Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham (R-San Luis Obispo) did not take COVID-19 seriously until he had to.
While his office should get credit for helping residents secure their unemployment benefits during the pandemic, Cunningham called for a reopening of our county in April, just one month into the pandemic. When other cities and counties reopened throughout the state, they were hit with a wave of infections, hospitalizations, and deaths. We would eventually be hit with several waves. And with mounting pressure from politicians like Cunningham, Gov. Gavin Newsom modified the state’s phased reopening approach and ultimately developed conditions that resulted in a significant surge of cases and hospitals over capacity last fall. The circumstances led to our state establishing a mutual aid system for our hospitals to accept patients who couldn’t be cared for in overburdened hospitals located in other counties.
In a way, Cunningham helped create the kind of economic conditions that led to his constituents having to collect unemployment benefits longer. When front-line workers faced a shortage in personal protective equipment and ventilators because of these surges, Cunningham stepped in. Just because he stepped in to help doesn’t absolve him from not having the foresight to address these critical issues early on.
Cunningham likes to complain about public health edicts that are “illogical” and not “science-based” (“Achieving sound public policy,” April 15). He insists his complaining is somehow an important part of his job as the community’s representative in the legislative branch. In reality, he acts like an angry spectator more than an Assembly member, complaining bitterly on Facebook about state orders that he could effectively and constructively address with bipartisan cooperation. Instead of being productive on that front, he represents clients as part of his law practice who defy common-sense COVID-19 guidelines and actual science that justifies those guidelines. He will support the compromising of our public health and safety as long as he can financially enrich himself.
Cunningham will complain about COVID-19 guidelines, but by unlawfully blocking his critics on social media, he refuses to have any sort of debate or dialogue with his constituents. A responsible Assembly member and public servant doesn’t shy away from inconvenient facts. Elected representatives need to be mature, accept bitter truths, work with people on both sides of the political aisle, and make hard choices that best support their constituency.
Central Coast families and businesses cannot be fully supported by someone who chooses to govern by passive-aggressive tweets and brazen conflicts of interest. It’s time for new leadership.
Aaron Ochs
Los Osos
This article appears in Best of SLO County 2021.
Jordan Cunningham will easily win re-election and represents us just fine. My only wish is that we should never have shut down and kept business alive and well in our area. The idiots that drank the kool-aid on this pandemic have nearly destroyed opportunity in this country with fearmongering policy. To hell with them. I will do business as I see fit and live free in this country. The rest of you do what you will. Support and RE-ELECT Jordan Cunningham in the next election!
I wish our heartless career politician Cunning Ham would just step down and spend time with his family. Too bad the majority of the 33rd district is too conservative to care. They’ll vote for someone with an R in it, like they always do. This state needs to redraw district boundaries.
Slight correction for New Times: I live in Morro Bay, not Los Osos.
Thank you for publishing my letter!
Jordan Cunningham has been a terrible disappointment in office. He was perfectly positioned to work with governor Newsom to craft moderate policies that bring our political parties closer together for the good of all. Unfortunately, Mr. Cunningham has apparently fallen into the Trump side of things and can no longer be trusted to present a common sense viewpoint in the legislature. We hoped Mr. Cunningham would be a uniter. Instead, he is embracing the most divisive aspects of our current political culture and endangering the men women and children of his district. When he should be doing the peoples work, he is moonlighting trying to defend those who have minimal concern for the health and safety of the people on the central coast.
Its remarkable how Mr. Cunningham continually criticizes government as if he were not part of it.
Looks like Cunningham couldn’t handle the truth nor could The SLO New Times. Jordan Cunningham is a traitor to all veterans and a racist just like Donald Trump. “Never Forget” is what the Jews say. I will never forget Jordan Cunningham’s slimy soul. Nor will I forget SLO New Times censorship of my letter filled with criticisms to Jordan Cunningham. This infantile politician named Jordan Cunningham and his sycophant band of political enablers and violent stalkers have no place in our community anymore.
Clarkdsushi…you have you head way your lefty ass as usual….leave this country now jerk
Keith Campbell, I don’t require left or right wings to think, nor to fly. I rub my genie lamp for wishes and board my magic carpet to fly. Listen intently to the familiar sounds of cow bells ringing in your head, then follow your trail of cinnamon bread crumbs back to your parent’s basement, Gunther.
Ugh, so tired of Jordan. He doesn’t even work. Check his record. He spends more time making money as a lawyer even though we, THE PEOPLE, pay him for a full time job he never fulfills.
I SUPPORT Jordan Cunningham!
Despite what these left-wing knuckleheads claim, Assemblyman Cunningham has done a fine job representing WORKING CLASS people on the Central Coast. He easily defeated the whacky liberal Dawn Addis, and the Democrats love of high taxes, weak-on-crime policies, BLM Riots, and socialism mean that we cannot trust them in public office.
Mr. Cunningham is a man of integrity, and we are fortunate to have him in a leadership position.
Steve Edwards supports Jordan Cunningham! (Sorry Jordan. That should be a wake up call, If not for you, for voters who do not support white supremacists, anti-Asian hate mongering, and suppressing the vote of minorities.)
I’m still waiting for Jordan Cunningham to disavow and call out Steve Edwards and the white supremacist faction that supports him.
Now is the time to promote unity among our beloved diversity. White supremacist attitudes and attacks should have no place in our future. We need to support our heroic local leaders like police chief Ty Lewis who is courageously and coherently standing up against white supremacist propaganda and animosity. Let that be an inspiring example for Jordan Cunningham to follow.
County Population 383211, Deaths (Supposedly from Covid) 260 = 0.068 % of Total Population. Any death is awful, so I ask, How many of these deaths were really from Covid? Given the fact that the Government reimburses a hospital 10 fold for treatement of a “Covid” patient than non covid how many times was a “covid” death really a “covid” death? Perhaps hastened by covid but probably died of one or more co-morbidities they had before getting “covid”. We spent quite a lot of money building a 900 bed “overflow” hospital at Cal Poly, and then never saw any of our hospitals “Over run” with patients, as a matter of fact I doubt we had much over 50% capacity in any County hospital at the peak of “Covid”. Nor did we “over run” our ICU capacity or need for ventilators. So Yeah, I can see why Jordan Cunningham complained about the onerous Gov’t over reach of draconian shut down requirements in our County, as I never understood them and resent Gov. Newsom’s stupidity. Along with his stupidity of the $5,000,000 he spent on Chinese face masks that were defective, but then again I think he just laundered the money and has it stashed in an offshore account with his Aunt Nancy’s stash in the Caymans. Then there were his constant violations of attending “special elite” dining events (rules for thee, but not for me).
Cunningham was right, and if you haven’t noticed the Gov is finally caving on opening up because he’s getting recalled. He wouldn’t be doing it otherwise because he always follows the progressive liberal narrative. If Wittmer was getting recalled She’d be opening up too, but she isn’t so she’s doubling down and trying to make wearing masks permanent. Fortunately for us, we’re recalling our Tyrant so he can’t do that. The shut downs for this Gov’t inflicted panic were stupid and they are still stupid, and so are all of the social distancing and face mask rules. None of it is preventing the spread of the virus.