. I’m investing my time, I’m investing my life. This is all I do night and day. So I’m making a huge investment of my life.”
“People know me,” she says. “I want them to know me.”
Oddly enough, one of Busby’s supporters would end up running against her.*
*Editor’s note: Tracy Emblem told the San Diego News Network she made a financial contribution to Busby’s campaign in 2006. Emblem also said information she gathered about the precincts in 2002, was given to Busby during her run.
Tracy Emblem: Rags to riches
More people may be familiar with Busby, but that hasn’t deterred Tracy Emblem, an appellate attorney in Escondido, from trying to nab a spot in Washington D.C. In fact, Emblem speaks so intensely about her qualifications, the thought of her being the District’s next congressional leader almost seems bona fide. During her interview, she posed herself as the type that comes up from behind, surprisingly, and takes the win home.
But she still isn’t as well-known as Busby, so I ask her: What would most people be surprised to know about you?
“One thing people would be surprised to know about me?” says Emblem. “In the 70s, when I was a young, single mom, I was on food stamps. I was on welfare for a year and a half.”
How many Congressional leaders can say they were on welfare?
She takes a moment to ponder before saying: “I don’t know.”
Emblem is certainly different than most congressional leaders. She has lived in Escondido since 1964, but it wouldn’t be until years later that she would enter college. As a young, single mom, Emblem says, she would find her mentor in Lorraine Boyce, the first female mayor of Escondido.
Emblem talks about the day she met Boyce and the impact the now, 82-year-old former politico, would make on her. She says she went to the Escondido City Council to make a plea for child care assistance. At the time, Boyce rallied for women to attend college and find careers – unique, given the time and considering one politician once said to Emblem, “Shouldn’t you be at home?”
“[Boyce] went up to Sacramento, and she got the funding to start the Escondido Child Development Center back in 1976,” Emblem says. “She interviewed me down at the basement of a church and she says, ‘Tracy, are you really sure you’re going to do something with your life?'”
Amid deep breaths and tears in her eyes, Emblem continues.
“And I say, ‘Yes, I promise you Lorraine. I’m going to finish school. I promise you.’ And she gave me three slots out of the 24 slots, which was a lot.”
Emblem was only 19.
“I know what it’s like to be poor. But I also know what it’s like to be successful and rise up,” she says.
Given her background, Emblem’s platform is clear: work for the working class.
As of publication, Emblem has seven unions backing her. She says she’ll never take money from a special interest like the incumbent.
You wouldn’t consider a labor union a special interest? I ask her.
“No, I wouldn’t,” she says. “A labor union is looking for fair wages for the people. When we have fair wages for the people they can go out and spend a little bit. It’s actually beneficial for all of our communities. I don’t consider them a special interest at all.”
But Emblem is looking for more than the support of the working class. She has taken her campaign to another level by hiring two political campaign consultants. The first, Kenneth Christiensen, is famed for helping to oust incumbents, whom Emblem says, “won’t work for you unless he thinks you have a chance.”
The second is, Steve Ybarra, a man who worked securing voters in California to support Obama. She has met with both consultants numerous times and Ibarra has already walked the precincts with Emblem to scope out the area.
I ask her then, given her team, if she’s confident that she’ll get the Democratic nod.
“I feel pretty strong about it,” she says. “I do. This is not a hobby for me. We’re working seven days a week and when I’m not working on it, I’m dreaming about it.”
She doesn’t expect her consultants or her background to carry her to Washington D.C., though. Emblem says she’s been practicing law for 20 years and understands how lawmaking works better than other candidates in the race.
“I’ve researched and written over 300 writs and appeals,” she says. “I’ve argued up in the California Supreme Court. So when I go to Congress, I can sit on the Judiciary Committee and write laws. I don’t think that either Francine Busby or Dave Roberts have the education to do that.”
She added that Bilbray most likely doesn’t understand how to write the laws, either.
In fact, the day of the interview, Emblem would be presented with the “Champion of Justice” award from the California Innocence Project at the California Western School of Law.
“I’m running for office because we need real leadership to help our people here in the 50th District, Emblem says “We have had a lack of leadership for many, many years.”
Dave Roberts: Decades of service
Solana Beach Councilmember Dave Roberts has a hefty resumé and he’s made sure that it’s shinier than a new penny, as it’s all he talks about.
Perhaps 90 percent of the questions asked of Roberts during my hour-long interview with him, would be referred back to his experience.
After graduating from American University, Roberts took on a job as an aide for the Senate Subcommittee on the Handicapped. He then served for nine years in the U.S. Air Force before taking a job with the House Appropriations Committee. Years later, he would become an executive for a Fortune 500 company, as VP for HIMSS, a health care non-profit. Now, he’s a councilmember for Solana Beach. Because the coastal town has a city-manager form of government, Roberts also served as mayor and deputy mayor.
He uses examples of his history with the U.S. government as his reasoning for being the best candidate in the 50th Congressional District. “I think my experience has given me the opportunity to reach the citizens throughout the region here,” Roberts says. “I’ve worked on environmental issues. I’ve worked on fiscal issues. I’ve worked on health care issues. I’ve even worked for a Fortune 500 company.”
He tells me more about his experience and how he can improve the district.
“There are examples throughout my three decades of service,” he says. “Can you imagine what I can do when I’m a member of the U.S. Congress?”
