Councilwoman jockeying for position

Alicia Robinson and S.J. Cahn

When Newport Beach City Councilwoman Leslie Daigle was appointed to

her seat, she didn’t realize it would be a saddle.

Daigle got to ride a horse for the first time Saturday at an event

celebrating horses held by the Back Bay Equestrians, a group of Santa

Ana Heights residents who are Daigle’s constituents.

“The other time, I was on a carousel horse,” joked the

councilwoman, appointed in September.

She wanted to ride a horse because the equestrian community is

unique to her district, and horses are important to those who live

there, she said.

“It was kind of a surprise to get on [the] council and end up

riding a horse, but it was fun.”

Cox scores with

U.S. Border Control

U.S. Border Control gave Newport Beach Rep. Chris Cox a perfect

score for voting against illegal immigration in the last two years, a

statement from Cox’s office said.

Cox received a 100% score from the group, which works to secure

the nation’s borders and reform immigration policies, for voting

favorably on 2003 and 2004 legislation to limit benefits for illegal

immigrants, penalize employers who hire illegal immigrants and allow

members of the military to assist Border Patrol forces.

Cox is one of 51 members of Congress to make Border Control’s

“honor roll” for his votes on illegal immigration.

Cox name floated

again for national role

It’s not deja vu. Cox is being mentioned in the media all over

again as a possible homeland security director, after President

Bush’s nominee, former New York Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik,

withdrew Friday.

Cox has been passed over for administrative posts before, but his

position as chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee

apparently makes him a logical choice, at least to media such as

Newsday and Bloomberg’s news websites.

Bromberg seeks

a mightier gavel

Newport Beach City Councilman Steve Bromberg just took back the

mayor’s gavel, but he’s hoping to trade it for one that comes with a

robe. Bromberg, chosen as the city’s 2005 mayor Tuesday, is seeking

an Orange County Superior Court judgeship, though there are no

vacancies on the bench, he said.

He’s been quiet about it because so many people apply for the

seats. The governor initially appoints judges to a six-year term,

after which they can run for reelection. After 34 years as an

attorney, Bromberg said, “a judgeship to me is a natural progression

of my profession.”

But he isn’t expecting to hit the bench any time soon. He applied

in 1996 and was never appointed, he said.

“These don’t happen overnight. It’s a long, arduous process,” he

said.

Rohrabacher makes

the national cutup

In case you’ve been under a rock for the past year or so, here’s a

piece of news: There’s a show on a cable channel, Comedy Central,

called “The Daily Show.” And it’s this year’s political place to be.

Sen. John Kerry made an appearance during his presidential run.

Sen. John Edwards actually announced his presidential intentions on

the show. Tom Brokaw appeared in the lead up to his final NBC News

show. His successor, Brian Williams, followed.

Other guests include: Bill O’Reilly, Desmond Tutu, Sen. John

McCain, Pat Buchanan and a guy named Bill Clinton.

The show’s host, Jon Stewart, has been on the cover of news

magazines and raised a stink during an appearance on CNN’s

“Crossfire.”

Stewart and his cohorts take sarcastic shots at any number of

world leaders and celebrities. Last week, Costa Mesa’s congressman,

Dana Rohrabacher, made the cut.

Rohrabacher spoke that day in opposition to the realignment of the

country’s intelligence activities under one person.

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to S. 2845.

“This is first and foremost, and everyone in the country knows

that, this is a pro-illegal immigration bill in that the situation

with illegal immigration will be worse if we pass this bill than it

is today.

“It is also not a reform bill. It is an illusion. It is a piece of

illusion legislation. It is designed to make people feel better

because they perceive something is being done.

“And I would like to thank the largest organization of 9/11

families who are opposed to this legislation, the 9/11 Families for

American Security, who visited members of Congress to oppose this

legislation.

“What this bill does is change the flowchart, trying to make

people think that is doing something. It adds a level of bureaucracy,

a new level of bureaucracy, and, yes, creates an intelligence czar.

Boy, that is going to make everybody feel really good that we have an

intelligence czar. We had an energy czar. That did us a lot of good.

And thank goodness America had a drug czar that was appointed years

ago; otherwise we would be plagued with drug use in America today.”

Stewart’s response: “Who appointed that guy sarcasm czar?”

The congressman need not worry. That kind of stuff polls great

with the youth.