At a City Council meeting yesterday, Bob Brownstein of Working Partnerships blasted an audit that found the city’s pension benefits program unsustainable, saying it was, “filled with flaws and inaccuracies.”  It was a testy exchange, and at one point, City Councilmember Pete Constant, who chaired the meeting, threatened to have Brownstein removed from the meeting.

The San Jose Police Officers’ Association got their money’s worth out of the full page ad that they took out in last Sunday’s Mercury News.  The story received a lot of coverage from other media outlets and was the lead story for several Bay Area television stations

A paper trail suggests that money from Bay 101, the San Jose card club, made its way to the campaign of City Council candidate Xavier Campos. Public records show that following the card club’s $50,000 contribution in support of a ballot measure, funds were transferred to Campos-aligned organizations that subsequently funded Campos’ bitter battle for a District 5 council seat, in apparent violation of city campaign laws.

Candidate Larry Pegram of District 9 says he is focused on fiscal issues, but his Values Advocacy Council focuses on religion. A questionnaire they have sent out to school board candidates asks their position on such issue as the role of religion in education, their stance on abstinence education and abortion, and the teaching of intelligent design.

A $250 campaign contribution from a Los Angeles lawyer to San Jose City Council candidate Magdalena Carrasco is drawing fire from District 5 Councilmember Nora Campos. Campos, whose brother Xavier Campos is running against Carrasco to represent San Jose’s East Side, suggests the money is evidence that Carrasco is somehow in cahoots with politicians from L.A.

The quest for SJPD Chief Rob Davis’s replacement kicks off tonight with the city’s first community outreach meeting.

Taking place at the Roosevelt Community Center, the event aims to have citizens weigh in on the type of person they think should be hired to lead San Jose’s Police Department. After tonight’s 6pm meeting, there will be four other opportunities for community engagement through Sept. 2.

“This is one of the most important positions in the city,” City Manager Deb Figone said when announcing the event at today’s city council meeting. “The information we gather at these meetings will help define the characteristics that we are looking for in our next police chief.”

Team San Jose, the quasi-public, hotel tax-funded labor-business coalition that that runs city-owned entertainment facilities, has lost its access to public money after overrunning its budget by more than $750,000.

This event is being held in loving memory of Vahid Hosseini and Officer Jeffrey Fontana. The purpose of this event is to honor the memory of those who have lost their lives due to a violent crime, fallen Police Officers, and Fire Fighters, and to support their loved ones.

Minh Duong, the pro-business, Chamber of Commerce–endorsed City Council candidate, has made his business experience the central theme of his campaign to oust District 7 Councilmember Madison Nguyen. He believes his knowledge of budgets and finance can help the economically-strapped city better manage its money.

Duong’s own business acumen, however, may not rise to the level his talking points suggest. The 31-year-old furniture store owner has defaulted on his home mortgage, incurred multiple property tax delinquencies, neglected to pay his garbage bills and been threatened with eviction on his business and foreclosure on his house. Last month, he was kicked off the San José Small Business Development Commission.

Sam Liccardo knows first hand the impact of traffic laws. The District 3 councilmember mentioned an unfortunate run in he had with a Caddy during a discussion today on reducing speed limits around Trace Elementary School.  “As somebody who’s been hit at 15 miles an hour, I can confirm that you don’t want to be hit at that, or at 25,” Liccardo said.

Now that we don’t have any money, this is how we are dealing. This seemed to be the theme of today’s San Jose City Council meeting, where council members were updated on some of the painful cutbacks that have taken place since the city budget was slashed.

Eddie Garcia, president of the East Side Union High School District board, has announced that he will not seek re-election to the Board of Trustees this fall.

“After thoughtful consideration with my family, I have decided not to seek another term on the Board of Trustees for the 2010 election for the East Side Union High School District,” Garcia posted on his Facebook profile last friday. 

Garcia, 46, suffered a major heart attack last June, and is currently on medical leave from his job as Chief of Staff for Supervisor George Shirakawa.

Mayor Chuck Reed officially endorsed District 9 candidate Larry Pegram today. “Larry does not shy away from standing up for the residents of the district over special interests,” Reed is quoted as saying in a campaign press release that came out this morning. “I need his help at City Hall in the difficult budget years ahead.”

In the endorsement, Reed made a point to mention that he believes Pegram’s history as Christian conservative leader and head of the Values Advocacy Council would not be a factor if he is elected to San Jose City Hall.

The 15th California State Senate District stretches over strategic portions of Santa Clara County, Monterey County, Santa Cruz County, San Benito County and Santa Barbara County. And for many, including the Democratic former Assemblymember running to represent the district, it’s also a perfect illustration of everything that’s wrong with California politics.

At its weekly meeting Tuesday evening, the San Jose City Council voted to put a proposed marijuana business tax on the ballot this November. The tax, which could reach up to 10 percent, would encompass business that sell medical marijuana both legally and illegally in the city.