Nov 142018
 

Have you heard the news? Tom Hudson is leading a coup at the Placer GOP. At least he thought he was.

Placer GOP Chairman Dennis Revell after a largely successful tenure as Placer GOP Chair resigned due to some serious health issues.

That’s not what Tom Hudson is saying, of course.

Hudson’s divorce is in its’ 4th year of him filing all sorts of delaying motions designed to bankrupt his soon to be ex-wife. That is a lot of stuff for Hudson to try and control.

In the meantime, the CRA is in the midst of another Coup. (See, it was never really about George and I… it is about the toxic culture of CRA) They are getting ready to oust Tom Hudson as CRA Chair and Johnnie Morgan has recruited a slate of candidates for senior CRA offices. Morgan is running for CRA President.

It has been put to me that Hudson no longer has the support within the CRA to remain as Chair. As a result then, he needs a new gig in order to maintain his relevance.

Now, you have perspective for the Placer GOP situation and why Hudson is striking now.

BTW – allow me to disclaim that several people on the Placer GOP that are supporting Tom’s aggressive action are indeed good people (some are also friends). However, they are going to learn the hard way about Hudson’s mental health issues and lack of character.

In the meantime, I hope Dennis is able to fully recover from his health issues. I believe that Jeff Short (who also resigned as treasurer) and Dennis Revell will be better off for leaving the Placer GOP Cent Com.

For the rest of you looking to make a difference in Placer County – there is always the Placer County Impact Republicans.

 

Jul 152017
 

As Thomas N Hudson’s life continues to spiral apart, his behavior is getting quite a bit more erratic. His rage and anger outbursts are already stuff of legend and are sometimes down right comical when coupled with his 5′-4.5″ 300 pound frame.

Lately, as he has been dragging his divorce proceeding in to its’ third year, the Board of Equalization just got gutted by the State Legislature over its’ rampant corruption. This means Mr. Hudson will likely find himself having to apply and interview for another government job at a lower salary.

Perhaps this contributed to his immature and boorish behavior on Wednesday Night where he single-handedly needed to extend a Placer GOP Meeting another 90 minutes. Despite being told that the County Facility was to be vacate by 9pm, Hudson held everyone hostage until 9:55PM.

At issue was an endorsement of the Neighborhood Legislature Initiative. Let’s have some more background so the readers of this blog get a more rounded picture of this situation.

At the recent CRA Convention, Mr. Hudson was leveraging the CRA and one such leverage play was related to the John Cox for Governor Campaign / Neighborhood Legislature Initiative.

Mr. Cox was set to be the dinner speaker at the CRA Convention until about 9 days out when Mr. Cox was supplanted by the deranged Tim Donnelly. The culprit behind the schedule change was none other than the CRA’s Pol-Pot bellied information minister.

Upon hearing he had been jilted by Tim Donnelly’s book tour, Mr. Cox cancelled. Mr. Hudson then made sure the Neighborhood Legislature was deferred to a later CRA Convention for consideration, again filibustering and using his knowledge of Robert’s Rules to control an outcome.

Yours truly called Mr. Hudson on his duplicity, soliciting donations from a Man he was trying to screw.

It is my opinion that the exposure of this is what was driving Hudson’s near psychotic anger on Wednesday night.

There is another piece of background. I’ve written a lot about the effort in 2012 to unseat the Conservatives with people “Republican Leadership” wanted on the Central Committee. Hudson was one targeted, but is now aligned with the Tea Partiers that once wanted to throw him in jail for money laundering. (Remember FBI day and the front page Bee Story quoting Doug LaMalfa and Ted Gaines accusing Tom Hudson of Felony Money Laundering?)

After that effort paid off in giving the “establishment” control of the Central Committee, Mr. Hudson, being the chameleon he is started aligning himself with some of the very people who believed he was stealing money from the Placer GOP via his Headquarters Partnership and other entities he creates to absorb taxes. (Hudson is a tax attorney by trade)

As part of an effort by the local partisan electeds to try to bring unity to the Committee in 2013, Tom McClintock’s Chief of Staff, Igor Birman wrote the current by-laws of the Placer GOP. Hudson lies when he claims that the by laws of 2017 have been the same for years, they have not. This is key. (BTW – Mr. Hudson has 100% command of the details at all times, when he says something inaccurate, it is deliberate. Remember, he is a lawyer and I have known him for 18 years)

Why is it key, it says 2/3 of the committee for an endorsement. It does not say 2/3 of those present. This means that in order to amend the by-laws, one will need 28 votes in order to do so. In order to endorse, one would need 28 votes.

