Parks for Antonio
Today's LA Times scoops everyone in the city and announces Parks is endorsing Tony Villar for Mayor. Respected political observer Earl Ofari Hutchinson has some words about this.
Also the Democratic Party San Fernando Valley endorsed Tony with a 48-4 vote.
For those math majors that a 92% - 8% vote for Tony Villar.
Also it seems that IBEW Local 18 has switched their endorsement from Hahn to Villar.
If it's not obvious to everyone i've stopped my scorecard mainly because the endorsement game has clearly been swept by Tony Villar. And this old chief is proud to say i was the first to endorse after the primary. Again the Chief leads the way.
In an effort to be a little more fair, i really am urging those that support Hahn to e-mail the chief.
Chiefwilliamparker@hotmail.com
Update*** In fairness to my fellow bloggers, LA Voice and Martini Republic scooped this old chief however, it should be noted that Noti Los Angeles got it before anyone..
Also the Democratic Party San Fernando Valley endorsed Tony with a 48-4 vote.
For those math majors that a 92% - 8% vote for Tony Villar.
Also it seems that IBEW Local 18 has switched their endorsement from Hahn to Villar.
If it's not obvious to everyone i've stopped my scorecard mainly because the endorsement game has clearly been swept by Tony Villar. And this old chief is proud to say i was the first to endorse after the primary. Again the Chief leads the way.
In an effort to be a little more fair, i really am urging those that support Hahn to e-mail the chief.
Chiefwilliamparker@hotmail.com
Update*** In fairness to my fellow bloggers, LA Voice and Martini Republic scooped this old chief however, it should be noted that Noti Los Angeles got it before anyone..
Posted by Anonymous @ 4/05/2005 12:40:00 AM
115 Comments:
I guess we now know who the head of the police commission will be once he's termed out as a CM (assuming an ADV victory, which is NOT a lock by far).
These butt-kissings don't come cheap!
Anybody ever notice that the local TV news -- where more Angelenos get their information that anywhere else, almost never mention these endorsements of the day, even the higher profiles ones.
Yet the local debates TV debates have been getting higher and higher ratings. Keep working on the cue cards and bumper sticker quotes, ADV.
As LA Voice points out in its "scoop" of the now Mayor Sam-less "Chief Parker Blog" "no surprise here."
ANd "no surprise" means little net effect on the vote!
Anti-Hahn African Americans voted for Parks, would have already been following Maxine Waters, etc., so Parks becomes a redundancy -- just like he was in the primary... a non-factor.
WHOA big numbers for the SF Valley demos... 48 votes. Right up there with the L.A. County Republican turnout a few weeks back.
A farce to be reckoned with! (Yawn)
Most people who watch these groups go through the motions every 4 years know when they see these apparatchik endorsements from local party groups like the Valley Dems that they represent the farthest extreme of whichever party is voting.
Same reason why Wacko Walter was TOO Liberal for the L.A. county republicans, Antonio is the only one radically liberal enough for the organized Dems groups. This is where the 3-4 dozen of them can feel somewhat powerful. Then "real" people vote, and we find out how far out of touch the 40-50 extreme left party hacks are with reality.
Where was Parks gonna go?
Keep tabulating the endorsements... and then turn the calendar back 4 years to what the endorsement scorecard looked like then.
Talk about being a two face. Antonio told people in the valley "Parks is not the right man," then turns around and tells blacks "ooopsss yes he is." Antonio supports 3-12 Lapd at least that's what he's told officers. At least I'm sticking with a man who had enough balls and got rid of Bitter Bernie. Antonio wouldn't know where to find his cause he doesn't have any. Like I've always said its all in TIMING. Could it be that woman is holding out in filing that "sexual harrassement" lawsuit? Could it be those women who were threatened to have abortions will come out? Could it be that child protective order may say something more? We'll all have to wait and see.
A black rev Brazil today quoted in LAT states: blacks may be afraid of brown mayor. Earl Hutichinson states in Daily News: Many blacks still see Hahn as a safe and traditional Democrat who will best protect their interests. They view Villaraigosa as an inexperienced political maverick, an interloper who can't or won't deliver the goods for blacks. Lurking underneath everything is their fear of Latino domination of city politics.
Parks cost this city $70 million in lawsuits because Rampart happened while he was chief. We lost 1,000 officers and this is the crook that Antonio has aligned himself with? Chief Parker you will continue to get these negative posts until you start being fair and balanced. Put AV's council record on here. Post the crime in his district that CNN will air on TV this Sunday. AV has been MIA in his own community. Hahn gained more supporters from CD14 this past weekend.
If all the "supporters" Hahn has been gaining from CD 14 were to vote, it might equal a pimple on the butt of an elephant.
Don't you bitter losers in CD 14 get it yet? Antonio won; Pacheco lost. And, he lost it all by himself, with a big boost from his pal, Ricardo Torres, III, who has not been heard from since.
Antonio is winning this race, and he wil continue to move forward. If you had a decent candidate to back, perhaps it would be otherwise, but the corruption goes on, even in the face of the pending indictments. For instance, the LAWA yeterday approved EXTENSIONS of lucrative contracts for friends and relatives of Hahnista, well before they had even expired. Why now? Why else, the rats are leaving the ship, and taking what they can with them.
I just hope that those contracts have "convenience" clauses in them, so that the new LAWA Board can do it fairly, with an RFP, instead of awarding them to buddies.
Let's see, is Miguel still on the lAWA Board? Hahn says "no lobbyist" Commissioners, but of course, Julie Butcher and Miguel Contreras, and Maria Elena Delgado are not registered lobbyists. Why not? Ask Jimmy Hahn.
Nah, don't bother, he'll just "look into it". Better ask Wardlaw, or Miguel, or Julie.
Good time to put out the back-to-back endorsements of Riordan and Parks -- the (minus) $70-million-men, while the media is transfixed on the death of the Pope.
More innuendo from the smoke-and-mirror Anti-Hahn vigilantes. The amount of actual proof they can offer of so-called "corruption" in the Hahn administration is equal to a pimple on the ego of Antonio Villaraigosa. . .
If "investigations" equalled proof, LAPD would have every criminal in the city behind bars. Investigations stem from people making accusations, something Villaraigosa people do more than they breathe.
Yes, poster -- Pacheco lost in '03. I got over it the next day, but you seem transfixed on it. The only people that mention Pacheco are Villaraigosa supporters. (Get over it).
Here's another one for you... Villaraigosa lost in 2001 (he did it to himself). Get over it.
He had to take a "lesser position" in '03 just to stay in the public eye, and guess what, he STILL ended up with less than one-third of the primary votes (just like '01). Get over it.
Villaraigosa can justify what he's been doing on the public dole for two years with any real accomplishments. Get over it.
He was stupid enough to try and run a second campaign, using the same campaign consultants that lost him the election in '01 (when he had more endorsements than Hahn).
Get ready to have to "get over it" all over again.
(Be strong, little scout, there's always the state senate).
Antonio when are you going to announce that RICHARD ALATORRE and MIKE HERNANDEZ have endorsed your campaign? Please, do not be a shame of your Mexican supporter.
Antonio, victory party song list:
White lines dedicated to Richard and Mike provided by Vignali Jr.
I'm so horney dedicated to his little liberal groupie and latina tramps.
Lowrider dedicated to his ganger friends.
And when Hahn kicks his ass again Antonio, Parke, and Ace will play
Why Can't We be Friend!
LA Observed is slightly wrong. The Parks voters were not simply anti-Hahn, but pro-Parks (pro-black). Now with Antonio v. Hahn, black voters feel more open to choose, so the list of black endorsements mean more than ever before. Also, there's no endorsement that's going to make or break this race, but the cumulative effect of many strong endorsements will.
The difference from '01 - Hahn doesn't have the black vote but Antonio does. He also has less of the SFV vote where Antonio has picked up.
ADV-lovers like to keep bringing up Pacheco because it's the last (and ONLY) time Tony V. ever won an election in the city of Los Angeles. It kinda soothes the pain of losing everytime he goes citywide.
9:39... now have some intellectual honesty, and mention also that Villaraigosa is losing Latino support compared to 2001.
What's a bigger factor, Hahn losing ground in the (smaller) African American community, or Villaraogosa losing group in the (much) larger Latino community... any math majors out there?
ADV's people are counting, and worried, YOU betcha!
People keep asking, but nobody can answer. Where are the prominent Eastside community leader endorsement??
Rememeber, it comes down to "the base" -- remember them?" Losers neglect the base to court more fluid, less faithful constituencies.
Damn, Tony, get yourself some professionals. It's all abut timing, timing, timing. You're most important Black endorsement and you wait until the day of the most important newsday of the year in the Black community, the funeral of Johnny Cochran? You still have 5+weeks left. And what's the second biggest news in the Black community, the Pope's funeral? You better show up with Parks for that viewing, can't miss those cameras. Exploit Johnny, who gives a shit, right? By the way, how many times did Johnny Cochran kick "Bitter Bernie's" ass in court. Who opened the door for justice against the LAPD - that's what Johnnie's memorial is all about. Just like in 2001, your over confidence is blinding your vision Parke - as much as you'd like to make history, you've got the wrong horse.
Don't plagarize, Anonymous at 9:39 a.m. Give credit where it's due. Tell the people who originally said this quote you just repeated:
"...no endorsement's going to make or break this race, but the cumulative effect of many strong endorsements will."
Answer: PARKE SKELTON (to Antonio Villaraigosa), May, 2001.
HA!!!
God almighty, how DOES that guy keep getting work on political campaigns. OH, that's right they blame every loss of the other guy being "dirty."
How often has that worked for ADV so far (only once, and BOY does he regret taking that lowly position).
