In heated meeting, California mayor gets censored over ‘fake news’ interviews

During a marathon city council meeting in the Orange County city of Westminster, the mayor was censored for allegedly making false statements about his colleagues in the Vietnamese-language media.

A 3-2 vote in the meeting that began Wednesday night reprimanded Tri Ta for public statements regarding a dispute with three city council members.

Councilman Tai Do alleges that Ta and his council ally, Chi Charlie Nguyen, “manipulate the Vietnamese-speaking community” with “fake news” while avoiding skeptics who do not understand Vietnamese. About 40% of the city’s 90,000 residents are of Vietnamese descent.

Ta was interviewed in the City Hall parking lot while standing outside what he calls his “mobile office” – an SUV with a desk inside. Do and fellow council members Kimberly Ho and Carlos Manzo say the mayor accused them of banning him from using his private office at City Hall.

At issue was an October resolution setting out guidelines for interactions between city employees and elected officials. The council passed it amid allegations that Ta and Nguyen pressured employees to sign on to projects they supported, including a proposal to sell off city land for residential development. .

Do, Ho and Manzo also requested that the mayor’s office be moved from City Hall to the Council Chamber building as a way to create physical distance between Ta and city staff. On Wednesday, three colleagues backed a plan to postpone the office relocation until after the November election.

Nguyen, who had been censored two weeks earlier, called three liars. Do said Nguyen and Ta acted like “murderers”. Ta told him, “I feel sorry for the people who voted for you.” And Manzo considers the repeated blows “disgusting.”

In another part of the controversial agenda, Do asked to translate meetings into Vietnamese in real time. He said it would combat the “fake news” that he believed Ta, Nguyen and their supporters had spread. But his colleagues rejected the idea, expressing concern that it would be too expensive.

City Interim Superintendent Christine Cordon pointed out that hiring an interpreter would take a lot of billable hours “when considering our meetings, like half a day.”

Westminster City Council meetings usually take place past midnight. This week runs until 2:30 a.m., followed by a private discussion of legal issues lasting another 45 minutes.

In June, Westminster voters will have the opportunity to determine if they want to continue to elect four council seats by district during the general mayor election or if they will choose five counties to choose all five council positions. If voters go for the transition, mayor of Westminster will be a ceremonial position chosen by colleagues once a year – the same process used in most large California cities.

Creating another question mark, both Ta and Ho said last week that they plan to run to represent California’s 70th District. The incumbent, Patrick O’Donnell, recently announced that he will not be running for re-election.

Apparently, Ta could also run for mayor again if that position remains large, and if he loses his bid in Congress in the June primaries. In a text message on Thursday, Ta said: “I’m focused on my Council race.”