On May 11, Assemblywoman Tasha Boerner Horvath held a “Let’s Talk” event held at Cafe Ground Up in Carlsbad, California. This event was described by her field director as a “very informal” gathering where Boerner Horvath could speak with locals about their concerns. There were about twenty people in attendance, with the majority being women.
Assemblywoman Boerner Horvath began walking around and speaking to people who had come specifically for her. At one point, she was talking to two women about the issues regarding SANDAG, before being interrupted by her field director asserting that two men needed to speak to her since they had been waiting.
Boerner Horvath immediately left the table and went to talk with the men, leaving the women upset and frustrated. They were so angry about being disregarded that they confronted another member of the Assemblywoman’s team. When she returned, she didn’t even acknowledge the fact that she had left the conversation. Besides rudely leaving conversations, Boerner Horvath did not come back to this group after finishing her conversation with the men, instead continuing down the line that had formed around her.
This was Boerner Horvath’s first event meeting with the public since taking office in January. She hasn’t listened to the concerns of her constituents, and this event seems to have been no different.
I had the chance to speak with Tasha and asked, “With the cost of living for the middle class so high, how do you feel about the Gavin Newsom water tax? The taxation of necessity to life, when it is already so expensive to live here.” She told us how she felt that it “wasn’t an important topic” as of right now because she doesn’t see Newsom pursuing the new tax increase. We were shocked to hear that she felt that this very controversial tax was not important enough to be discussed, regardless of whether it will happen or not.
Overall, the Assemblywoman behaved unprofessionally throughout the entire event. From rude interruptions and avoiding people who were there to speak with her, it was a chaotic and disappointing experience.
