Rattling the TIN CUP Law at Harriett Wieder’s Campaign

Back in 1977, many Orange County residents applauded the successful efforts of Shirley Grindle to minimize the chances of campaign contributors exerting undue influence on the decisions of the Board of Supervisors. For over 10 years, not one supervisor has been charged with violating Grindle’s TIN CUP ordinance, which proves the measure has served as an effective deterrent to conflict of interest votes.

But now it appears that Grindle is not satisfied with mere deterrence. She has fashioned her TIN CUP into a political weapon and is attempting to impale Supervisor Harriett M. Wieder with it.

Grindle’s assertion that a $2,500 contribution to Wieder’s congressional campaign by the Irvine Co. Employees Political Action Committee falls within the provisions of the TIN CUP ordinance has been soundly rejected by a battery of legal experts, including Orange County Counsel Adrian Kuyper. If the ordinance does not read the way Grindle would like, she should blame herself (she authored the measure), not Wieder who has meticulously complied with the law.

If Grindle is opposed to the Laguna Laurel development and/or Wieder’s candidacy for Congress, let her say so openly and not hide behind a TIN CUP.

FRANK PERSIDES

Dana Point