I bring up La Colectiva Pacheco because the same sorry folks that were on his team are the one's posting here with so much hate for AV. Same old stories – same old lies.
Not once have they stated why they support Hahn. They call AV a bully for taking on this fight. It's not only a fight but a struggle for some equity in city services.
But hey are not the only ones posting. To all the haters that keep repeating AV's supposed absence from the murders in CD 14 let me respond very clearly- murder in our neighborhoods is a tragedy and should not be politicized by anyone. The fact that you have done so is disgusting. What has Hahn done about the murders? Why hasn't the Mayor been to any of the funerals for these tragedies? If he is so concerned about our public safety on the eastside, why hasn't he brought Chief Bratton and the Hollenbeck Captains out to the community and held a press conference highlighting his plan to stop gang violence? I'll tell you why- because he doesn't have a plan and he doesn't care about the eastside.
As many of his supporters have stated, "we don't want the valley to look like Boyle Heights" (the Valley being the area Hahn is most aggressively campaigning in). They, like the Mayor, would prefer to put up a wall at the LA river to keep them from looking at the all the chaos they have neglected throughout this City's history. It's ok for us to be the west side’s nanny's and gardeners but their Mayor - oh no - there goes the City!
Why is it that all you haters keep bringing up AV's root beer El Camino or the La Fonda incident for which he was acquitted? Because it is your intent to portray AV as the Mexican gang banger that is going to invade your neighborhood and allow hordes of undocumented immigrants to sell oranges on your street corner. What BS!
OK, AV didn't pass the bar, but I also know plenty of white, black, Asian, Jewish, Armenian, etc folks that have not passed the bar either. Practicing law and representing folks in a court of law is not for everyone. Although he didn't pass, I admire him for continuing to try. What about the fact that he has gone on- despite the bar- to effect real change in people's lives. Why do we have Healthy Families, the largest school construction and open space bonds on the books- because Antonio Villaraigosa DOES NOT give up. And I know Antonio will not give up on making my neighborhood safer. Proactive vs. Reactive leadership - Antonio does not wait for things to happen - he makes them happen.
-Mustang.
Mustang needs to be put out to pasture or at least given a shot for distemper. Maybe the reason there's so much anti-Antonio stuff here is because the only stuff that "happens" is when it's in his best interest. The guy takes credit for everything, can't keep his word, and has a past that strains the benefit of the doubt test.
Also, mad props need to go out to Anon 9:39. You're pretty funny. Maybe some vintage NWA next time. hehe
Long live Pope Antonius 1!
Mustang, I see Enrique Gasca went back his high school mascot, or is it Jose Huizar. Keep posting, your just making the case for Hahn supporters. You should be getting a call from Parke just about now to stop your stupid posting.
And just so you get your stories straight, Tony didn't have an El Camino, it was a root beer Malibu. The reason the La Fonda incident is relevant is not because Tony got into a fight and got off - he was judged and he is clear of this incident - but, he used a box cutter, just like in the incident in the Venice Room, and the box cutters are in both police reports.
And you mention in your homage to Tony "murder in our neighborhoods is a tragedy and should not be politicized by anyone." Who politicized this first - Tony. He went around in the 2003 campaign promising to be at every homicide. Isn't that politicizing tragedies. But you know what, these tragedies wouldn't be polticized if Tony had enough character to keep his promise - especially one as sensitive as this. And the murders in the 14th District are up to 16 - keep up.
And your most idiotic and daming defense of Tony, "OK, AV didn't pass the bar, but I also know plenty of white, black, Asian, Jewish, Armenian, etc folks that have not passed the bar either." Well not every white, black,Asian, Jewish, Armenian, etc. are running for mayor. There is a higher standard for positions of power, otherwise you end up with idiots, like Tony. And there are plenty of Mexicans who did pass the bar and are in office, Xavier Becerra (Stanford Law), Jose Huizar (Princeton grad, Stanford Law), Martha Escutia (USC Law), and yes, even Nick Pacheco (Loyola Law).
Keep posting Mustang, or should I say, Gelding - quick, run for your dictionary.
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http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-probe5apr05,1,4355241.story
CALIFORNIA
Documents Sought in Corruption Probe
Authorities are examining mayor's '02 Asia trip that involved airport and port deals.
By Patrick McGreevy and Noam N. Levey
Times Staff Writers
April 5, 2005
In the last few weeks, federal and local authorities investigating Los Angeles city contracting have asked for information about a trip Mayor James K. Hahn took to Asia in 2002 that led to a controversial agreement with a Taiwanese air carrier.
In a detailed letter sent to the airport, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office on March 21 asked for contracting documents and communications between airport officials and EVA Airways, a Taiwanese carrier that Hahn wants to relocate from Los Angeles International Airport.
