Cipriano Vargas is a county taxpayer-funded political operative to radical County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer, where he makes $100,000 in salary and benefits. Lawson-Remer has a long history of extremism and is especially naïve regarding her views on law enforcement, public safety, and private property. Cipriano Vargas and Lawson-Remer are known to have been close friends and have worked together for at least four years.
Lawson-Remer voted for the Vehicle Mileage Tax as the County Representative on SANDAG.
In 1999, Lawson-Remer was arrested in Seattle during a protest against the World Trade Organization. She called the police “hired hitman.”
In 2004, she was arrested on reckless endangerment, trespassing and felony assault in NYC. She was attempting to scale a building while protesting the War in Iraq. An officer was injured during her arrest and required 36 stitches in his leg, but she claims it was an “accident.”
Lawson-Remer voiced her opposition to open court proceedings regarding the placement of Sexually Violent Predators and said they deserve a “right to privacy.” She only changed her position when a Sexually Violent Predator was assigned to live in her district in September 2021.
She criticized private property rights in 2013 in a published article called “Property Rights and Power.” She wrote, “in many circumstances, collective resource ownership is actually more functional and effective than individualized ownership.”
During her campaign for Supervisor, Terra Lawson- Remer said that public safety was a “below average” priority and called neighborhood / historical preservation the lowest priority in a survey done by Coast News.
His work bio with Lawson-Remer says he works with “ISDF and community organizations.” ISDF stands for Invest in San Diego Families and he is featured on their front webpage. ISDF is a coalition partner with CPI, or Center on Policy Initiatives. CPI demanded that the gang prevention unit of the SDPD be dismantled and the $16 million for the budget be “diverted.”
Cipriano Vargas supported Prop 15 in 2020, which would eliminate Prop 13’s tax protections. Had Prop 15 passed, many businesses, senior citizens and families in Vista would have been taxed out of their property.
He is associated with radical groups such as the ACLU and SEIU. He was previously employed as a labor organizer for SEIU 221.
Vargas sits as a “NextGen” Board member of ACLU San Diego and its Imperial County Chapter. ACLU National gave $3.5 million in 2014 to Yes on Prop 47, which changed felony theft from $400 to $950. Prop 47 is one of the reasons California has seen such a massive rise in retail crime. His chapter is a signatory to the “People’s Budget” from the Center on Policy Initiatives that called for the defunding of gang prevention units.
He is a Facebook member of the Democratic Socialists of San Diego and other radical groups such as Our Revolution.
Related News Articles and Sources
About Team Terra
https://www.supervisorterralawsonremer.com/content/d3/us/en/about/about-team-terra.html
Transparent California
https://transparentcalifornia.com/salaries/search/?a=san-diego-county&q=cipriano+vargas&y=
SANDAG Board of Directors
https://www.sandag.org/index.asp?fuseaction=about.board
Yale Hearld regarding 1999 arrest of Terra Lawson-Remer (via WebArchive)
https://web.archive.org/web/20010821040705/http:/www.yaleherald.com/archive/xxix/2000.01.21/features/front.html
The Village Voice article regarding 2004 arrest
https://www.villagevoice.com/2004/09/21/target-dissent/
Election 2020: North County’s City Council and County Board Candidates
https://thecoastnews.com/wp-content/uploads/WEBpriority-matrix_priorities-sorted-e1602878259626.jpg
Property Rights and Power: Terra Lawson-Remer
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5ae0bd744eddec34693a2d68/t/5ae367752b6a286dde2fb87b/1524852597552/Property-Rights-and-Power-Current-History.pdf
City of San Diego People’s Budget
https://cpisandiego.org/sd-peoples-budget-fy22/
CPI: A YEAR AFTER ‘DEFUND’ DEMANDS, SAN DIEGO MAY HIKE POLICE SPENDING AGAIN
https://cpisandiego.org/2021/05/10/a-year-after-defund-demands-san-diego-may-hike-police-spending-again/
Community Budget Alliance: People’s Budget
https://cpisandiego.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/PEOPLEs-budget-fy22-12162020.pdf
Prop 15 Supporters (School Board Officials)
https://www.schoolsandcommunitiesfirst.org/copy-of-supporters