Republicans need a better candidate pool

The fact that Mayor Kevin Faulconer is being seriously considered for governor of California continues to highlight the paucity of talent in the California Republican Party.

And, as a Republican, I say this with much regret.

Because of his passive, reticent style of governing, his list of accomplishments are meager and thin. Conversely, his list of colossal errors is tragic.

Just to name a few, that any Democratic contender will lick his or her chops at:

He took a page from Donald Trump on the hepatitis A outbreak and just hoped it would solve itself.

He was captain of the ship when the Chargers left town. Granted that may have been a foregone conclusion, but Faulconer’s public actions through the whole ordeal were weak and tepid at best. But then he immediately pivoted to a strong advocacy position for SoccerCity. That timing was so quick, one cannot help but suspect he was AWOL on Chargers advocacy to set the table for an inside friendly deal.

Maybe similar to the Ash Street deal, no good for San Diego, but some of his biggest backers certainly benefited. No leadership on vacation rental situation, even though he had the authorization from the city attorney to enforce residential codes.

Very late to the scene on motorized scooters, and still a liability.

He was woefully inept on the convention center campaign.

And the list could be longer, but I have a 500-word limit.

With our “strong mayor” structure at City Hall he had a potential to shine. But, at the same time, with a strong mayor charter, there is no place to hide and a weak leader will be glaringly exposed.

The Republicans have for too long now offered third-rate candidates for governorship. Remember last time? The multipleloser carpetbagger from Illinois? And Kevin Falconer would be a continuation of simply waving a white flag.