Most Huntington Beach Leaders Weren’t Ousted

Re “In Defense of the New Huntington Council,” letters, Aug. 24:

Although I agree with the substance of the letter to the editor from the Horgans of Huntington Beach, I disagree with the statement “Quite to the contrary, the citizens voted those ol’ boys out.”

By my count, most City Council members who have left in the past 10 years were not voted out. Seven left because of term limits, two did not run for a second term (instead opting to run for higher office), one ran for a second term but was not reelected, and one left office in midterm. Had the seven not been constrained by term limits, they would have easily been reelected, as would the two who ran for higher office. Hardly the indictment of the past councils alluded to in the Horgan letter.

As for “inheriting a host of difficult issues,” the only really difficult one is the budget. Huntington Beach, Orange County and the state are not the only ones in financial difficulty.

The United States economy is in disarray. Until the feds straighten out their house, the states, counties and cities will continue to suffer.

Robert O. Dettloff

Huntington Beach