Letter to the Editor: Comparing Candidates

Since Scott Peotter and friends have brought up the issue of comparability with the candidate who is running against him for Newport Beach City Council, Joy Brenner (claiming that he is “more Republican” than she), I thought it would be an opportune time to name some of the other qualities that you might want to use to compare the two candidates.

However, I won’t stoop to the level of saying in which of these areas, if any, that Scott Peotter is deficient.  I will leave that decision up to the reader. It shouldn’t be too difficult as he is well known, very vocal, and his actions have been the subject of many letters written to the local papers.

Let’s speak instead of the positives which are so noticeable in Joy Brenner’s character and personality.

Let me start by saying that by the second time that I was in Joy’s presence, I was able to observe how naturally she interacted with people and how eloquently and candidly she spoke. I decided very quickly that she was the perfect City Council member for our fair city.

Since that initial time that I met Joy and talked with her, I have seen her on several occasions—frequent enough to also appreciate her intelligence, her warmth, and her work ethic.

Joy is not afraid to speak and write openly about her feelings and vision for Newport Beach. And her strength of spirit is always evident in her speeches to the Council and to civic groups.

To return to Scott’s comparison of being “more Republican” than Joy, it is important to remind people that this is a non-partisan local election. Having said that, since the question has come up, Joy has pointed out in a letter in the local papers, if one deemed it important, that she does belong to the same political party as Scott. Finally, it should be noted that there have been several residents in Newport Beach, including past Council members, who have not hesitated to challenge Scott’s Republican credentials.

Lynn Lorenz

Newport Beach