Wanted: A Mayor Who Can Fix San Francisco

Somebody tell the national (and local) media: San Francisco has not been governed by a progressive administration since Mayor Art Agnos was ousted by Chauncey Gardner -- I mean ex-Police Chief Frank Jordan and his handlers – in 1992. Since Agnos, San Francisco has been cursed with a long line of corporate Democrats – leaders who love the gays and marijuana but mostly serve business interests. But our current mayor, London Breed, who has ruled City Hall since 2017, is the worst. At least Willie Brown and Gavin Newsom were personalities. At least Ed Lee was a nice guy – way over his head, but he meant well. Breed, on the other hand, is a nasty piece of work. But worse than that, she’s been a complete failure as mayor.

San Francisco is a fucking mess, as its residents know all too well – and, as I told billionaire tech investor and power broker Ron Conway last fall during a public forum, that’s on him and the politicians he and his wealthy clique have installed in office, starting with Mayor Breed. In a recent survey, SF residents gave local government its lowest rating in over 20 years.

Downtown San Francisco is a boarded-up ghost town, with Nordstrom’s -- the anchor department store in the neighborhood -- being the latest to announce its departure. The homeless crisis is out of control and has tanked the once booming tourist trade. The grotesque wealth gap in the city has reached Third World proportions. There is no there there anymore in this once vital city, no sense of where we’re heading, only downwards.

Mayor Breed has no vision, no sense of how to lead or inspire people. She looks out only for herself and her loyal circle. Like her clueless predecessor, Ed Lee, she put all her eggs in the Big Tech basket, hoping that Twitter and the other selfish companies would make SF a city of the future. Now, the tech industry is fleeing SF, after laying waste to the city, making it less affordable, evicting thousands of residents and driving out other once-thriving businesses.

Good work, Conway and Breed!

But wait… Supervisor Ahsha Safai has announced he will run against Mayor Breed next year! Great, just what San Francisco needs – a challenge from the right... or somewhere. Safai, who defeated progressive John Avalos to become a supervisor, was once a close ally of Breed. The same tech and real estate interests behind her helped elect Safai. He advocated the same unaffordable housing strategy she supported – until he didn’t. Now he’s kind of progressive, I guess. Hey, he’s whatever you want him to be!

What San Francisco really needs at long last is a truly progressive Mr. or Ms. (or none of the above) Fix-It, somebody who has a strong vision for how to revive this broken city and can get the key groups and communities to share it and work for it. Fortunately, we don’t have to look too far for a leader who can do this. Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin is termed out of office next year. He should challenge London Breed. He knows how to fix this city. He can get buy-in from its varied constituencies. He has a colorful, commanding personality and has seemed to conquer his demons. He’s just what San Francisco needs now.

If Peskin decides not to run, then progressive Supervisors Dean Preston OR Hillary Ronen should jump into the race. Each of them knows how to inspire people, can lead us forward.

I’d work hard for a Peskin, Preston or Ronen campaign. We need to defeat Breed and Conway. We need to get this beautiful city back on its feet.

San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin