Hold the presses! Before everyone jumps back on the proverbial “bash Annette Smith” bandwagon and throws in poor Dennis McCord along for the ride, take a deep breath.
In no way did I or any other candidate encourage Councilwoman Sheree Lustgarten to lie to anyone, about anything, for any reason. Nor is it the fault of any other candidate that the truth surfaced. Her most ardent admirers can call names and point fingers at others, but Lustgarten herself is responsible for her current predicament. That she was caught in a lie to the media is her problem, and solely her decision.
As a woman and as a mother, I empathize with her previous plight. However, that does not give her the license to lie. The Modesto Bee clearly describes Lustgarten as having a binder filled with evidence of her abuse and documents related to the bankruptcies for the Oct. 1 City Council candidate forum in preparation should any questions come up related to those subjects. When nothing came up that night, she submitted her questionnaire, lies included, to the Bee on Oct. 15. That was a willful and premeditated act.
It was not long ago that Sheree and her husband took great pleasure in calling for my resignation based on the lies of others against me. As the subject of unfounded gossip and lies, I faced the nightmares created by others head on; I suggest Ms. Lustgarten face the nightmare she created of her own free will and resign from office.
Annette Smith, former Patterson city councilwoman
Walmart!! No tires, no oil changes? Say it ain't true!
First, the Modesto Bee never stated that I had any financial documents in my binder. In fact it did not. What I stated to the reporter was that I brought a binder with evidence of my abuse (I.e., pictures and my ex's criminal history). It also had my voting history for the last 10 years as well as other documents to disprove any lies being spread about me during the campaign. The questionnaire from the Modesto Bee was online since October, so why then did this all come up in January? Why after the election was over? Both the Bee and the Irrigator made it pretty clear which individuals brought this all out.
I want to state for the record that I voted 13 times in the last 10 years. I have never harassed anyone, especially an elected official. I care about my community. I exercised my right as a citizen to come to the rostrum at council meetings to ask questions and make comments and suggestions about policy-making. NEVER did I go after anyone personally. I hope the public comes to council to ask questions or give ideas, because although I may not always agree, I will show them the respect they deserve for taking part in their local government.
I am not a perfect person. I never said I was. People make mistakes, including reporters. As far as the questionnaire is concerned, as I stated at the last council meeting, it was my legal interpretation of the question. It was not premeditated. It was my mistake, and I am sorry for it.
So once again, I put an olive branch out to you to stop this senseless drama and let me do the job I was elected to do. If you have ideas or concerns to make our city better, respectfully come to council and state them and I will respectfully listen. I consider this matter closed, and for the sake of our city, I hope you do as well.
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Moving on ...
I do hope for the best and that Patterson will keep growing better and stronger with these council members.