The district attorney's office and the city Ethics Commission also requested information on travel expenses for Hahn, his deputies and Leland Wong, who served on the Airport and Department of Water and Power commissions under Hahn. Federal investigators have also asked for documents related to Wong's tenure on the Airport Commission , which ended in 2003 when Hahn moved Wong to the DWP Commission. Wong resigned the next year amid controversy over alleged misuse of his employer's funds for political purposes.
The requests, which were obtained by The Times on Monday, were made just two months before the May 17 mayoral election and could complicate Hahn's bid for another term. Challenger Antonio Villaraigosa has made a top campaign issue of the year-plus investigations into Hahn administration contracting.
"It's the last thing he needs," said Republican strategist Allan Hoffenblum. "It's the corruption issue that has put Hahn in the position he is in … and it is the single issue that could cost him the race."
Hoffenblum, who backed Hahn in 2001, said the news could put the mayor on the defensive after several weeks in which Hahn has aggressively attacked Villaraigosa.
The investigators appear to be focusing on a controversial arrangement spearheaded by the mayor's office that would have awarded space at the Los Angeles port to Evergreen Marine, a shipping company, and also moved EVA, an affiliate, to Ontario International Airport from LAX.
The latest demands began March 18, when the city Ethics Commission asked the airports department, known as Los Angeles World Airports, for Airport Commission resolutions approving the payment of travel expenses for a 2002 Asian trip by Wong, Hahn and several of Hahn's top aides.
In November 2002 Hahn led the 10-day trip to East Asia, which he trumpeted as an important campaign to boost tourism and strengthen business ties to the Pacific Rim.
The trip featured a visit to Taiwan, during which Hahn and the EVA Airways chairman signed a tentative agreement to have EVA move the airline's cargo operations to Ontario, where the city has been trying to shift air traffic to alleviate congestion at LAX.
On March 21, Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley and Lt. Brian Hale of the district attorney's Bureau of Investigation sent a letter to the airport agency requesting the same information as sought by the Ethics Commission, as well as EVA Airways lease contracts, staff recommendation letters and all correspondence between commissioners and airport staff about EVA Airways from January 1998 through April 2003.
Head Deputy Dist. Atty. David Demerjian, who is chief of the Public Integrity Division, and Ethics Commission Executive Director LeeAnn Pelham both declined comment Monday.
Also last week, federal investigators from the U.S. Department of Transportation asked the airport for information about Wong's tenure as an airport commissioner, according to a source familiar with the request.
Airport spokeswoman Nancy Castles said the airport is cooperating with investigators. Hahn spokeswoman Shannon Murphy said the mayor's office would also cooperate.
The requests are the first to come to light since federal prosecutors last August subpoenaed the e-mails of Hahn and three aides.
The Times reported in May that the State Lands Commission was looking into whether aides to Hahn improperly interfered on behalf of Evergreen Marine in negotiations for a lease at the city's port to curry favor with its affiliate, EVA Airways.
Evergreen had expressed an interest in 2002 in expanding its port operations in Los Angeles and was competing with two other firms for 43 acres on Terminal Island.
In 2003, the Harbor Commission considered a proposal by two commissioners to lease that land to P&O Nedlloyd, but an aide to Hahn intervened to stop it because the mayor's office wanted to "build a long-term relationship" with Evergreen and EVA, Liu said last year.
The Harbor Commission has since solicited new bids, and the panel voted to enter negotiations with P&O in December.
Liu denied that the city broke any rules in linking the airport and harbor deals, because the city has an interest in both.
Curtis L. Fossum, senior counsel for the State Lands Commission, said at the time the inquiry was aimed at making sure the port, which is operated under a state trust, was not shortchanged to benefit the airport agency.
The Times reported last year that Wong, while serving on the Airport Commission in 2002, was also working as a consultant for Evergreen Marine.
Shortly after he informed the Ethics Commission about that job in an October 2002 report, Wong accompanied Hahn to Asia, where city officials signed agreements between Evergreen Marine and the Port of Los Angeles, and between EVA Airways and the airports department.
Port contracting was harshly criticized in a 2003 audit by City Controller Laura Chick, and auditors' notes obtained by The Times indicated that Wong played a role on both deals.
E-mails obtained by investigators, as well as The Times, confirm that Wong was in the loop about the talks with EVA, even requesting to review documents involved in the agreement a month before the Asia trip.
Wong's role as a paid consultant for Evergreen Marine shortly before he was involved in city talks on Evergreen and EVA could be a conflict of interest, according to Robert Stern, president of the Center for Governmental Studies in Los Angeles.
Records released by the airport agency to the Ethics Commission indicate the airports department paid $25,600 for Wong's travel expenses for three Asian trips in 2002.
Hahn's expenses included $4,500 for airfare for the mayor's travel to South Korea, China, Japan and Hong Kong from Nov. 16 through Nov. 26, 2002.
Accompanying Hahn were several mayoral deputies, City Council members and a number of business leaders who had donated to Hahn's 2002 campaign to defeat the secession of the San Fernando Valley.
