Leland Yee Has the Best Enemies
Categories: Politics
 |
| Jim Herd |
| Leland Yee is getting used to looking over his shoulder... |
This will play well on the home front. San Franciscans, no doubt, will be pleased that their representative was the one doing things that displeased an alleged violent gun nut. When it comes to siding with the anti-violent gun nut legislator or the alleged violent gun nut, it's safe to say this city will go with the former.
Yee's formidable political skill and ability to jump in front of any cause have taken him a long way. He -- very publicly -- takes on issues that resonate with San Franciscans. But he's also undoubtedly benefited from the repulsive, threatening, and outrageous behavior of some of society's most undesirable sorts.
For example:
See Also: Everett Basham, Ballsy Engineer With Bomb, Accused of Threatening Sen. Leland Yee
In 2010, Yee spearheaded a crusade to make Cal State Stanislaus reveal how much it was paying speaker Sarah Palin (Answer: $75,000, deluxe accommodations, and bendy straws). University-affiliated officials shredded paperwork they'd denied existed -- which elicited a Yee press conference. That move led to a slew of racist, xenophobic hate mail from fanatical Palin supporters -- and elicited a Yee press conference.
In 2011, Yee stated that Rush Limbaugh owed everyone an apology for mocking the Chinese language. This resulted in a predictably uncivil response from fanatical Limbaugh supporters -- and elicited a Yee press offensive.
And now this -- and a Yee press conference.
Yee has thrown in for next year's secretary of state race. On a crassly political level, will this help?
"It gets his name in the paper. But how does he leverage this quick little notoriety pulse into something else?" asks political strategist and University of San Francisco lecturer David Latterman. "I don't think this is gonna jack up his name recognition outside of" the Bay Area.
On the other hand, it's a long time until 2014. You never know what monster will come after Yee next.
Follow @sfweekly
Email to Friend
Write to Editor
Print Article
