Green Party gubernatorial candidate visits Vallejo church

Green Party gubernatorial candidate visits Vallejo church
By J.M. BROWN, Times-Herald staff writer
Vallejo Times Herald
Article Launched:11/03/2006 05:58:00 AM PST

The Green Party's candidate for governor, Peter Camejo, made a Vallejo church crowd roar with laughter as he assailed the nation's two-party system Thursday night.

"The race is over, so vote for me," Camejo said. "That way we can tell the truth."

Choosing the Green Party is "one way to punish" Democrats and Republicans for failing to address problems with the state's education, tax structure and immigration, he said.

But humor doesn't always translate to votes, even if several Vallejo voters agreed California could benefit from an independent governor.

"It wouldn't hurt if you did vote for him - that would give (independents) a chance to be heard," one 40-year Vallejo resident said.

But because "he's with the party who's not out front," the woman, who declined to give her name, said she wasn't sure she could vote for Camejo, the Folsom environmentalist and author who ran unsuccessfully for governor in California's 2003 re-call election.

The 66-year-old Camejo said the election will mark his fourth and final race. His appearance followed a visit Saturday by Democratic candidate Phil Angelides.

Officials from the multi-church coalition who organized the visits say Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and other candidates have also been invited to Vallejo.

During his brief address at Rehoboth World Outreach Center, Camejo attacked the political establishment he blames for low student test scores and what he sees as a tax system that favors the wealthiest Californians.

Camejo argued that California doesn't have enough money to adequately fund education because wealthy residents are paying less taxes as a percentage of their income than the poor. He said the state could create $10 billion more for education by asking the richest to live on a few thousand dollars less a month.

"I can see the tears in your eyes," Camejo said cheekily to a room full of giggles.

Speaking to a predominantly black audience, Camejo sought to conjure up images of the civil rights movement by calling so-called guest worker immigrant programs "apartheid." He said the Bush administration's initiative denies basic American rights like voting.

"The problem is not the undocumented workers," Camejo said. "Most come here to work very hard. Most are underpaid and mistreated."

Vallejo independent voter Reggie Smith said he has not decided who to vote for Tuesday, but said Camejo's notion of a "people's party" might better protect the interests of individual Americans.

"They're two sides of the same coin," Smith said of Democrats and Republicans. "They're two brothers in the same house."

E-mail J.M. Brown at jmbrown [at] thnewsnet.com or call 553-6834.