Smollar, David
Waldrip not impartial, but facts have vindicated Smollar and proven Fleming a liar
Jan 09, 2007
David Smollar, The Orange County
Register "I don't believe
Waldrip has proven himself to be an impartial
judge. Everything I've said in any context has
been proven factual. Most, if not all the things,
Fleming said in denial have been proven false."
Whistleblower and former CUSD Communications Director Smollar's initial reaction to the Waldrip investigation report.
Whistleblower and former CUSD Communications Director Smollar's initial reaction to the Waldrip investigation report.
Former district spokesperson questions Waldrip's impartiality
Jan 05, 2007
David Smollar, The Orange County
Register "Smollar said a
representative for Waldrip tried to set up an
interview, but he declined, saying he questioned
the impartiality of a district-hired
investigator."
Based on years of first-hand experience spinning messages on behalf of CUSD at the direction of former Superintendent Fleming and the Trustees, Smollar had good cause to question Waldrip's impartiality.
Based on years of first-hand experience spinning messages on behalf of CUSD at the direction of former Superintendent Fleming and the Trustees, Smollar had good cause to question Waldrip's impartiality.
Smollar believes he did right thing as whistleblower
Jan 03, 2007
David Smollar, The Orange County
Register “I have no second
thoughts about what I did ... The stress, the
disgust (of working for Fleming) have
disappeared.”
Smollar speaks bluntly about his former role as CUSD spokesperson under former Superintendent James Fleming.
Smollar speaks bluntly about his former role as CUSD spokesperson under former Superintendent James Fleming.
Smollar testifies that Fleming lied about consultant Mike Eggers and the funding sources for the new administration building
Sep 15, 2006
Deposition of
David J. Smollar, Lackey vs.
CUSD, p.
137 "Q There's a sentence,
and I'll read it to you, "I no longer believe
myself capable of communicating a true picture of
CUSD." Why did you write that? A Because of what
had occurred both with the lying on Eggers, the
lying about his voucher, and the fact that the
superintendent was still writing in his -- or
dictating in his documents that the funding was
redevelopment money, it could only be used for,
you know, limited purposes, I mean, we were still
trying to pedal that line."
Former CUSD Communications Director Smollar testifies that the district lied to cover up illegal express advocacy in its hiring of political consultant Mike Eggers at taxpayer expense, and to cover up the truth about the financing of the new administration building with its "redevelopment funds" lies.
Former CUSD Communications Director Smollar testifies that the district lied to cover up illegal express advocacy in its hiring of political consultant Mike Eggers at taxpayer expense, and to cover up the truth about the financing of the new administration building with its "redevelopment funds" lies.
Smollar explains enenies list facts to dispell drivel of Fleming sychophant Erin Kutnick
Aug 10, 2006
David Smollar, The Capistrano
Dispatch "James
Fleming denied for two weeks the existence of any
hit list, even though the OC Register had three
versions of such a list. He first had Asst. Supt.
Susan McGill tell the Register that it must be a
list from the Registrar of Voters. (Interesting
that he remembered his Registrar list instantly,
although he later lied to the OC Register and LA
Times that he had ever received
that list.) The
OC Register then faxed him the first two pages of one
version to “refresh his memory.” He still claimed
no knowledge
of the list, and then said that any such list would
have been prepared by me! He had special software
ordered to put on my old computer to find the list.
(Sorry, Jim, I never had it.) He made available to
the media various sycophants in his employ, including
Dan Crawford and Jeff Bristow, to say what a
miserable, disgruntled employee I was (Hmmm, I worked
4 1/2 years under Fleming, and never received any
evaluation, oral or written, complaining about my
performance.) The Register, fortunately, had the
facts and printed the article. And then a week
later—two weeks after first asked about the list—lo
and behold the good Dr. Fleming issues reams of paper
worthy of Rube Goldberg to explain that the list was
all part of a hacking investigation. Of course! Just
slipped his mind. How risible! To conduct a hacking
probe, you don’t need to compile an extensive list of
150 parent names, including the schools attended by
their kids and replete with special notations on 40
of the individuals. And Fleming
still hasn’t
said who created the list, which he now admits was in
his possession. “Journalist” Kutnick conveniently
glides over the fact that Fleming ordered me to
withhold the list from Kevin Murphy, as well as a
memo to Fleming from security director Ed Kovac,
despite the fact that they were public documents from
files in Fleming’s office."
