Steph Walton is not pulling punches in the Oakland City Council District One Race. She’s openly accusing Oakland Councilmember Dan Kalb of money laundering.
She’s referring to an Oakland City Attorney court filing that the City Attorney has yet to confirm to Zennie62Media. (This is far, far too sensitive to just link to another “gotcha” news site without checking on it here, first.) That written, here’s the press release Steph Walton has posted on Facebook:
For Immediate Release: Sept 17, 2020
Steph Dominguez Walton Calls on Incumbent CM Dan Kalb to Return Allegedly Laundered Money and Address Other Fundraising Controversies
Oakland, CA – In response to the recent fundraising controversies surrounding incumbent Councilmember Dan Kalb and others, community leader and city council candidate Steph Dominguez Walton released the following statement:
“It has come to light in a court filing by the City Attorney of Oakland (see document at the end of this post text) that Councilmember Kalb accepted allegedly laundered campaign donations on behalf of a city contractor that has been overcharging Oakland and collecting millions of dollars of undeserved profit. I’m calling on Councilmember Kalb to immediately return these contributions and account for why he accepted them under questionable circumstances. A court filing by the City Attorney explains that multiple checks ‘were given in a single bundle directly to Dan Kalb,’ without disclosing legally required information. This reflects a pattern of questionable conduct that is unbecoming of a member of our city council. We need a change in District 1.”
Kalb has also been linked to other controversies raising ethical concerns, including:
● He accepted at least $1800 from Schnitzer Steel, including $800 in the current election. Schnitzer’s facility emits more toxic air contaminants in West Oakland than any other and has a long history of non-compliance with hazardous waste laws. Kalb’s fundraising filings are available here. Schnitzer Steel’s donation is pictured below.
● Kalb and others accepted and used numerous tickets to Warriors and Oakland A’s games, prompting an investigation by the Public Ethics Commission, which found that he failed to properly report 144 tickets.
● He accepted two VIP tickets, each worth $1,000, to see Michelle Obama speak at Oracle Arena and have a photo-op. He also accepted tickets to attend a Taylor Swift concert in 2018.
● The San Francisco Ethics Commission found that Kalb’s failed campaign for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors did not properly account for over $16,000 in expenditures.
● The SF Chronicle reported that Kalb requested a campaign contribution from a local restaurant owner after receiving an email sent to the entire council about damage to his restaurant during a protest. The restaurant industry has been hard hit in the pandemic and this restaurant is not located in Kalb’s district.
Longtime D1 resident and community leader, Steph Dominguez Walton has assembled a fierce challenge to 8-year incumbent Kalb. She has won prominent local endorsements and recently announced she raised more in-district money than Kalb. For more about Steph’s campaign, please visit www.stephforoakalnd.com.
Well, stay tuned. I have to ask Dan Kalb about this. Steph Walton, drawing first blood.
Oakland Public Ethics Commi… by Zennie Abraham
UPDATE: Zennie Abraham Interviews Councilmember Dan Kalb
In this talk, over 30 minutes long, Councilmember Kalb says he welcomes the investigation by the Oakland Public Ethics Commission and says he did nothing wrong. It must be noted that Dan is not listed as the defendant in this case. I also personally object to the Oakland Public Ethics Commission advancing a court filing during an election race. A number of states prohibit such actions; California should too.