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Copyright 2005 Los Angeles Times
CORRUPTION, THY NAME IS HAHN
Oh someone give that AV lover a chill pill. What has Hahn done for the Eastside? A hell of alot more than AV. He gave money for the GIT gang reduction program, Hahn has given us the best police chief in the nation with Bratton and like LAT stated yesterday, the city owes him a debt of gratitude." Hey, buddy go tell Capt. Fiero your sad story about crime. He's an avid AV supporter and likes to hide these homicides cause then his buddy AV who has told him he'll get promoted will look bad. Hahn is expanding one of the world's businest airport, implemented after school programs with LA's Best to Eastside schools. Antonio is the one touting and using cameras. You don't see Hahn out there lying. AV has stated that he visits every homicide scene which officers at Hollenbeck laugh at. He hasn't been to a crime scene they say in 7 months. Ok let's not forget Antonio is a former ACLU member who sued the city and supported gangbangers. So poster stop your whining and be a man. All you AV lovers ACCEPT THE FACT WE ARE Anti-Antonio because unlikle your sorry asses we have brains and are intelligent, educated, successful and know better that a loser like Antonio who has a police record, kids out of wedlock, child abuse etc. doesn't deserve to be mayor let alone CM of any city.
To think a mayoral candidate like Antonio has an arrest record with LAPD. No wonder he supports gangbangers. He knows what's it like to be hooked up and taken to jail. How embarrassing!!@@@@
AV arrest. Here's some more info on that La Fonda incident:
Los Angeles Times
May 24, 1994
Author: ROBERT J. LOPEZGREG KRIKORIAN; TIMES STAFF WRITERSMetro Desk
Villaraigosa acknowledges that he was arrested in 1977 for what he says was an assault on a man who attacked his mother during a "big melee" at a Mexican restaurant near MacArthur Park.
Los Angeles police records recently obtained by the Times show that Villaraigosa was initially arrested on a felony charge in the case. But he was tried on a misdemeanor assault charge and was not convicted.
Both Big O (Rolando) and Mustang (Gasca/Huizar/whoever you are, Salesian HS grad) need to check their facts. It was Gray Davis that made this happen. Pinche babosos a todos.
Like the new Beck song, GD's one bad guero.
The Mustang could also be Eric Robles who works for Congresswoman Roybal Allard who endorsed Antonio. Also Eric Robles is running the CD14 seat campaign for Jose Huizar who won't win cause everyone found out he endorsed Antonio.
The fact of the matter is that Healthy Families was there for my little brother after my Dad passed away and it was Antonio who made it happen in the Assembly. Martha had and has no juice as was evident by not being able to get elected Senate President Pro Temp. And Davis didn't have the balls to initiate anything this sweeping.
Mustang = my car not my HS.
-Mustang
10:39 ANON Posted: CORRUPTION, THY NAME IS HAHN. More aptly put, Plausible Deniability, Your name is Hahn. You guys don't actually think you're going to get to Hahn, do you. After all, Hahn isn't stupid, he did pass the bar. But any career politician has soiled themselves by their acquaintances. Tony has Alatorre, Hahn has Wong. Could this be payback, take a look:
*******
Wong Accuses Alattore of Conflict of Interest in Special Council Race
Los Angeles Times
December 11, 1986
Author: JANET CLAYTON; Times Staff WriterMetro Desk
'Special Favors'
Los Angeles City Council candidate Leland Wong urged Wednesday that Councilman Richard Alatorre be ousted from the committee that oversees elections, contending that Alatorre's support for a rival candidate in the 1st District special election amounts to "an apparent conflict of interest."
In a City Hall press conference, Wong said that "the fact that Mr. Alatorre has hand-picked a candidate presents a problem . . . an apparent conflict of interest."
In a letter to Alatorre that he made public at the press conference, Wong decried government conducted "in back rooms for special favors."
The charge has been denied by Gonzalez and by Alatorre, although the councilman does want Gonzalez to join him as the second Latino on the council.
Wong said Wednesday that he had met with Alatorre as recently as last month to discuss his plan to run for the council. Wong said Alatorre "discouraged" him from running and offered instead to help him run for the school board.
"He asked me not to run if Gonzalez should run. . . . He offered to introduce me to friends in the UTLA (United Teachers of Los Angeles) to possibly run for the school board," Wong said.
An Alatorre spokesman said that there was no "quid pro quo" offer from Alatorre.
********
Hey Tony, did Alatorre hand pick you too? His sister is on your staff, right?
So, poster, your answer to the fact that all the allegations against Hahn are just that -- ALLEGATIONS, is to reprint a whole LA Times article (better check the copyright issue, dude), which is what... MORE ALLEGATIONS. Then to "prove" your point, you put your own editorial opinion at the end -- IT'S "CORRUPTION."
DAMN, if I ever get accused of a crime will you PLEASE stay the hell away from the jury pool.