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Smollar says preparation of such lists was Fleming's modus operandi
Aug 10, 2006
David Smollar, The Capistrano
Dispatch "But
preparation of the list was modus operandi for
Fleming. He’s not a great strategic mind; he
thinks ahead about five minutes most of the time.
He craves information, especially on his many
detractors. And he craved information about the
recall people. Just examine the raft of e-mails
and memos that Fleming prepared and sent across
the CUSD universe of parents, principals
administrators the weekend of April 23-24, 2005,
in preparation for the April 25 board meeting when
recall notices were presented. He was consumed
with the recall, and had just gotten the 150 names
on April 21, off an intercepted Kevin Murphy
e-mail. He surely wanted to know who they were.
That’s his style. Fleming wrote to trustees on
April 22 in a fax that the e-mail appeared to be a
“veritable ‘who’s who’ list of San Juan Hills and
Arroyo Vista NIMBYS as well as some of the more
volatile opponents to the attendance boundary
proposal.” The list could not have been done
without Fleming’s express knowledge and direction,
because its compilation would have required hours
upon hours of tedious work using the district’s
cumbersome Aeries student information system. No
person in his or her right mind would otherwise
have spent 10 hours-plus doing it."
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Smollar exposes Erin Kutnick's blind eye concerning Fleming's serious public records and open meeting violations
Aug 10, 2006
David Smollar, The Capistrano
Dispatch "Maybe
Erin Kutnick could develop some journalism skills
by exploring Fleming’s deliberate underreporting
of his true 2004-05 compensation by some $65,000,
or his efforts to subvert the public meetings act
through bogus closed sessions on his “evaluation,”
called by state Brown Act experts the worst
violations they’ve seen in a quarter century! An
easy question to start with: Why would Fleming
even want to have mundane topics about school
uniforms, calendars, etc. etc. in a closed
session?"
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Smollar chides Erin Kutnick for ignoring the district's illegal hiring of Mike Eggers as a political consultant
Aug 10, 2006
David Smollar, The Capistrano
Dispatch "Or
maybe Kutnick might want to ask Fleming and Draper
about their lies to Dispatch editor Jonathan
Volzke in fall 2005 when he had clear evidence
that Mike Eggers, a longtime Draper friend and the
paid political gun for the trustees, was writing
Fleming’s monthly column for the community
newspapers. They said it was just a “favor” by
Eggers. Hah! The truth is that Draper had forced
Fleming to give Eggers final say over both his
weekly electronic newsletter and his monthly
column. Fleming only exploded over this unusual
yoke and forced Draper to back off when Eggers got
too big for his britches and approached deputy
superintendents Crawford, Dave Doomey and Marge
LaRoe, behind Fleming’s back, saying that Draper
wanted them to work with Eggers on a strategic
plan for the district. Unfortunately for Eggers,
Crawford and Doomey went to Fleming, who said he
then had a “Come to Jesus” meeting with Draper and
forced her to scale back Egger’s interference in
district operations."
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Smollar dares Erin Kutnick to cover Dave Doomeys role in soliciting political contributions from a list of district vendors
Aug 10, 2006
David Smollar, The Capistrano
Dispatch "Maybe
sleuth Kutnick could revisit Draper telling the
Dispatch and other media that contributions from
district contractors to the trustee’s Political
Action Committee “Kids First” were made from the
goodness of their hearts and weren’t solicited.
Another not-so-little lie. The business division
under Doomey printed out a list of major district
vendors for Draper, as directed to do so."
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Smollar reveals Erin Kutnick's bias in favor of, and expectation of preferred treatement from CUSD
Aug 10, 2006
David Smollar, The Capistrano
Dispatch "Kutnick’s
initial approach to me was not just as a Dispatch
columnist, but as a Dispatch columnist
and “friend of
district” who expected inside information. She was
less than pleased initially when I told her she’d be
treated as any other reporter: with respect but not
as a friend, since any good reporter, no matter how
“friendly,” will slice and dice you, if they uncover
evidence that allows them to do so. After that was
clear, she called me occasionally for data, and I
usually referred her to employees who had the
information. Her columns didn’t really register much
in the district office, one way or the other."