This means that Mr. Hudson’s theatrics and attempts to confuse people with parliamentary tricks  on Wednesday, It is safe to say that the exposure of his duplicity is as much a factor in his efforts to strong-arm an endorsement of Mr. Cox’ initiative than anything else. The vote was 23-11, 5 votes short of the threshold. A subsequent motion made by Tom in an attempt to circumvent the by-laws failed 21-13 (it was a motion to “recognize” the endorsement).

All that said, if this is how Mr. Hudson supports a candidate or cause, I would pay him to oppose a candidate.

Apr 022017
 

If you follow California Politics, the Sacramento Bee has been on a rampage against the Board of Equalization.  When they are not openly displaying their hatred of Christians attacking local charities with slanted, biased stories, the Bee has been writing legitimate stories blasting the board for their practices of using wads of taxpayer money to benefit individual members.

Thomas N Hudson works for the Board of Equalization.

CRA VP Bill Cardoza works for the feckless Ted Gaines. So does Damian Fussell, the CRA’s resident liberal. Cardoza used to work for the BOE before going over to Ted Gaines’ State Senate shop. AS reported on this blog, the serial office-shopper Ted Gaines was purchasing annoying slate mail cards for his next campaign even before his election to his final term in the State Senate was complete! Ted Gaines is running for Board of Equalization.

I’ve seen photos from CRA meetings and conventions suggesting several other BOE Employees are active in CRA. Given that your intrepid blogger has exposed the CRA’s real membership to be no more than 700 people statewide (likely closer to 600), even 5 BOE (or prospective BOE) staffers on their rolls is extremely disproportionate. Further, given that 2 of those are senior officers in the CRA, you have to take pause.

The CRA endorsed Stephen Baird over Ted Gaines in 2016, as Gaines has been hostile to the State of Jefferson movement.

Why was Ted Gaines front and center at the just concluded CRA Convention? He wants something. And, you’d have to be brain dead to think that Thomas N Hudson, Bill Cardoza and others did not and do not have a serious interest in the outcome of that election next year. (Note, I will be supporting (Fill in the name of Republican candidate here) over Ted Gaines in 2018)

Thomas N Hudson rips off the taxpayers for $117K + another $47K in bloated benefits as of 2015. I am not sure how much his undeserved raise in 2016 was, but if it tracked past years, it would put his total package in 2016 at around $175K. How many of you reading this blog make $175k a year? How many of you would love to see this guy crying poor to the judge in his divorce case with said salary?

Trainwreck Teddy represents Thomas N Hudson’s next paycheck. He also represents the next paycheck for the others I mentioned previously.

The BOE was nuked by the State Auditor’s office for their lax enforcement of actually doing state work on state time:

Some employees are not performing the revenue-generating tasks they have been assigned, according to the audit, calling into question the agency’s budget requests and skirting the law.

“Certain board member practices have intervened in administrative activities and created inconsistencies in operations, breakdowns in centralized processes and in certain instances result in activities contrary to state law and budgetary and legislative directives,” the audit says.

No kidding. Have you ever gotten a call at 2 in the afternoon or a 6 page email at 10AM from Hudson in the middle of the week? I am sure Trainwreck Teddy will be a great boss to work for to continue the time-honored 6 figure salary with fringe benefits for optional work. When I type blogs and screw around on Facebook in the middle of the day, I am not selling insurance. Maybe the times when I am doing paid political work for a candidate merit that activity, but it always comes at a price to my insurance business.

In the case of Hudson, we are paying that price. In the case of Cardoza and others, it is simply the time-honored practice of pimping the CRA to a candidate in order to benefit one’s self. The CRA expelled several people for doing that, including Jim Nielsen and Doug LaMalfa’s current chiefs of staff. They got screwed. They were doing nothing different than those that helped expel them.

While Hudson is a “Tenured Civil Servant” who will keep a job regardless of member, should someone not named Ted Gaines get elected to that seat, Hudson could get an office in the basement, time off requests denied, assigned duties that require travel to Modoc County, etc. Trying to fend this off is the likely motive for Mr. Hudson pushing the CRA in the direction of Trainwreck Teddy, who they rebuffed just a few months ago.

The BOE is in chaos. Betty Yee, the California State Controller (who has a reputation of being an honest liberal) publicly called for the BOE to be dissolved because of its’ corruption.

BOE member Fiona Ma, echoed the call. While it is transparent she is trying to get free publicity for her State Treasurer race (in that regard she is no different than Hudson, Gaines or a host of others), she raised some valid points.

Existing Republican Members George Runner and Diane Harkey are pushing back against the calls to dissolve the BOE. Runner is the termed-out member Ted Gaines has been courting for support, appearing at events with him and trying to secure his endorsement.

