Westly for Governor

We're supporting Steve Westly for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination because he's independent and has shown good fiscal judgment in managing the public's money. Westly's endorsements include the Sierra Club and the United Farmworkers as well as Silicon Valley billionnaires. His ability to cut across traditional boundries has allowed him to work side-by-side with Republican legislators and the governor to help solve the state's fiscal crisis. More than his opponent, Steve Westly has shown he has what it takes to be the governor of all Californians. For those of us in the valley, he's a known quantity who has paid his dues in the public and private sectors and understands this area's unique interests well. Judging by recent polls, Californians elsewhere like what they see as well.

Yes on Measure A

Rising prices at gas pumps will hit the valley's workforce hard if the valley doesn't improve its transportation systems. While taxes are painful, it costs time, money and air quality for valley motorists to sit at stoplights and on freeways with idling engines. Measure A is a solid investment in transit, health-care and other county services. Even for those don't like the idea of underwriting health services for the uninsured, most people sleep better knowing that restaurant cook can be screened for tuberculosis or get a flu shot. Just look at the broad-based support that this measure has inspired—as impressive a show of South Bay solidarity as any we've seen in some time. There's a good reason for that: Santa Clara County needs this half-cent sales tax, which will cost each valley resident less than a dollar a week. It's the same funding mechanism that for two decades has allowed the county to improve its freeways and light rail systems, without which we'd have a congested mess. Even some groups that don't support a BART extension—by far the campaign's most divisive issue, since Measure A's opponents have tried to make hay pointing out some of the revenues could go to that project—support this measure. This is not about VTA efficiency, pensions or any of the other side issues that have somehow become central battles in this campaign. Measure A is about meeting community needs.

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