Here's a tast of your own medicine, DOOFUS -- I hereby accuse you of being too stupid to walk straight. I hereby demand an investigation into that same accusation. and I hereby pronounce you GUILTY as charged.
Hey, Roybal-Allard and Jose Huizar are not CD 14 folks. They can't be, because we have it on anonymous authority that "no one in CD 14 would endorse or vote for Antonio".
They must mean "no one that can spell".
ALATORRE... This is why ADV keeps people like Alatorre and Art Snyder around as "advisors" and "mentors" -- in contrast, they make him look SMART and SQUEAKY CLEAN! (But only be a very small degree).
Mustang:
Come on, already resorting to tear jerking stories:
"The fact of the matter is that Healthy Families was there for my little brother after my Dad passed away"
Well, you know what else was there, General Hospital, Community Health Foundation, AltaMed, Arroyo Vista, all health providers in the eastside that do not turn away patients because of inability ot pay or immigration status. That is why they are Federally Qualified Health Centers.
And Tony wasn't ther for your little brother, it was those doctors and nurses that most certainly bypassed higher paying jobs to stay in the inner city.
Your line about your brother is almost as good as the "My Father Was an Alcoholic" line used by Parke for Tony. Must be one of his disciples.
"Hahn has his Wong"...you must be kidding.
Hahn has his Wong, Stein, Edwards, Acevedo, Hammond, Dowie, and a cast of thousands.
When they come, the indictments will fill the courts and the jails for months and years to come.
It is fitting that they leave in disgrace for what they have done, and are about to do, to the reputation of Los Angeles. It is Chicago politics at its worst.
11:18... I think the anon you're misquoting from before said no Eastside "community leaders." Sure, ADV can pull other hack district politicians up -- "you scratch; I scratch..." Don't prove nothing.
Where's the list of prominent "Latino" ministers/priests from CD14 (to match the lengthy Black ministers list from South L.A.). Sorry, they know him TOO well for that.
Where's all the local activists -- the people who actually gte things done in the community between ADV's photo ops.
You mean to tell me ADV "energized" 6000 COOMUNITY PEOPLE to do good deeds in the district, and NONE are listed as endorsing him? DAMN, those must have been really lousy giveaway T-shirts his people handed out -- if no one's come forward yet.
ADV and REAL (roll-up-your-sleeves) community activists are like oil and water, mijo -- just don't mix.
Lev, you’re absolutely right. However, I’m doubtful that he’ll trim that mad bush—reminiscent of the school bus driver on Southpark—of-a-hairdo, no matter what. We would much sooner see Jeff and Julie do their Lollipop Kids rendition (Wizard of Oz folks), the gang bang of Garfield go back to her old ways, or a certain Hahnista settle on one salchicha.
Roybal Allard endorsed Tony? Well so much for her integrity. Another example of Tony's people not doing their homework. Remember when Tony's minions attacked the I.E. Mother's For Nick for using Sra. Juana Gutierrez's residence as their headquarters, do you know who else used that house? Lucille Roybal Allard used that house as her voter registration throughout the nineties. Was this Eric Robles' idea? When can we expect the next hit piece on the Mothers for this indiscretion, Parke.
Don't MAKE me go re-post the list of things Hahn's done for the Eastside from his campaign site, previous poster. It's unkind to victim ADV and such a damn embarrassment for Tony V. when he keeps having to recycle and recite the debunked lies about invisible neighborhood watches and drive-by community cleanups that took two years to "create."
Anon 11:22
You disgust me!
Do you think it was funny to make fun of my family that way?
I guess there's no where to argue and debate when you have nothing to support your arguments with.
-Mustang
That's pretty funny about the lack of Hispanic names on Villaraigosa's community leader endorsement list, 11:26 Anon.
But the VERY funniest thing about it is, if that list was posted that way on ANY other candidate's endorsement list, ADV's OWN people would be (leaking) to media that it was PROOF that candidate didn't have broad support across ethnic lines in the city and was probably (pssst "racist")!
Ain't that an ironic bitch.
MUSTANG,
Welcome to politics. Your family wouldn't have been an issue, if you didn't refer to them first. And everything I've posted is supported. Take a look at the post again. As for the "My Father's an Alcoholic Piece" that Parke sent out for Tony, I'm sure you have a copy.
What the ADV-lovers keep trying to gloss over with the raw numbers from a poorly turned out primary is that ADV has little or no support among the activist community in his district (ask why?)
Will the sheep of the district follow him (sure... for awhile, but even that support's eroding). But the people who see him most often, hear the same useless tripe speeches, and have to deal with his incredibly useless staff selections know better.
If you want a politician who can get something done (like ADV has NOT), you look to see who the street-level community leaders and workers will follow... They're what's MIA in Antonio's Eastside campaign (and no one even TRIES to disprove that!)
Hey, why do you think all those sleazy recall bar owners in CD14 are REALLY pissed at ADV? He's giving alcoholic fathers (one of their main clientele), a bad name with his rants about Daddy that family members have refuted, often.
