Inside the Recall

Fifty-one residents signed a document to initiate the recall of Councilman Lance MacLean. The process officially began when a resident served MacLean with notice at the Feb. 2 city council meeting. After completing legal formalities, proponents will have 160 days to gather 9,300 signatures to qualify the recall for the ballot. The clock will start as soon as the City Clerk Karen Hamman approves the petition, which will be submitted to her on Feb. 23. She will have 10 days to approve or return it to proponents for revision.

On Feb. 19, members of the Saddleback Republican Assembly approved a resolution asking MacLean to resign. A copy of the resolution appears on this week’s blog.

Larry Gilbert broke news of the SRA resolution on OrangeJuiceblog.com within an hour of the vote, http://orangejuiceblog.com/2009/02/unanimous-sra-resolution-calls-for-mission-viejo-councilman-lance-maclean-to-resign/#more-18442

Brad Morton covered the SRA resolution on his MissioViejoDispatch.com, http://missionviejodispatch.com/2009/02/20/republicans-seek-macleans-resignation/#comments

By Feb. 20, OC Register reporter Erika Ritchie posted an online story, http://www.ocregister.com/articles/maclean-resolution-council-2314466-recall-sra

Over at OC Weekly, reporter Spencer Kornhaber on Feb. 20 posted a comment on Navel Gazing, http://blogs.ocweekly.com/navelgazing/council-meeting-mania/saddleback-republicans-to-macl/#comments Here’s an excerpt:

“A good number of the people sitting on the Mission Viejo City Council got their political start back in the '90s by holding positions in the Saddleback Republican Assembly, a chartered unit of the California Republican Assembly that serves Mission Viejo, Lake Forest, Laguna Woods and Laguna Hills. It endorsed Lance MacLean, Mission Viejo's current Mayor Pro Tem, back when he was elected in 2002. Yesterday evening, their board of directors weighed in on the recall drive against MacLean, voting unanimously -- with reported unanimous approval by the Assembly's membership -- to ask MacLean to resign.

”MacLean's response to OC Weekly: ‘They are using lies, exaggerations and falsehoods on a witch hunt to try and instigate a takeover and achieve their radical agenda," he said over the phone. "The SRA is just a radical element, unfortunately, of this community.’”