All the news that did not fit

PAUL N. “PETE” MCCLOSKEY: Word came yesterday morning that Pete McCloskey died of congestive heart failure. He was 96. Last week’s heartfelt tribute to him received substantial response from his countless friends and admirers, each of whom noted his courage and integrity. I can think of no higher praise than this: He made the people around him better.

And it is one more reminder not to defer telling people what they mean to you.

THE 16TH: Perhaps it is fitting that there is a hotly contested race to fill the congressional seat once represented by McCloskey. Yes, the primary recount finally stumbled across the finish line and we are left with a two-candidate race between former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo and Assemblymember Evan Low.

Liccardo had a new poll out last week showing him up by double figures, but this race feels entirely unsettled. Expect it to get nasty.

Even before the final result was reached, Liccardo began calling out Low for ties to PG&E and the California Apartment Association. Low’s own rhetoric indicates he thinks Liccardo is dishonest and politically tricky.

Certainly, the influence of dark money interests that funded the recount was an unsettling element of the whole hoo-ha. More distressing was Liccardo’s unwillingness to denounce these unnamed interests when given the opportunity at a public forum of San Mateo County’s power interests. On the other hand, Low never provided proof of his accusations that Liccardo was manipulating the recount.

Low has an image as a progressive; the district is very much more traditionally liberal. Liccardo has close ties to the San Jose business community, which should help him among Republican voters. Why that matters: The two Republicans on the primary ballot got a combined 19% of the vote, enough for second place in the primary if only one Republican had run.

Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian’s gracious departure from the fray notwithstanding, his loss, combined with some other local races in the last two cycles, suggests that being an older, white, establishment candidate is not the advantage it used to be.

In other words, it all seems up for grabs. Expect a lot more independent expenditures and open hostility.

The 16th is known as the Silicon Valley seat, which is of little comfort to the voters on the San Mateo County coast, many of whom worry about being forsaken.

There is more to the district than tech. And in her decades serving this district, U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo knew when to stand up for the tech industry, and when to stand up to it.

A final primary thought: Silly me, thinking a recount meant counting only the ballots that already had been counted. I have so much to learn.

JUST NOT HERE: Everyone thinks more housing should be built, and they think it should be built somewhere else. The newest test will be the $6 million the county authorized to build farmworker housing on the coast, where opposition to any building is notoriously fierce. The only way any meaningful dent will be made in the housing shortage is if every city — every city — does its share. … The amount the county allocated actually is $5,999,360. What? They couldn’t allocate another $640? Maybe they put it on a credit card and there was a use fee.

FLEXING: The progressives on the San Mateo County Democratic Central Committee — they won 13 of the 18 seats they sought in March — flexed a little muscle recently, passing a resolution to oppose the recall of Millbrae Councilmembers Maurice Goodman and Angelina Cahalan. They have been targeted for their support of the county’s plan to take over a La Quinta Inn and convert it to housing for once-homeless seniors and families. The central committee has a history of staying out of such highly local fights. Millbrae Councilmember Gina Papan and former state Sen. Jerry Hill voted no.

Mark Simon is a veteran journalist, whose career included 15 years as an executive at SamTrans and Caltrain. He can be reached at marksimon@smdailyjournal.com.