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Vargas’ Attack on First Amendment Rights
The truth hurts. No one understands that more than Tracy City Councilmember Veronica Vargas. The public transparency about conflict of interest magnet Veronica and her recently terminated Division Fire Chief husband - Patrick Vargas - has driven the councilwoman to Nixon-esque levels of paranoia against the media.
In an unprecedented move at the Feb 2nd, Tracy City Council closed session meeting, Vargas demanded her fellow council members support her call for public hearings to learn who is behind Transparent Tracy. Even more astounding, her witch hunt targeted without any evidence Council Member Davis as being the author of the site. Watch below –
There is a lot to digest in this less than two-minute undignified and jarring screech. First, Interim City Attorney, Gregory Rubens, quickly admonished Vargas that this topic could not be addressed in a closed session and as anyone with half-a-mind knows, she cannot call for a public hearing on such matters. Vargas believes she has Congressional Authority to summons anyone from the public to answer before her. She doesn’t. Second, she accused Councilwoman Davis not once but twice in less than a minute of being the author of Transparent Tracy. Thank goodness Councilwoman Davis responded in a dignified and professional manner. Third, if the postings of a single website can rattle the highly paid management and staff at Tracy City Hall from doing their jobs, then taxpayers should certainly be worried. Their reaction may prove the old bromide that “Where there is smoke there is fire.”
Don’t be fooled by Councilwoman Vargas’ playing the victim card. Her attack against Transparent Tracy is nothing short than an attack against the public and an effort to trample the First Amendment. She wants to silence the public. She wants to silent the truth about her conduct and her husband’s conduct.
But let us be clear, Vargas is not concerned about the health and wellness of city staff. She is concerned about herself. As a land use lobbyist, she is concerned about her future ability to sway city staff and council members after she is termed out of office. In order for her to maintain her high-profile clients like developer Mike Sandhu, she needs access to City Hall well beyond her final day on the dais. She cannot do that when people are watching her actions. Watch below -
Vargas wants to silence Transparent Tracy – period. She is angry and wants to use her public position to impose revenge. We cannot help but quote the famous passage from “Alice in Wonderland” -
“All the time they were playing the Queen never left off quarrelling with the other players, and shouting ‘Off with his head!’ or ‘Off with her head!’”
We hate to disappoint her, but we at Transparent Tracy kindly decline her request to reveal ourselves and intend to keep our heads! People may not agree with everything we print, but we have done our best to focus on the happenings within our local government that may not otherwise be covered by the mainstream press. The Tracy Press does its best with its limited resources, but they do not have the capacity to cover the backroom dealings and issues of City Hall. While we have, at times, been guilty of hyperbole, we have done our best to stick to the facts and vetted the information provided to us.
As always, we thank our readers, supporters, informers, and even our detractors. If we are creating conversation about issues impacting the lives of Tracy residents, as well as shedding light on the actions of our elected officials and city staff, then we are doing our jobs.