11:43 Anon you are so right. Its amazing how the community leaders know what the hell is going on and what a loser Antonio is. To hear others who have no clue and aren't active in their own community think Tony has done so much is funny. He will lose in his district cause the word is now spreading faster then before because the group has gotten so much bigger
Is the name and subject of this blog "C.D. 14"?
If not, why don't you angry anti-Hispanics go home?
Talk about racist remarks! Must be an Antonio lover. This is about an unqualified mayoral candidate whose constituents know full well he has no accomplishments to speak of. Who are sick and tired of the media being so unfair and unbalanced slamming Hahn and yet not putting Antonio's ZERO record in council in print. Athough I'm hearing the pressure is really being put on them. I want to hear the argument why anyone in their right mind would vote for Antonio knowing full well as ACLU member opposes gang injunctions and sued the city and supported the gangbangers. How can you possible think this is a person that shld be mayor. Also he has an arrest record.
To the obviously dumbstruck ADV-lover at 12:10 p.m. I'll repeat this again, slowly, so you can keep up (SEE, this is why there's so much repetition, HaloGirl... you lovestruck Antonio-holics aren't paying attention):
CD.... 14.... is.... Antonio's.... current.... job....!
He wants to move up, so people have to examine the "resume'" of his most recent accomplishments (or lack thereof), to see if he's worth "promoting."
SO, be like your hero, ADV, and the next time you go to apply for a job, try saying this:
"I don't want to talk about my LAST job (I was so crappy at it, and really spent most of my time on the clock time applying for NEW jobs... like this one). Plus, I was unemployed for years before that. So, can we JUST talk about what I did a decade ago and about how much BETTER I'll be as a city employee if you hire me for THIS job."
"PLEEEEEEZ?"
(Don't call them, they'll call you, right?)
Last Anon: Or, the alternative can be, let's only discuss the work Jim Hahn did before he became mayor.
That's fair, both candidates get to totally erase their last position from the discussion, we'll turn the clock back to 2001, and we'll start new, with Hahn the city attorney vs. ADV, the ex-speaker, again.
All in favor, raise your hands...
(What, no ADV-lovers want to play fair and re-run 2001 again, exactly? Then I guess discussing CD14 and fake ADV accomplishments are not only fair game, but essential)
HEY, I just popped in and didn't have time to read the details, but this says "park(s) for Antonio" (plural). Has ADV stolen the name of ANOTHER community park to pay off a campaign fundraiser (besides the dog parke?)
MAN, life's a bitch-in-heat when you can't afford to pay Antonio's tribute fees for district favors.
Is it true he's renaming one of the city departments as a thank you for this endorsement:
"Recreation & Bernard Parks"
Hang on, C.D. 14eers, when Antonio is Mayor, maybe Leland Wong will run again and you can have him for Councilmember.
Then, you'll be wishing for the good old days of Antonio Villaraigosa.
Not that it would have made an ounce of difference to the endorsement, but Parks obviously didn't hear how Tony's groupies vandalized Park's campaign signs placed on North Figueroa in Villaraigosa's district by the local pro-business people before the primary.
Athena, you can't have it both ways... ADV-lovers said when the unions mostly gave Hahn their "formal" endorsements, that it didn't matter. ADV was going to pull most of the rank and file anyway. Now it matters? Your hypocrisy is showing...
1:31... "when Antonio is mayor," Leland Wong will have died of old age (along with everyone on this blog).
Unless you mean mayor of some other city? San Fran's more liberal, he can get 51 percent there (but nowhere south of San Jose).
MEAT COME OUT COME OUT WHERE EVER YOU ARE. Ok you said you would state where Antonio stands on the LAPD 3-12 flexible work schedule. Word is AV told crooked Parks he will get rid of it as soon as he's Mayor and that's how he finally got Parks endorsement. Answer now.
Gotta love that Pacheco e-mail that went to NC's over weekend about money in CD14. So many organizations have complained for the past 2 years that Antonio has constantly told them he had no money. Well, well, thank goodness Pacheco asked Controller Chick to audit the CD14 budget. Let's see what Antonio did with the money. I know that he transferred a lot of it without the community knowing.
I found this hilarious
prominent elected official on Antonio's website and we all know its Parks. Prominent my butt. Parks is the most vindictive asshole in this city. How bad can it be when on some of Antonio's endorsement list they have to actually write and describe who the hell these people are. Some of the endorsements are from people who don't even have the title anymore. Pretty pretty sad
The Union motto is that they stay with their friends, no matter what.
Julie Butcher and Miguel will go down with the ship; Antonio will owe them nothing. Oh yes, he'll deal with them, but not kneal and kiss their rings like Jimmy has done.
There is going to be a house cleaning around this city like never before since the 1920's. The broom will sweep clean and take out the corruption that is Hahn.
And where will Jimmy be? He'll be in San Pedro with his kids, just liked he always is, except he'll be drawing a little less and have to learn to drive his own car again.
