Jean Quan won the mayor’s race last year in large part because of her liberal credentials. She and fellow progressive candidate Rebecca Kaplan represented a sharp contrast to the more moderate, law-and-order politician Don Perata. It was no surprise, then, that Oakland moderates started criticizing Quan almost as soon as she took office in January. They complained loudly that she’s too soft on crime and isn’t doing enough to stem the violence in Oakland. But if yesterday’s over-the-top police response to the Occupy Oakland protest is any indication, it seems that Quan has taken criticism from the law-and-order crowd much too seriously and has forgotten her progressive roots.
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