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- THIS WEBSITE IS ARCHIVAL -
THE ELECTION IS OVER
THE WINNERS WERE:
BETTY TOM CHU & DAVID LAU
THE TOTAL BALLOT COUNT WAS 6,666
EACH VOTER WAS ALLOWED TO VOTE FOR
TWO COUNCIL CANDIDATES
J. B. RECEIVED 234 VOTES
3.5% OF THE VOTERS CHOSE J. B.
SHARON MARTINEZ
WAS "STAMPED-OUT!"
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MR. LAU BEAT MR. ESTRADA BY ONLY 197 VOTES. J. B. SAYS, "WHO KNOWS, IF I DIDN'T RUN, PERHAPS LUIS ESTRADA WOULD HAVE WON, OR PERHAPS MARTINEZ WOULD HAVE. WE WILL NEVER KNOW. EITHER WAY, I ACCOMPLISHED MY PRIMARY GOAL OF UNSEATING A "SHENANIGANS-MAKER"; OUR CITY NO LONGER HAS CORRUPT FRAUDSTER SHARON MARTINEZ ON COUNCIL, AND MONTEREY PARK IS BETTER OFF WITHOUT HER..."
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TWO YEARS AFTER LOSING THE ELECTION, ON AUGUST 2, 2011, DEMOCRAT MARTINEZ PLEAD GUILTY TO CAMPAIGN FRAUD IN A FORMER COUNCIL RACE. IT SEEMS BECAUSE SHE WAS WILLING TO ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR ONE OF HER CRIMES, THE D.A. TOOK PITY ON HER, THEREBY DISMISSING ALL REMAINING FELONY CHARGES.
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DO NOT SEND ANY CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS!
THE "COMMITTEE TO ELECT J. B. ABAJIAN" WAS TERMINATED ON 5/14/09
ALL CONTENT IS COPYRIGHTED PROPERTY OF J. B. ABAJIAN
- ALL RIGHTS RESERVED -
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THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED IN THIS WEBSITE
DO NOT NECESSARILLY FULLY REFLECT
J. B.'s CURRENT STANCE ON ALL TOPICS,
AS HIS SOMEWHAT HARD-LINE VIEWS
HAVE SOFTENED A BIT.
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AND NOW, A LOOK BACK INTO 2009...
To Hear JB's "S. O. S.! Campaign Theme Song" Click Here: www.myspace.com/jbabajian
After the MySpace page loads... In the Player, scroll down to the song entitled "S. O. S."
OFFICIAL CANDIDATE’S STATEMENT
FOR MEMBER OF THE CITY COUNCIL
JOHN BEDROS “J. B.” ABAJIAN
As a lifelong resident of Monterey Park, I have surely witnessed the many changes our dear city has experienced over the decades. However, given the current economic recession, budgetary dilemmas and administrative discord; we are facing unprecedented challenges in Monterey Park’s history, which cannot be denied. Therefore, swift action is clearly required.
As Council Members, we must:
1) Immediately cease and desist the sickening practice of approving major municipal contracts without considering open-bid proposals. Even the mere perception of impropriety or conflict of interest should not be tolerated.
2) Continue to promote steady growth in our sales tax base, through completion of overdue developments and the securing of well recognized national or regional franchise chains.
3) Strongly uphold all federal laws and traditional American values, while diligently maintaining the deserved respect and dignity for our community’s political and cultural differences.
Served as Commissioner:
Community Relations Commission
Attended:
Brightwood Elementary
Alhambra High
CSULA
PCC
ELAC
Member:
Screen Actors Guild
American Federation of Television and Radio Artists
Media Access Office: Governor's Committee for Employment of Disabled Persons
ASCAP
Born with a physical disability, I am no stranger to handling tough challenges. I look forward to serving you.
www.jb4mpcc.com
OTHER THAN IN THE ARTS, SOME EMPLOYMENT EXPERIENCE INCLUDES:
Field Representative - United States Department of Commerce
Administrative & Recruiting Clerk - U. S. Census 2010
Recruiting Assistant & Crew Leader Assistant - U. S. Census 2000
Data Colledtion - Marketing Research - C. A. Walker & Associates
Office Staff - Real Estate Broker Ready Realty of Monterey Park
Special Delivery Messenger - Title Insurance Messenger Service
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J.B. ABAJIAN Is Honored To Be Endorsed By The Republican Party of Los Angeles County
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"...if you want REAL 'change', vote for me.....With the exception of Mr. Avila, I am the ONLY candidate who is not either a two-term incumbent endorsed by the Democrat Party's ultra-liberal political machine in Sacramento, or a personal friend of the Mayor! You have the choice of just saying, 'No', to the political puppets........I may be critcized for utilizing my sense of humor to get my point across, but to my credit, I do not distort or decieve. Remember, a sense of humor and intelligence are not mutually exclusive....
