Dems’ House race increasingly bitter
Rivals Honda, Khanna trade angry accusations
The increasingly vicious free-for-all between Democrats Mike Honda and Ro Khanna for Honda’s South Bay congressional seat is a reminder that family fights are often the nastiest.
Speaking in Santa Clara Wednesday night, Khanna accused Honda of probably committing perjury in a suit he filed last week against Khanna and his campaign.
“It will come out that Michael Honda himself may have committed perjury,” Khanna told the 20 or so people who came out for his 90-minute town hall meeting at Maywood Park. “It’s sad that he’s gone to that length, but he’s desperate.”
Earlier in the week, the 75-year-old Honda compared Khanna, 40, to “radical Republicans or Russian hackers,” for what the congressman has alleged was the cybertheft of campaign financial documents by Khanna’s former campaign manager.
Khanna “has shown a complete disregard for the law and cannot be trusted,” Honda said in a statement, arguing that the Fremont attorney “is unfit to represent this district.”
The harsh rhetoric is a step up — or down — from the back and forth of two years ago, when Honda hung on to his seat with a narrow November victory over Khanna. For much of that campaign, Khanna was notably respectful of his veteran opponent, typically arguing that Honda was a good man whose time had passed.
There was also the notalways-subtle implication that Honda was just too old and set in his ways for the fast-moving tech world of Silicon Valley, which he represents.
“With me, (the tech community) sees someone
who understands the issues, the complexity of the issues,” Khanna said in a 2014 interview with the Nation. “Honda isn’t conversant in the language and the issues.”
There hasn’t been any change in tone from the Khanna campaign, said Hari Sevugan, a spokesman for the challenger.
“Ro still believes (Honda’s) a good man, but is disappointed in how he’s conducted this campaign,” Sevugan said in an email. Honda has “evidenced a sense of entitlement to this seat, and has reacted poorly if anyone would dare question his effectiveness . ... It’s a sad way for him to leave public life.”
Honda’s people see it differently. In a rematch of that tough race, a darker tone was virtually inevitable, said Vedant Patel, a spokesman for Honda’s campaign.
“Because of the nature of the race this time around, it’s become a lot more aggressive,” he said. “On our end, we have allegations that have come to light and issues we want to make sure the public knows about.”
That doesn’t mean the 2014 campaign was all soft pastels and chirping songbirds. Honda was widely criticized for a TV ad that characterized Khanna as being funded by “billionaires, rightwing activists, corporate interests . ... It’s no wonder Khanna supports handing tax breaks to millionaires and companies that send our jobs overseas.”
Khanna took his own whacks at Honda in 2014, using a mailer to attack “Mike Honda’s old-school liberal orthodoxy: Big taxes. Big spending.”
But that’s nothing like the new lawsuits attempting to link Khanna to what Honda’s campaign team says was the theft of the personal data of more than 10,000 of the congressman’s financial supporters from a private computer server.
Brian Parvizshahi, who allegedly accessed Honda’s financial files from a former employer, was gone as Khanna’s campaign manager hours after the suits were reported. But Khanna said Wednesday that the suits were both very political and very flimsy.
“I am 100 percent certain that no information from those files was used in any capacity by my campaign,” Khanna said.
But he also argued that Honda had perjured himself by saying in one part of the court documents that he did not contact any of Khanna’s donors, even though the suit included documents suggesting he had.
Honda’s campaign said the congressman had spoken to many Democratic donors who have given to both candidates.
Khanna also has been quick to attack Honda for the ongoing congressional ethics investigation into charges that he used his federally paid staff to work on his reelection campaign.
That investigation, regardless of how it turns out, should disqualify Honda “from ever seeking re-election,” Khanna said in May.
But if Khanna does follow up his June primary win by unseating Honda in November, the reason probably will be less about what he’s said and more about what he’s done.
At Wednesday’s town hall, Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gillmor praised Khanna for his work with her city on issues like Santa Clara’s battle with the San Francisco 49ers over some youth soccer fields the football team wanted to convert into parking lots for Levi’s Stadium.
“He was standing up and speaking for the community against some really strong interests that could have hurt his political career,” Gillmor said. “We’re looking for someone who will stand with us.”