The BOE is a mess. Hudson wants to keep a job, including the ability to flaunt the trust of the taxpayers in the middle of the day with God-knows-what PAC or group he is a part of at center stage, versus the Job his estimated $175K salary+package is supposed to be paying for.

Yee and Ma have one thing right. There are too many Thomas N Hudson’s in the BOE abusing the system. (and what’s left of the CRA in the process)

Sep 202016
 

What a headline you may exclaim.

5711841For those of you with short memories, allow your intrepid blogger to remind you about Kevin “Tropical Depression” Hanley. (“Hurricane” Hanley is what he called himself in the AD06 campaign.) Kevin Hanley was deign to tell people that the Chamber of Commerce he was the CEO of was in fact, Auburn.

Auburn is not in AD06. Kevin Hanley had to pull a Gaines and move to run in AD06.

During the ill-fated campaign that saw Mr. Hanley blow through $130k+ of his own money despite having the fundraising machine of Congressman Tom McClintock behind him, he was the glorious crusader for truth and justice against funding much-needed transportation improvements.

This great evil is now known as Measure M. Measure M has been necessitated by the inaction of so many in partisan office as well as the priorities of Sacramento which are welfare payoffs to voters. Don’t bother the Tropical Depression with the facts of life in California.

Enter the CRA’s Pol-Pot Bellied Information Minister Thomas N Hudson. Hudson apparently does not want Baseline Road widened in front of his lair. As I have written before, the information minister likely has a shrine to money in his living room and anything that takes a dime (in this case about $60 a year) from his shrine is apostasy.

In order to save said $60 a year, Hudson fired up the crane and hoisted himself in to his car to attend the 7:30 AM meeting of the Auburn Chamber’s Government Relations Committee. On or about 9/8/2016 Hudson and Hanley argued in vain against the truth of the need in Placer County.

I am sure Thomas N. Hudson spent an extra $15 on gas getting to the chamber meeting as the Prius was won by his soon-to-be ex-wife at the Casino is with her. So I am sure he drove one of his bought-at-auction 20 year old clunkers. (But, I am sure he is trying to steal the Prius from her in his divorce) One should also wonder if Mr. Hudson was able to make it to his taxpayer funded $166,000 a year job in time after the Auburn Chamber set fire to he and the Tropical Depression. (The Capitol Building is an easy hour from Auburn)

For those of you separating the humorous satire of stupidity from the sad reality, you are probably asking yourself why the CEO of a Chamber of Commerce turned himself in to an advocate on a local issue before the Chamber itself acted?

There was a campaign to win and a vainglorious crusade. During the AD06 campaign, a lot of people had their blinders on as did Hanley. The Tropical Depression hired a pro-gay marriage, pro-marijuana legalization, anti capital punishment, soft-on-abortion recently registered Republican as a campaign operative while campaigning as a hard-right Conservative. I’ve also yet to hear about Mr. Hanley offering his support to our nominees Kevin Kiley or Donald Trump for that matter. (ironically, the “hard-right” Hanley supported John Kasich)

Man on FireWill Kevin Hanley resign his position as CEO of the Auburn Chamber? Did he really mean it when he was attacking people for supporting (what is now known as) Measure M? How can he advocate the position of the Auburn Chamber when he took a hostile action and lost unanimously against?

The Tropical Depression can take solace in the fact that the CRA’s Pol-Pot Bellied Information Minister is going to spend his every waking hour (sober or otherwise) trying to keeeeeeeel Measure M. One must avenge the infamy of Measure B.

That is the question everyone should be asking – will Kevin Hanley do the honorable thing and resign his position as CEO of the Auburn Chamber? There is no way anyone can trust him to do his job now that his signature issue has been unanimously endorsed by the Auburn Chamber of Commerce.

Feb 042016
 

There is a reason why Baghdad Bob was so popular in the USA. While the M-1 Tanks were rolling on Baghdad and the bombs were exploding – he was there assuring the world that Iraq was destroying the American pigs.

Whoops. Three months later he was in prison garb. I think Americans could understand his insanity way too well.

Baghdad Bob protege the Pol-Pot bellied CRA Information Minister Thomas N Hudson was in rare form Tuesday Night (2/2/2016). The current Placer RA, which has no more than 25 real members now, held a meeting for local electeds and AD06 candidates.

Several attended including PCWA Member Robert Dugan, Roseville Councilmember Bonnie Gore, Rocklin Councilmember Greg Janda (all incumbents) and Candidate Tracy Mendonsa who has long since been public about his run for Roseville Council.