What we need to do, is ask the people what kind of development projects they want, instead of the council thinking they know what is needed, based on anecdotal evidence or informal, random chats with residents. We can't trust investors and developers to make those choices for us!......As someone who has worked in Data Collection for the Department of Commerce and a major Marketing Research firm, I have worked in the capacity of a 'survey guy' and have conduted probably close to 4,000 interviews....
I am very familiar with what questions should be asked, how they need to be phrased and how invaluable that information can be when making crucial decisions......Just 'cause someone approaches the city with great looking plans, proposing that they know what's best for us, is no reason to say, 'Uuuhhhh, okay'........ PLEASE, just say NO to the special interests on the council and the developer, (our Mayor), who is spending thousands of dollars to get his friends elected!!!! Even if it's not 'fishy', it sure does look fishy to me. And now, more than ever, we cannot afford to take that chance". JBA
You may check-out the contributions and expenditures of all candidates and their cronies at this city's website link: http://www.ci.monterey-park.ca.us/index.aspx?page=1158 click-on "Non-Controlled Recipient Committees" or "Election Non-Controlled Committees" then click-on "Independent Expenditures" to find-out what the 'cronies' have spent.
BULL ALERT! FEBRUARY 26th, 2009
Our Firefighters and Police Officers' Associations, along with our own Mayor, have sent out some pro-Estrada/Chu and anti-Martinez/Lau mailers, paid for by an organization entitled Citezens For Accountability LA, who's address is a mailbox in Monterey Park.
Guess who is funding that group....Go ahead...you can look it up on the city's website. It's being funded by a corporation named ZEREP MANAGEMENT: www.zerepmanagement.com
Go ahead click-on Zerep's website and see what you get. YOU GET A DAMN TRASH COMPANY: "VALLEY VISTA SERVICES". Gee, I wonder, why Venti, Chu and Estrada, (who's wife works for a hauler), are dying to waste our tax dollars in costly litigation, to worm-out of our trash contract. It's un----ing-believable. I guess they will argue that there is nothing wrong with accepting contributions from anyone in these, "tough economic times". I feel badly for our committed public safety personnel who have been so exploited by our own Mayor and his trash hauler/trucking company buddies.
BEING A CANDIDATE DOES NOT NECESSARILY MEAN THAT YOU ARE CANDID!
"Let's give the incumbent candidates the 'boot'! They didn't look-out for you in the past, so why should we give them another shot? WE SHOUDN'T!
Thankfully, Mr. Lau voted agaisnt the Athens contract after he voted to put it on the agenda. And although many of my views seem to be in line with those of non-incumbent candidates Chu and Estrada, unlike them, my campaign is NOT endorsed by the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem. They are up-front about this fact and I hope the residents realize that the reason they are endorsed, is because the Mayor and Mayor Pro-Tem need to have another member who will agree with them. That's what they call, 'A Council Majority'.
Yes, if elected, 7 times out of 10, I'd probaly vote the same as Mayor Venti and Mayor Pro Tem Mitchell Ing, because our views often concur. However, since neither of them support my campaign, I would have absolutely no reason to ever consider owing them my allegiance once elected. I believe Chu and Estrada are, generally, good-intentioned people, but the fact that the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem publicly endorse their campaigns cannot be denied. The Mayor has also spent money to fund his own automated phone calls, urging the residents to vote for Eatrada and Chu.
I hope this does not cloud their judgement in any way whatsoever if either of them is elected. Though the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem publicly assert that they do not fund Chu's and Estrada's private campaigns, a verbal or written endorsement can also dramatically boost a candidate's poll numbers, and could possibly make the difference between winning and losing.
