Horcher’s Out, but Battle for Power Goes On

SACRAMENTO —  Paul Horcher committed the ultimate political sin. That would be true whether he were a Republican or Democrat, a capitalist or communist, in a dictatorship or democracy. He betrayed his party at the decisive moment and prevented it from taking power. And for this treason he paid the ultimate political price.

When loyalty was expected, Horcher defected to the other side. At stake was not some public policy, but power. Revenge was the prime motive. He was driven less by principle than pettiness.

There was a lot of pettiness, by Horcher and his former party.

It’s a tragic story. Suffice it to say that a series of political failures in the broadest sense--failures to communicate, conciliate and compromise--led to childish overreactions and the crushing of a career.

Horcher now is history, about one line’s worth. He’s the first legislator in 81 years to be recalled from office. He’s also an asterisk, the Republican turncoat whose vote kept Democrat Willie Brown in power as Assembly Speaker.

Horcher’s first mistake was mortgaging his home to run for the Assembly in 1990. So he arrived at the Capitol in hock. Brown is skilled at exploiting vulnerabilities and when he offered Horcher the vice chairmanship of Ways and Means--a receptacle for special interest juice--Horcher accepted. This angered fellow Republicans because they had sought the slot for another colleague. They shunned Horcher for two years, treated him like dirt. Horcher got his revenge. And he also got his loan repaid during the recall with campaign donations.

Gov. Pete Wilson told me last fall--as Horcher was refusing to return his phone calls--that if the assemblyman defected, “retribution would be swift and sure.” Horcher had run for reelection as a Republican and on Tuesday his GOP constituents in the San Gabriel Valley politically exiled him.

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Enough of Paul Horcher. What impact will his recall--and replacement with a newly elected Republican--have on the gridlocked Assembly’s ongoing power struggle? More importantly, what impact will it have on formation of public policy in California?

It should mean that sometime this year--most likely just before the Legislature recesses on Sept. 15--Republicans will seize the speakership and make the Assembly more hospitable to the Wilson/GOP agenda. But that also should have happened last December when Republicans began the session with a one-vote majority of 41. Then Horcher defected and two other Republicans left for the Senate.

The GOP now is back to 39, same as Democrats. Republicans are virtually assured of gaining a 40th member at another San Gabriel Valley special election on June 6. GOP Leader Jim Brulte then will try to oust Brown with 40 votes, the same number Brown finagled in reclaiming the speakership. At that time, the house was one member short with 79, so 40 represented a majority. This also will be the situation in June. But Brown will be presiding and is expected to rule that his ouster requires 41 votes.

Brown on Wednesday gave the Sacramento Press Club some candid and humorous insight into how he interprets House rules. How many votes will it require to keep him in power? he was asked. “Thirty-nine,” he answered. Why 39? “That’s all I have.”

He added, “When somebody gets 41, they will replace me as Speaker--if I’m still around. The chances of my being around when someone gets 41 are slim to none.”

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Republicans are expected to get their 41st vote on Sept. 12 in an Orange County special election. By that time, Brown will have announced whether he’s running for mayor of San Francisco; the filing deadline is Aug. 16. But whether he runs or doesn’t, the Speaker has been talking about voluntarily stepping down in September and turning over power to the next generation.

They can’t fire him; he’ll quit.

But Brown also asserted Wednesday, “As long as they [Republicans] keep screwing around with me, I am going to keep making them look like eunuchs.” And he boasted, “Mr. Brulte can only be Speaker with my blessing.”

There may be some truth in that. Brulte is tormented by another Republican rebel, one on good terms with Brown--veteran Assemblywoman Doris Allen of Cypress. She’s angry because most GOP assemblymen sided with colleague Ross Johnson against her in a recent special Senate election, although he was a carpetbagger. And she blames Brulte.

“I’m not beholden to them,” she says of the house GOP leadership. “It’s the good old boys club. They don’t like women legislators. They don’t see us as having a brain and the ability to lead.”

Allen is running for Speaker herself. She’ll vote to oust Brown, she says, but “I wouldn’t vote for Brulte.”

So Horcher’s out, Brown’s still in, Brulte’s iffy and the battle persists.