Catching up with Ramos and Moorlach

Last Sunday I had a chance to talk with Costa Mesa City Council candidate Lee Ramos in studio on the KOCI radio show “Brunch with Tom and Lynn.”

Hosts Lynn Selich and Tom Johnson interview local newsmakers weekly from 11 a.m. to noon.

I hadn’t seen Ramos since he ran for council in 2014.

Since he lost his first bid, Ramos has continued to walk precincts, averaging 15 to 20 miles a week.

He’s meeting residents and chatting about issues. He’s lost about 50 pounds in the process. He looks great.

On Sunday he spoke candidly about the disappointment of losing and said he learned a lot.

Get ready to meet Ramos 2.0.

With him in studio was Costa Mesa Councilman Gary Monahan, who is termed out this year.

Monahan’s lending a hand to the Ramos campaign and held a fundraiser last month at his restaurant, Skosh Monahan’s.

I asked Ramos what he felt the key issue with residents will be this campaign season.

He said “development,” and talked about balancing economic growth and residents’ needs.

It will be interesting to see how he plans on delivering this message to win voters in a city divided over this issue.

A quality I liked about Ramos last campaign season was this longtime resident’s span of institutional knowledge, which continues to work in his favor.

But I felt his soft-spoken manner, though engaging on a one-on-one basis, didn’t work as he appeared on stage at the Feet to the Fire Forum, a candidates debate sponsored by the Daily Pilot and the Voice of O.C.

To be competitive this season he’ll need to up his game.

His public deliveries must be more energetic, with quicker sound bites to stay competitive in what could be another crowded field.

I also got to chat with state Sen. John Moorlach (R-Costa Mesa).

He called the house to congratulate my husband, Stan Tkaczyk, on his reappointment to the OC Fair Board. The governor also reappointed Ashley Aitken to a second term.

Like my husband, who is delighted to serve another four years, Moorlach would like to continue as our senator.

Around this time last year, I was writing about his bid for the 37th District seat vacated by Mimi Walters. Moorlach’s opponent was Assemblyman Don Wagner (R-Irvine).

Wagner was pumping out negative campaign mailers which Moorlach called “disingenuous, desperate and dishonest.”

It was a contentious battle of the titans right up until the March 17 primary, which Moorlach won.

Serving out the rest of Walter’s short term, Moorlach now has to run again, but this time he’s an incumbent, which statistics show win most of the time.

But this might not be a slam dunk. Wagner, termed out in the Assembly, by all accounts, is looking to beat those incumbent odds.

Moorlach’s already garnered key endorsements — including one from the Republican Party, which has already offered him use of its conference room for his campaign.

Moorlach’s friends Jim and Johanna Townsend will lend space on their Mesa Drive estate to once again serve as his campaign headquarters.

So is the Wagner-Moorlach thing really just a grudge match?

Maybe.

Moorlach tells me Wagner still hasn’t called to congratulate him on his last win.

Ouch!

Moorlach makes no bones about the fact he’s not thrilled with having to gear up for another campaign — it will take him away from his daily duties, in which he’s immersed.

I asked him if he has a long learning curve in Sacramento.

He said he hit the floor running but had to adjust to the “short time to read proposed bills and do research on them.”

Moorlach says colleagues have complimented him on his preparedness, brevity on the floor and debating skills.

“I’ve had excellent camaraderie with both sides of the aisle,” he says.

Moorlach’s a numbers guy and made headlines when he brought to light a 2014 report on Caltrans over staffing and overspending.

And he continues to ring a warning bell about unfunded pension liabilities facing the state and local governments — an issue that strikes a chord with voters.

Last go around Wagner’s expensive, negative campaign backfired. It will be interesting to see if he changes up his strategy, or takes the low road again.

If Wagner can’t raise money, or key endorsements quickly, he’d be smart to sit this one out. A two-time loss here could equal political career suicide, and that’s a lot to bet on a grudge match.

BARBARA VENEZIA lives in Newport Beach. She can be reached at [email protected]. Listen to her weekly radio segment on “Sunday Brunch with Tom and Lynn” from 11 a.m. to noon on KOCI/101.5 FM.