Although Estrada advertises his pride in his Mexican heritage and how he was raised in East Los Angeles...does he ever discuss, as he did with me, that he was born in Mexico and crossed the border at age five? It was not mentioned in the mailer sent out during the week of February 1st. The mailer read that he is the son of an immigrant...not that he himself is one. Maybe now that I've brought it up, he will.
Has he ever publicized his beliefs, that even though he was an undocumented alien before joining the U. S. Marine Corps, he asserts we need to 'close' the U. S. / Mexican border? I haven't heard him say those things publicly. But that's what he told me in December 2008. Open-border and 'sanctuary' policies are not only a huge drain on our economy and social programs, they are also an undeniable national security risk. That's something he and I do both agree on. I don't care if your from China, Mexico, Norway or Armenia - if you are here illegally, you probably should go back home.
Of course, the final verdict in deportation hearings always comes down to a judge's case-by-case-decision. It is unfair to make a blanket statement that all 'illegals' need to go home now. However, as I stated, candidate Estrada and I are in agreement with the belief that immigration laws need to be enforced, and undocumented aliens are more of a financial liability than an asset. To his credit, I must say, he is not a completely liberal 'lefty', as I am not a completely conservative 'righty', I just wish he would publicly share what he shared with me, instead of what I would consider to be 'pandering' to his Latino base.
Of course I forgive Mr. Estrada for entering the country illegally because, afterall, he was only five years old at the time! He had no control over the situation. Plus, he served his country and his city honorably, in the Marines and as a Monterey Park Reserve Firefighter. If all illegal aliens turned-out as well as Mr. Estrada, our country would be in much better shape. Thank you, Luis. You are an American Success story...I just think it would be refreshing to see you publicize the whole story instead of acting like a politician. You could at least mention where you were born.
I've also never heard him state that his wife works for a trash hauler, which is something he admitted to me in December 2008. Could THAT be the reason he wants to get out of our contract with Athens Services and go out to bid for another vendor? I certainly hope not. But given his apparent lack of candor, I am wary.
Yes, the City Council in 2002 'screwed' us on the Athens deal, but getting out of it, is 'sour grapes'. And after possibly spending a fortune on legal fees, worming-out of it may not be in our best interest afterall. It's not the best contract in the world, but it's certainly not the worst. What kind of message would we be sending to the business community if we were to spend millions of dollars to get out of a contract? It's like telling the world, 'Come to Monterey Park, the city that's willing to let you have the upper hand in a contract, only so we can turn around years later and take you to court to get out of it, even though you have not failed in your service to us. Welcome!'
We need to have a council that would ensure such a blunder, never again happens. Let's learn from our mistakes instead of backing-out on our promises. When, as a city, we make a contract, our word needs to be solid; otherwise, who would ever want to do business with us again?
Aside from the fact that she's already served on Council, and it's always good to vote-in new qualified people, the only negative thing I have to say about Betty Tom Chu is that she's teamed-up with a Democrat and would not admit to it at the Republican Party Meeting on February 12th, 2009, claiming ignorance as to the party affiliation of Luis Estrada, Mayor Venti and Mayor Pro Tem Ing, as well as Councilmember Wong.
And on February 23, 2009, in the presence of myself, Mr. Lau, Miss Martinez, Mr. Estrada AND the San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group Editor, Mr. Larry Wilson, Mrs. Chu could not refute the charge that her graphic artist did indeed deface pictures of David Lau and Sharon Martinez on her mailers...adding several large moles to their faces and ruining Mr. Lau's smile. Editor Wilson confronted her with the deception, after I was only too happy to hand him a magnifying glass! Candidate Chu did not deny the allegation, posing the question as to whether we believed it was worse than having her campaign signs obstructed by those of Martinez and Lau. Can you believe this level of conduct? I may make fun of and impersonate the incumbents in my song, but I would never touch anyone's signage or deface a photo. Ridiculous. And she's a retired attorney? C'mon.
....Hey, I love everybody, but I'm not afraid to let folks know when they seem deceptive or when they've screwed-up! And by the same token, I welcome any criticism. If you think I'm not being up-front, or just plain wrong, please let me know...I'm all ears...And to whoever is stealing my signs, 'Grow up!'. I don't have an incumbent supporter to buy me an endless supply of signs.
Thank you all for taking the time to read this. You may vote for two candidates on March 3rd...I trust you will make the right choice, after careful consideration. Thank you". JBA 2/25/09
- Actually, as the days roll-on, the choice becomes easier -