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Smollar educates Erin Kutnick on fact that Fleming conceived and controlled CUSD's Media Watch
Aug 10, 2006
David Smollar, The Capistrano
Dispatch "Regarding
the district’s Media Watch, Kutnick should do a
little reporting and find out that Media Watch was
the brainchild of Fleming, who directed and approved
every listing. Or has Kutnick forgotten that Fleming
prepared, before I ever worked in CUSD, a breathless
100-page rebuttal to articles written by OC Register
reporter Keith Sharon on overcrowding at Capistrano
Valley High, and made the rebuttal an agenda item at
a board meeting!! Fleming needed no lessons from me
on how to battle with the media. I actually improved
the relationship between the Register and the
district over time, no small feat."
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Smollar rejects Erin Kutnick's suggestion that better PR by Smollar could have averted recall
Aug 10, 2006
David Smollar, The Capistrano
Dispatch "Kutnick’s
snide little remark, that a better PR effort from me
might have avoided the recall, is truly laughable.
That old bromide -- “if only we had communicated
better” -- apes the broken-record spoutings
especially of Mike Darnold. He consistently
bad-mouthed me to many, apparently never taking the
time to peruse his weekly trustee packet from
Fleming, filled regularly with positive articles
about CUSD teachers and students published in the
seven Register weeklies blanketing the district.
Perhaps Fleming and Draper failed to mention to
Kutnick the numerous op-ed articles I ghosted for
Fleming in the LA Times, or the School News Roll Call
newspaper I arranged for the district, or my success
in keeping the two from being flailed by John
Stoessel on ABC’s 20-20, and so on and so forth. The
great pr ideas of a $10,000 consultant hired during
the recall effort, at the insistence of Draper, were
along the lines of bringing real estate agents to the
district boardroom for a briefing and placing
inspirational sayings on school marquees."
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Smollar enlightens Erin Kutnick that no amount of PR could overcome facts of CUSD wrongdoings
Aug 10, 2006
David Smollar, The Capistrano
Dispatch "Unfortunately,
no communicator on Earth could stem community
anger that built from genuine controversies over
attendance boundaries, school overcrowding in
Rancho Santa Margarita, machinations concerning
San Juan Hills High and Dennis Gage, and the scope
of an expensive new education center. As to the
new center, maybe Kutnick could offer me
suggestions on how to be a better communicator,
when for more than three years Fleming never told
me that the cost would be covered almost half
through Mello-Roos fees, not solely from
redevelopment funds from San Juan Capistrano. You
may learn someday, Erin Kutnick, that your
communication is only as good as the truth of the
information given you by the people you have to
trust for the truth. I learned about the center’s
complicated financing only after real journalists
filed public records requests for funding
details."
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Smollar "disgruntled" due to lies - Fleming, Draper and others to blame for taking focus off teaching and learning
Aug 10, 2006
David Smollar, The Capistrano
Dispatch "Yes,
Erin Kutnick, I grew most unhappy as I learned of
the lies, hype and exaggeration from the top.
Anyone with a moral compass would be disgusted,
and there are many in the district silently
relieved at the end of the Fleming regime. For the
record, I resigned, and Fleming then gave me a
letter offering to “be of assistance in my future
endeavors.” So much for your little innuendo
hinting at something else. I’m sure Fleming would
love now to say he fired me, but that’s one lie,
if told, that would definitely have legal
consequences for him. And yes, it’s sad that the
community’s focus has been taken off teaching and
learning, but the blame lies squarely at the feet
of Fleming, Draper and the gang with their
arrogance of power."
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Kutnick is a columnist for The Capistrano Dispatch. Smollar is the former Director of Communications at Capistrano Unified School District.
Smollar confirms Fleming's and Trustees' amoral character
Jul 18, 2006
David Smollar, The Orange County
Register "Mostly, I thought
they were white lies, exaggerations, and I'd
correct them," Smollar says. "But then with the
recall, I realized they (Fleming and the board)
would stop at nothing."
Smollar, former CUSD spokeperson, confirms the amoral, by-any-means-necessary characters of former Superintendent James Fleming and the CUSD Trustees he served under.
Smollar, former CUSD spokeperson, confirms the amoral, by-any-means-necessary characters of former Superintendent James Fleming and the CUSD Trustees he served under.
OC Register says DA should investigate CUSD enemies lists
Jan 11, 2006
Editorial, The Orange County
Register "This is a chilling
abuse of power that should be thoroughly
investigated by the county district attorney."
The Register's editorial staff reacts to news report previous day that the Capistrano Unified School District “kept lists of 150 families who supported last year’s board recall campaign, detailing such personal information as where their children went to school.”