Endorsement: Despite some issues, Tom Berryhill is up to the task in 8th Senate District

Calling California’s 8th Senate District sprawling is an understatement. It includes all or part of 10 counties, stretching from the edge of Sacramento to Yosemite National Park through Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks to Death Valley. It borders Nevada on the east and touches much of the San Joaquin Valley in the west.

You’d think the person representing it would be a mountaineer.

But that’s not Tom Berryhill. Having moved to Twain Harte, he no longer lives in the San Joaquin Valley, but his roots run deep here. So deep, in fact, that he’s an important member of what could be called the Northern San Joaquin Valley caucus – which includes Republicans Kristin Olsen and Anthony Cannella and Democrats Adam Gray and Cathleen Galgiani.

These five legislators became especially important during negotiations to recast the 2009 Water Bond into Proposition 1 and get it on the Nov.4 ballot. The vote in the Legislature to put the bond on the ballot was nearly unanimous, becoming a signature event for Berryhill and the rest of the group. His part in marshaling that support by itself warrants his re-election.

Berryhill is running against Paulina Miranda of Fresno. Miranda’s biography touts her election to the Fresno County Democratic Central Committee and to her children’s parent-teacher council as accomplishments. Under endorsements, her website lists none. Her candidacy cannot be taken seriously.

That makes it easy to endorse Berryhill – but we would have anyway. His work on a host of issues – increasing Cal Fire staff during peak forest fire season; increasing penalties for metal theft; working with Olsen to address issues that impact nurses – is laudable and important.

That said, we have some issues.

First, there’s the $40,000 in fines levied by the Fair Political Practices Commission. Berryhill and the Republican central committees from Stanislaus and San Joaquin counties were fined for their efforts in channeling money from Tom Berryhill’s campaign into that of his brother, Bill, who was running against Galgiani in 2012. They weren’t exactly trying to hide the transfer, lending credence to Berryhill’s argument that he did not think he was breaking the rules.

More objectionable in our view are the “free” trips to Hawaii and other resort locations that Berryhill has taken. The Los Angeles Times, Maplight.org and others have detailed these trips, which include fancy meals, golf and fine accommodations. While on these trips, Berryhill and other California elected officials – Democrats and Republicans – meet behind closed doors with people likely to benefit from legislation. The California Independent Voter Project often foots the bill. It is not illegal, but it is unseemly for wealthy people to get access that others can’t. The dailykos.com calls the IVP “a smokescreen for corporate interests.” That’s a fine line for anyone to tread.

Representing District 8 is a big job; we believe Tom Berryhill is up to it.

This story was originally published October 30, 2014 at 10:20 AM with the headline "Endorsement: Despite some issues, Tom Berryhill is up to the task in 8th Senate District."