This item is on the Tuesday, June 4, 2013 city council agenda:
5B. For notation pursuant to Section 2.2.110 of the City Code: receipt of campaign contributions by Representative Steve Ortega on May 2, 2013, in the amount of $1,000 from Shawn/Donna Gray; in the amount of $500 from Rudolf & Sandra Montiel; in the amount of $500 from Evelina Ortega; in the amount of $500 from Robert & Sylvia Ortega; in the amount of $500 from Alan & Caryn Rosen Viterbi; in the amount of $500 from Tracy Yellen; on May 3, 2013, in the amount of $2,500 from Cita Sanders; in the amount of $2,500 from William Sanders; in the amount of $500 from Tenet Healthcare Corp. PAC; on May 6, 2013, in the amount of $500 from Carlos David Bombach; in the amount of $500 from Lupe F/Jesus M. Gonzalez; in the amount of $2,000 from TREPAC/Texas Association of Realtors; on May 7, 2013, in the amount of $1,000 from BNSF Rail PAC; in the amount of $1,500 from Bill Burton Jr.; in the amount of $5,000 from L. Frederick Francis; in the amount of $1,000 from Patricia Holland-Branch; in the amount of $500 from Martin Morgades; on May 8, 2013, in the amount of $1,000 from the Law Office of Ruth Reyes; on May 9, 2013, in the amount of $1,500 from Jack Chapman; in the amount of $5,000 from Charles Jordan; in the amount of $1,000 from Brad & Katherine Kuykendall, in the amount of $500 from William M. & Vicki Yung. [Representative Steve Ortega, (915) 541-4124]
State law requires that candidates file a report of contributions and expenses eight days before an election. Our May election was held on the 11th. The timing of these contributions kept them from being on the eight day report. I am not claiming that anything is wrong with this. They could have been as a result of a last minute call for more money.
Reading the list you should see money from the railroad, from the builder of the ball park, from the advertising and public relations firm that the city has been using for ball park related issues, and from people prominent in the downtown renaissance.
Some of these people will need to make amends if the candidate loses the runoff election.
For the record section 2.2.110 of the city code deals with the city manager. Section 2.92.110 deals with ethics and specifically with disclosure of campaign contributions.
It seems that Scrivener is doing his job.
We deserve better
Brutus
elpasospeak 
Council passed a resolution a few years back that asked reps to disclose campaign contributions of $500+ on the “consent agenda”. These contributions will be on Ortega’s campaign report that is due on June 8th. Carl has reported these, Emma did a week or two ago. Wake up and try to remember what has ahppened in the past.
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If you align the interests of big money contributors with specific recent council decisions, it’s pretty clear that campaign contributions buy council votes and vice versa. To paraphrase Popeye’s frIend J. Wellington Wimpy’s quote: “I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday for a vote today.”
Regardless whether the contributions came before or after certain votes, there’s no question that Ortega has been bought and paid for.
Pay to play is alive and well in El Paso, which is no surprise given that so many of our local leaders are big supporters of Rick Perry who brought pay to play into the open. The buying of political favors is just another business investment.
Kant believed that an action is only good if the principle behind it is duty to the moral law. Or as someone else once said, once you abandon your principles everything else is easy.
Some have abandoned fairness and integrity in the name of progress and profits. Questionable decisions and business practices have become easy for them. The opinions and concerns of others matter not. It’s no wonder that people have lost faith and trust.
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I have never been able to see how the end justifies the means.
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