“Did you always know you wanted to run for Congress?” I ask.
“When I began [as a councilmember], people started talking to me about running for this office,” he says. “They wanted somebody that had a lot of experience and somebody who had been an elected official. I’m going to take that experience and really improve the quality of life.
“I’m the only person running who has had the opportunity to serve the people in the 50th District both in the private industry and in public service.”
But something else separates Roberts from his opponents other than his job history. He shies away from referring directly to Bilbray. He simply calls him “our member of Congress.” And he doesn’t talk about his opponents either – he simply touts his experience again and how his robust history will be reflected upon in his campaign.
“A lot of people in this race are looking for a new face, here in the 50th Congressional District, someone that doesn’t want partisan games – whether it’s Democratic or Republican games,” he says. “I’m focused on my campaign. I’m running an extremely positive campaign. I’m excited and committed to being a part of the solutions.”
Though Roberts has chosen to stray from criticizing his opponents, he’s been criticized for endorsing Bilbray in the past and some have even questioned what political party he belongs to.
Roberts says the explanation is simple. He was a Democrat, but when he ran for city council, became a ‘declined-to-state’ as the seat is non-partisan.
“Before I moved to San Diego, I was a registered Democrat because I believe the Democratic Party is the big tent party – they take people of all sizes and types, they will work with anybody that wants to improve the quality of life for all,” he explained. “People don’t want the [political] party labels, they want the people — they want the individuals and what they bring.”
And so Roberts portrays himself as the individual with the “experience.”
Wayne Dunlap: Independent educator
Congressional District has a growing third-party population; and if the third-partiers are looking for someone outside the two-party system, they may have found their man even if he happens to be halfway around the world at the moment.
In any good race, there’s a third party candidate. This race has Wayne Dunlap. He’s running a light campaign, and he probably knows his chances are slim, but he’s giving it a shot because he says another option needs to be available to the 50th District’s constituents.
But his opponents are unaware of who he is. In fact, when I noted that Libertarian Dunlap would also be featured in this story – many were surprised.
“Wow, you are interviewing everyone,” says a Busby staffer.
Yup, I am.
Unfortunately, because he is on a world tour, I wouldn’t be able to meet Dunlap for an in-person interview. On top of that, and for no particular reason, he e-mails me his itinerary (in Malaysia at the moment, Thailand later).
However, he was able to answer numerous questions via e-mail.
Like Roberts, Dunlap has a lengthy job history in the public and private sectors. He’s worked on boards such as the Torrey Pines Community Planning Board, won awards like the Small Business Association Vision 2000 Award and has served as an “economic consultant.”
Moreover, running a third-party campaign isn’t anything new to Dunlap. In fact, he ran against Bilbray (and Democratic candidate Nick Leibham) in 2008 and garnered four percent of the vote. Is his campaign as hot as the other three candidates? Probably not.
Does he think he’s most qualified? Yes.
“I am proud to attribute a substantial amount of my success in getting things done in both government and business to listening carefully to people on both sides of an issue and then extensively evaluating the core needs,” he wrote via email. “After talking to everyone again, I provide a fair and often unique solution to the problem. Then, and very importantly, I explain to all involved the needs of both sides receiving an acceptance for the solution from most everyone. In this way, I get things done, not just talk about it.”
Because he moved out of his family home at the age of 17, he was forced to struggle and pay his own way through college. But like Emblem, he was able to succeed on his own.
“I intimately understand the needs of lower income people,” he wrote. “On the other hand, I have been successful in business and I understand people who desire to improve the lives of their family and how too much government taxes and excessive regulations may limit the success of businesses large and small.”
I had to ask him: Why did you join a third party when Democrats and Republicans often win seats?
“Having closely followed politics for over 40 years, it has become clear to me that our two-party system creates an environment of compromise to the wealthy special interests and both Democrats and Republicans produce similar results driving up national debt to a point that not even our children will not be able to pay it off,” he wrote. “If we continue with old ways of just two political parties, then we will remain doing things the same old way. We need new ideas and new ideas need people on board to start the process.
“The Libertarian Party stands for more personal freedom with less dependence on the government – ideas that this nation was founded on,” he added.
His party distinction isn’t the only trait that sets Dunlap a part. Dunlap has a Ph.D. in economics from the University of California San Diego and has taught economics courses at San Diego State University.
Given his economic background and his support for lowering taxes, I ask him why they should be decreased and what would happen to government-funded programs if there is less tax revenue.
The size of the governments on local, state and federal levels have risen by 76 percent in the last 10 years, according to Dunlap. This means that people in the 50th District lose “almost half of their income to taxes.”
He continued that he has a “four point plan” in reducing taxes while still maintaining necessary programs. It starts with a “pay-as-you-go policy,” and ends with the elimination of “redundant and out-date government programs and end the practice of earmark appropriations.”
But he has more ideas and more proposals than just this taxing one. Like Emblem, Dunlap breaks down his ideas on every hot issue via his Web site. He notes, via e-mail, that the Internet has been an effective tool in his campaign to “increase public awareness and involvement.”
I ask him if one person can make a difference. His answer is simple.
“Thank you for asking this question. One person can make a difference – and I have.”
Hoa Quach is the political editor for the San Diego News Network.