Just days after voters acted to recall him from office, state Sen. Josh Newman (D-Fullerton) on Monday condemned Republican members of the Senate in an angry floor speech for what he said was their failure to stand up against a deceptive campaign by GOP operatives to oust him from office.

Newman said the campaign got voters to sign the recall petitions by saying it would repeal a gas-tax increase and they unfairly blamed him for the tax, even though many others, including a Republican senator, voted for the measure.

“It saddens me colleagues, Republican colleagues, that despite all your nice sotto voce words, not a single one of you had the integrity, the decency or the courage to say this is wrong… this is an abuse of the recall process,” Newman said in a speech toward the close of the day’s session.

Newman accused his opponents of “defamatory lies,” and for trespassing on his property and making threats against his wife and child. He said some Republican senators came up to him before the June 5 vote and said there was nothing personal about the recall.

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