REMEMBER Adam Probolsky? He was at Tom Fuentes’ side during the days, back in the summer of 2000, when Fuentes was selected by our very Republican Board to replace trustee Steve Frogue. Frogue, a Holocaust denier and conspiracy-theory fan, had resigned just four or five months prior to election. That was mighty convenient for everybody. Fuentes, then the controversial head of the OC GOP with a closet full of skeletons (and maybe a few live ones), was suddenly an incumbent. In a world of idiot voters, the F Man coasted to victory. I mean, he was the incumbent, wasn't he? Well, there you are!
Another close Fuentes ally was Michael Schroeder, the current kingpin/kingmaker of Orange County Republican politics. You know: he’s the one they call the “most powerful man in Orange County.” Probolsky, a well-known Republican consultant, is a member of Schroeder’s nasty little crew, aka the Republican mafia. I guess he's what you call a "lieutenant."Martin Wisckol, some time partier at Reb’s place, has this to report in this morning’s THE BUZZ. (File it under "typical Schroeder-Fuentes Republican Party intrigue"):
The venerable Lincoln Club apparently had its own money used against it to defeat the club's candidate, Carlos Bustamante, in this month's special election for county supervisor.
The OC club is made up of Republican business people that participates in campaigns on many different levels. For instance, last year it was a primary financer of a political action committee – "Irvine City, School and Neighborhood Leaders Committee" – created to help John Duong's ultimately unsuccessful bid for Irvine mayor.
The PAC, which was coordinated in part by GOP consultant Adam Probolsky, ended that election with about $2,700 left. The account was collecting dust when somebody decided to rename it, raise more money and use it for attacks on Lincoln Club-endorsee Bustamante.
"It just gets weirder and weirder," said Matt [“Jubal”] Cunningham, the Red County/OC Blog editor trying to unravel the intra-party cloak-and-dagger affair.
The new treasurer of the committee, now called the Orange County Healthcare, Education & Neighborhood Leaders PAC, hasn't returned Cunningham's calls. But Cunningham tracked down some of the PAC's latest contributors as also being Janet Nguyen supporters. [Nguyen very nearly tied another Nguyen for the 1st district OC Supervisor race that Bustamante lost. She’s been spouting off about “fraud.”]
Probolsky, it so happens, has done some work for Nguyen, and that has lead to speculation that he had a hand in transforming the PAC.
"There is no advantage for me to get involved in that discussion," Probolsky told the Buzz when asked if he would deny the speculation.
In other words, “nope.”
Now wait a minute. Probolsky's pal Mike Schroeder is Janet Nguyen opponent Trung Nguyen's attorney. Right? (See Claiming voter fraud.)
This don't add up. Well, whatever.
One more factoid: Adam Probolsky is on the Board of Governors of the Irvine Valley College Foundation. (IVC is in Fuentes' SOCCCD.) Jeez, how do you suppose he ended up there?
The Director of the Foundation (admittedly, a nice guy) is a close friend of Fuentes (do you suppose that Fuentes had something to do with his landing that job? --Nah). Fuentes, as you know, just happened to be a paid consultant of last year's infamous congressional candidate Tan Nguyen--yes, yet another Nguyen. You'll recall that Tan got into hot water by sending rather questionable mail to Spanish-speaking folks. That tactic seemed to come straight out of Mr. Fuentes' bag o' dirty tricks. Remember those poll guards?
Well, Tan's treasurer (who resigned amid the letter scandal) just happened to be--you guessed it--the Foundation Director's wife.
It's OC, baby.
See also The man who sued his own mother....And Giggling in court.
