Mayor of San Francisco - January 8, 1996 to January 8, 2004

The era of Willie Brown as mayor is nearly over. He came in 8 years ago with high expectations. He was going to fix the MUNI and the the problem of homelessness. Only in his second term did he get serious about improving MUNI. He gave up on the homeless. Some of the highlights of the Willie years ....

• Cronyism. This is perhaps Willies strong suit. He appoints his friends whether qualified or not. This will perhaps be Willies greatest legacy. Kimiko Burton (daughter of State Senator John Burton) is the perfect example of this - Brown appointed her to the head the office of Public Defender over the more qualified Jeff Adachi.
• Fajitagate - Nov. 20, 2002 - Three offduty SFPD cops (Former officer Alex Fagan Jr, Officer David Lee and Officer Matthew Tonsinginvolved in beating up two men on Union Street for their takeout Fajitas. Turns out one of the main suspects is the son of the deputy police chief who seems to be having a history of using excess force during his probationary period on the police force. A grand jury ends up indicting young Fagan’s father as well as Sanders, the city’s first black police chief as well as several other officers in police management for conspiracy to cover up the incident. Willie Brown tries to play down the incident and channels blames district attorney, Terrance Hallinan. It appears that even SFPD officers are so sick of what is going on in the department that they are willing to stick their necks out and talk to the grand jury as wells as the press. Willie looks like he has been asleep at the wheel - but even Willie might be willing to admit that management is not his forte. See: SF Gate: News: Special Report: SFPD In Crisis and 'Fajitagate' Scandal Puts Police Accountability at Forefront - By Mark Schlosberg, Police Practices Policy Director of the ACLU of Northern California
• Construction - During his two terms, the mayor oversaw the restoration of City Hall and the Ferry Building, and the building of Pacific Bell Park.

Eight years later the Willie legacy does not look bright. The general feeling is disappointment. How did such a successful politician not make better use of the opportunities offered? Times were good with ample budgets. Why are most people in the city glad to see Willie go? Some answers to the evolving Willie legacy ....

• SF Chronicle articles ...
  THE MAYOR'S LEGACY: WILLIE BROWN - 'Da Mayor' soared during tenure that rivals city's most notable, but some critical goals not met by Rachel Gordon, January 4, 2004
  THE MAYOR'S LEGACY: WILLIE BROWN - FBI's 5-year City Hall probe yields few convictions amid cries of political meddling by Lance Williams, January 4, 2004
  Willie Brown Inc. - How S.F.'s mayor built a city based on 'juice' politics by Lance Williams and Chuck Finnie
• DA mayor's disappointing legacy - by Debra J. Saunders, Jewish World Review May 9, 2001
• Willie Brown swaggers out - After 39 years in elected office, SF mayor begins new chapter - By John Simerman, Contra Costa Times
• The Usual Suspects - San Francisco's Political Homepage
• Profile: Willie Brown - [www.sfpolitics.com]
• Google News Search: willie brown

"I promise to fix the MUNI in 100 days" - Dec 1995

"The only thing worse than being misquoted is not being talked about at all." - Willie Lewis Brown Jr. [*]

"If it works for Republicans, all you've got to do is raise enough money. I have enough money to have it work for Democrats. And believe me, I think the Democrats will do it" -- San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, threatening a second recall election if Gray Davis falls, August 4, 2003

"I'm trying to get the French to invest in a new quarterback because Elvis Grbac is an embarrassment to humankind"
San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, speaking from Paris, on the 49ers' 20-17 loss to Dalla -- after which Grbac admitted he'd been distracted because of his infant son's recent spinal operation. Brown later apologized.

“I hope I never get over [segregation]. Because I have not [“made it”]. I am still looked at differently. When I walk out that door, in the eye of the total stranger, I’m the bus driver. Or I’m the potential mugger. Or I’m a dealer. So no, I have not made it.” former San Francisco mayor Willie Brown (Newsweek, December 25, 2003)

"I've got to assume that these people are so misguided that they are actually aiding the enemy by doing what they are doing," Brown said. "Most of these people who are being arrested and have been arrested, probably more than 75 or 80 percent, are not San Franciscans. I just wish they'd stay in their own communities and protest rather than put the expense on us."
-- Willie Brown, as quoted in the San Francisco Chronicle

"You are full of shit! You don't know me, motherfucker, you don't know what a killer I am!" - Willie Brown to Supervisor Peskin, 2003 *

"The quality of our water is superior to anything else we produce in the city."
San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, suggesting the city bottle and sell its own water, which comes from the Hetch Hetchy Valley in Yosemite National Park. (June 98) [Las Vegas Review-Journal, The Best Quotes of 1998]

"Brown is the best politician in the nation. What other politician could crack outrageous jokes about sex, race, drugs, flaunt his affairs, father an illegitimate child while in office and get no criticism at all." - Rob Morse

Courtesy of Dan Siegler - www.dansiegler.com

Born March 20, 1934, in Mineola, Texas. Inaugurated as Mayor of San Francisco on January 8th 1996 after a run as the longest serving Speaker of the Assembly of the state of California. Official links ... Office of the Mayor

Endorsement by Brown seems to be the kiss of death. He has come a long way from his Initial Press - gone is the optimism of having a liberal flamboyant mayor - he has come to represent what is wrong with patronage and machine politics. Many in the city look for a political future in San Francisco free of Brown and the Burton machine. The latest to bite the dust is Kimiko Burton (daughter of State Senator John Burton). Brown appointed her to the head the office of Public Defender over the more qualified Jeff Adachi. If ever there were an election which pitted nepotism and cronyism vs. merit - this was it. Fortunately the citizens had the wisdom to throw the machine candidate out. Will this trend continue? Losers endorsed by Brown in the supervisorial elections of November/December 2000: Amos Brown Michael Yaki Juanita Owens Chris Dittenhafer Mabel Teng Linda Richardson Favors and favoritism Underqualified and overpaid: Meet the beneficiaries of Willie Brown's patronage politics. By Savannah Blackwell, Guardian, September 15, 1999 The MUNI is working better, but the city and Brown are getting a little tired of each other. Willie Brown : A Biography, a book by James Richardson (1996) Review at SF Bay Guardian Reviews and purchase at: amazon.com or barnesandnoble Is Willie Brown losing support?

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