Of the AD06 Candidates – Kevin Kiley was ostensibly discharging his duties as a deputy of Kamala Harris and Cristi Nelson, the elitist country club liberal was also not present, consistent with her pattern of selectively choosing events she deems worthy of her presence. Marginal candidates Mikaluco and Hydrick were not either.

This sets the stage for the Pol-Pot bellied CRA Information Minister to do what he does best – screw up by the numbers.

First, after the AD06 candidates spoke, there was a motion to appoint delegates for the local CRA endorsing convention. Kevin Hanley, in his usual condescending voice made an objection to the Placer RA having delegates who are already supporting candidates – thus making a 5 minute process take 20-30 minutes. In the process, several people in attendance (amongst the roughly 15 actual non candidates present) got exasperated. These would include a community leader in Rocklin and retired State Senator Tim Leslie.

Kevin Hanley obviously is as oblivious to reality as the Pol-Pot Bellied CRA Information Minister. Bill Halldin has been around the Placer RA for about 10 years and thus, the remaining club members all support and like him.

It also appears that Hanley has not drawn the connection as to why he had to carpet-bag in to AD06 in order to run for Assembly, when he could have run for AD05 a couple years ago. The knock on Hanley then was that he did not want to run a tough race, so then he has waited instead for this primary with 7 candidates in it??? At that, he has raised a pathetic $23,000 despite his years of working in Sacramento. A second knock on Hanley is that he alienated his fellow Auburn council-members and many in city government with his condescending arrogance.

The Carpet-Bagging Hanley’s only significant support is Congressman McClintock who has never lived in his own Congressional District, oh the irony.

Perhaps the donors in Sacramento know what many in Auburn do? Maybe that is the real reason why Mr. Hanley did not run for AD05 in 2012?

Later – the handful of locals that showed up spoke and a motion was made to endorse them. Undaunted, and seeing an opportunity to both be right once again and important, the pol-pot bellied CRA information minister Thomas N Hudson arose to enlighten everyone with his legal mind.

He explained that November was a long time away and that several of the candidates (3 of which were incumbents) may not file! Apparently enough of those present bought the argument and the motion to endorse failed as a result, or perhaps they were worn out after a hour of filibustering. These sorts of political blunders happen when a group eschews adult supervision.

Thomas N Hudson did what he does best, placed being right ahead of relationships and political reality. I do believe that Mr. Hudson had more motives for doing what he did than what he said, but as a classic Narcissist he is incapable of seeing that his behavior was blatantly transparent and politically destructive.

What else would you expect from someone who leads a board of Narcissists, Nerds and even a Sociopath and a wet alcoholic. This is the CRA today…

Kevin Hanley apparently was also working his magic in El Dorado County as well. At a CRA meeting there – this man who worked in the capitol for years raised his hand in affirmation for the state of Jefferson when asked if he would sponsor a bill in the legislature to create SOJ. While I am personally ambivalent to that issue, Hanley of all people should understand that stance is extremely unpopular within the crowd that he once called home and who he is likely trying in vain to get support from.

I also find it odd as current and former members of that El Dorado RA club have told me it has no more than 20 real members tops. Is it worth it? What kind of traction do you get with poorly thought out decisions from the stump?

This is the Kevin Hanley train-wreck, pandering to audiences he thinks he can get the support of and alienating people he thinks may support others.

There is a neat caveat: Hanley because he is as disconnected from AD06 as Kiley and Nelson are, is not aware of the purchased Ted Gaines endorsement. A consequence of said purchase by Cristi Nelson is that the Gaines drones on the El Dorado Central Committee are reputedly in the bag for Nelson. The moral to this story? There was nothing there for Mr. Hanley and he had a connection to AD06 and not just a carpet-bag, he’d have known this.

If Mr. Hanley is unable to understand that concept – perhaps he should call Suzanne Jones (who was also present at both meetings) and ask her about Beth Gaines soliciting a $3000 check from Jones for her endorsement. (ostensibly said check was to have been a donation to her then BofE fundraiser, which should not be confused with her upcoming State Senate fundraiser that Gaines is hosting whilst declared for El Do Supervisor in 2016.)

Also in the Placer RA meeting, Hudson went on the extol the upcoming State CRA Convention in Orange County as being something special. George and I planned that convention before our ouster from the CRA and had set the prices, which have all been increased dramatically. The reason Hudson gave was that the hotel raised the prices  In classic face-saving narcissism Hudson only told part of the truth, the prices have gone up because the CRA is not meeting their minimums required by the hotel. That was the only way they could have changed per the signed contract we negotiated. This is the CRA train-wreck.

If anyone wonders why the CRA is dead and why the GOP is losing market share, just re-read this post a couple times and make the connections.