“Moonbeam” Brown is at it again

Republicans are taking advantage of a scandal that involves the former and future Democratic candidate for governor of California, Jerry “Moonbeam” Brown.

A former aide of current Attorney General Brown admitted that he illegally secretly recorded phone calls with journalists. The aide in question, Scott Gerber, recorded six interviews before he was forced to resign.

In damage control mode following the resignation of the staffer, Brown pledged to fully investigate the matter.

One problem, though, is that the highest-ranking law enforcement officer in the Golden State is investigating himself as he gears up for a run for gov.

Dane Gillette, Brown’s chief assistant attorney general, wrote a report that found the taping didn’t require a criminal investigation because the conversations were “on the record” with a journalist.

State law prohibits the recording of telephone conversations without the consent of all parties.

A Republican online ad is running, which begins with the phrase, “Jerry Brown is at it again.”

The ad points out the conflict and states, “We just can’t trust you [Brown] on this one.”

The 71-year old Brown emerged as the Democratic front runner for his party’s gubernatorial nomination after San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom dropped out of the race. Brown served as Governor from 1975-1983. Brown succeeding the Republican Governor Ronald Reagan, who was retiring from office after serving two terms, and who, himself, had become governor after defeating Brown’s father, Edmund G. “Pat” Brown, Sr., in the 1966 election.

Brown aimed his fire at “big oil” in an era of popular environmental activism on the West Coast, and obtained the repeal of the “depletion allowance“, a tax break for the state’s oil industry.

Brown unsuccessfully ran for President in 1976, 1980 and 1992.

As Governor, Brown proposed the establishment of a state space academy and the purchasing of a satellite that would be launched into orbit to provide emergency communications for the state—a proposal similar to one that would indeed eventually be adopted by the state. In 1978, Mike Royko, at the time a Chicago Sun-Times columnist, nicknamed Brown “Governor Moonbeam” because of the latter idea. The nickname quickly became associated with his quirky politics, which were considered eccentric by some in California and the rest of the nation. In 1992, almost 15 years later, Royko would disavow the nickname, proclaiming Brown to be “just as serious” as any other politician. But, the label stuck and sticks  - noyt just for his space ideas but his spacy economic and social notions.

The song “California Über Alles” by the Dead Kennedys is sung from the perspective of Jerry Brown during his tenure as Governor. The song has Brown painting a picture of a hippie-fascist state, satirizing what they considered his mandating of liberal ideas in a fascist manner.

Hovering over all of this is Moonbeam’s ignoring an investigation of ACORN;S activities in California.