Animosity rises to surface at SF supervisors meeting

Supervisor President London Breed led the San Francisco Board of Supervisor meeting at City Hall in San Francisco, California on Tuesday, January 26, 2016. The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a day of remembrance for Mario Woods on Tuesday. less Supervisor President London Breed led the San Francisco Board of Supervisor meeting at City Hall in San Francisco, California on Tuesday, January 26, 2016. The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a day of ... more Photo: Gabrielle Lurie, Special To The Chronicle Photo: Gabrielle Lurie, Special To The Chronicle Image 1 of / 9 Caption Close Animosity rises to surface at SF supervisors meeting 1 / 9 Back to Gallery

It was open warfare at San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, as the moderates lashed out at their progressive colleagues, accusing them of extortion and playing politics with people’s lives, and the progressives retorting that the moderates played sneaky underhanded politics. Board President London Breed twice had to remind her colleagues to speak to each other civilly.

The tension between the two factions has been building for months and finally spilled into public view in an unusually vitriolic exchange over Supervisor Malia Cohen’s proposed ballot measure to increase police accountability by expanding the authority and scope of the independent Office of Citizen Complaints.

The progressive majority refused to put it on the ballot as a stand-alone measure and instead, over Cohen’s objections, folded it into Supervisor David Campos’ proposed ballot measure to create an office of public advocate — which Cohen and the other moderates oppose. That measure was later continued until next week’s board meeting.

While various progressive supervisors said it made sense to merge the two “good government measures,” retaliation also played a role.

Last week, Cohen attempted to amend the public advocate ballot measure to require elected officials to sit out one term — four years — before running for the office. That infuriated Campos, who is widely considered a potential candidate if voters decide to create the position. He angrily accused Cohen of protecting the mayor. Also, Cohen helped put on the November ballot a homeless measure the progressives abhor that would allow authorities to remove tent encampments as long as they give 24-hour notice and an offer of a bed.

Avalos’ complaints

Progressive Supervisor John Avalos, who proposed merging Cohen’s proposal with the public advocate measure, said he was tired of playing nice. “When a good part of my colleagues are being uncooperative, uncommunicative and uncollegial in their politics, it makes no sense to try the Pollyanna approach,” Avalos said before Tuesday’s meeting of the moderate opposition.

Cohen and the other moderates were fuming during the meeting.

“We are going to sit back and allow the dirtiness of politics to touch this incredibly thoughtful and substantive piece of legislation,” Cohen said of her proposal. “We cannot politicize black and brown lives.”

The vitriol really ratcheted up after Supervisor Scott Wiener all but accused the progressives of running a cabal. His comments came after the progressives bottled up his ballot measure to require the city to take responsibility for street trees — which until Tuesday appeared to have the six votes necessary to go on the ballot. It was also continued until next week.

“It’s outrageous that this is happening,” he said. “But that is what this Board of Supervisors has now come to. There is a majority that has decided they are going to flex their muscle, and if you’re not on their team, your ballot measure is dead.”

Supervisor Mark Farrell also railed against the progressives.

“It’s the same thing as if my children come to me saying we will not do our homework unless you give us ice cream,” he said. “In their minds it might be related, but to any objective person watching that scenario unfold they are completely unrelated and it’s an attempt at extortion. It’s subverting the democratic process here at the Board of Supervisors, and I think it’s disgusting.”

That prompted Avalos to respond: “Nobody in this room has a monopoly on self-righteous indignation.”

Basis of tension

Much of the tension stems from the fact that the board’s important committees have moderate majorities. The progressives have a 6-5 majority on the full board — the balance of power shifted when progressive Supervisor Aaron Peskin won the November election against the mayor’s handpicked candidate — but the committees, through which legislation and ballot measures must pass, remain in the hands of moderates.

That has generated an increasingly dysfunctional dynamic, with the moderates passing amendments that the progressives dislike, and the progressives then circumventing the committee process by using their majority to call special board meetings — including one Friday evening that the moderates refused to attend — in order to undo those amendments.

The moderates did eke out one major victory Tuesday. The board voted 8-3 to put a three-quarter-cents sales tax on the November ballot to fund homeless services and transportation, with three progressive supervisors joining their moderate colleagues.

Up until the vote, it was unclear if the measure had the votes to be placed on the ballot. Avalos helped craft the deal only to withdraw his support after the moderates put the tent camp measure on the ballot. But on Tuesday he said he would support it after all, given that no other alternatives sources of revenue could be found.

“I will lay down my arms and support it,” he said.

Emily Green is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: egreen@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @emilytgreen