Or, maybe not. I'm sure all the little kissies from CD 14 who will be looking for their jobs and butts will have plenty of time to help out a retiree who hasn't driven his own car for 24 years, courtesy of our tax dollars.
Read the LA Times any day; it is all about the corruption and out and out arrogance of an adminstration that answers to no one, headless and unmanaged.
Thanks, Absentee Mayor Hahn.
Athena (Harriman)
i.e., "meni, meni tekel upharsin"
(Yeesh, another misguided bible-thumper for reformed-Catholic Antonio...) You should get bumper-stickers printed, because that's way too long for a memorized ADV sound bite.
Frankly, I don't think with Antonio's track record, Hahn-haters should be quoting the almighty, text and verse to summon up judgement for the current mayor. That's one nasty two-edged sword.
But you chide the poster for not reading that you said it was just "interesting" and not related to votes, then suggest that the die is already cast. If this union has some magical vision to see they future, they apparently didn't have it four years ago, when they went all out for ADV, and he LOST!
Back to present day reality; anyone who can really "read" knows the change is over this pissing match from a few weeks ago, not some omniscience about the results of the race. . .
http://ibewnews.blogspot.com/2005_02_27_ibewnews_archive.html
IBEW Local 18 (Los Angeles CA) Political and Economic Success Arouses jealousy and Note the childish accusations and intense jealousy aroused by one succesful IBEW local. The "Secret Memo" reads like a second grader's fantasies...
The Lid Comes Off
Secret memo to Mayor Hahn lays blame for DWP’s woes on union control
by JEFFREY ANDERSON, LA WEEKLY, MARCH 4 - 10, 2005
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 18, headed by business manager Brian D’Arcy, is leading the Department of Water and Power toward moral and fiscal disaster, according to a "for your eyes only" memo sent to Mayor Jim Hahn by a top DWP official.
In the six-page memo obtained by the Weekly under the state Public Records Act, DWP Assistant General Manager Mahmud Chaudhry warns Hahn that those who would stop the pillaging of the nation’s largest public utility are powerless to act in the face of "the union’s ability to affect the lives and careers of top managers, the implicit threat of strike and Local 18’s influence on politicians running for office or re-election." Since last summer, DWP’s problems have been the subject of ongoing City Council reviews.
"The DWP has become a fox-run henhouse of epic proportion," Chaudhry writes. "The union now runs the department. They blur the line between . . . bargaining and criminal extortion."
The memo describes Local 18, which represents 98 percent of the DWP’s 8,000 workers, as a relentless bully, prone to manipulating the selection and decision-making of top managers and punishing those who resist, while extracting vast concessions for its members, who already earn more than other unionized city workers. It points to pay raises far exceeding the rate of inflation, "outlandish applications of benefits that spring up overnight" and contracting entities funded with public dollars but controlled by the union with no public accountability.
"By choosing union peace at any price, DWP leadership finds itself paying an exorbitant price," writes Chaudhry, formerly in charge of DWP’s largest power unit and now director of customer service. "Anxious to avoid conflict, management finally relinquished the duty — and with it the power — to exert control. With no one minding the store, it may be a matter of time before the union’s extreme bargaining advantage begins to impact the annual [revenue] transfer to the city."
Chaudhry, in the September 16 memo, urges the mayor to amend the City Charter to restore executive positions to civil-service status, institute mandatory annual performance evaluations and take steps to protect the city’s water and power supply against a strike. He claims that former general manager David Wiggs and acting general manager at the time, Henry Martinez, were beholden to Local 18, which had secured appointments for them based on union preference unrelated to performance or ability. "Favorite sons are protected from the consequences of their misdeeds, while rank and file see how well union cronies are treated," Chaudhry writes. "Conscientious managers are despised by the union, and tormented daily with false accusations, ridicule and personal attack. Those who associate with them can expect the same fate. Others soon equate ethical management with relentless retribution that can only be alleviated by vowing allegiance to Local 18." Wiggs and Martinez could not be reached for comment.
Five weeks after receiving the memo, Hahn acknowledged "a change in corporate culture" was needed and tapped former city legislative analyst Ron Deaton to lead the troubled DWP. The mayor’s choice of Deaton, considered the most influential person in City Hall, infuriated D’Arcy, the union boss, who sources say was boasting he could stop it from happening. Now the two are headed for a power struggle. "People are nervous about choosing one side or the other," said one official, who added that D’Arcy is still calling the shots at DWP. Deaton, recently diagnosed with cancer, took a two-week leave of absence but was back at work this week. Neither he nor D’Arcy returned calls for comment. But sources say Deaton, who has declined to meet privately with D’Arcy, as previous DWP managers had every Monday at Taylor’s Steak House, is troubled by D’Arcy’s rise over the last 10 years. It is during that period that the utility has had persistent labor-relation problems, including lawsuits alleging retaliation and intimidation by managers favorable to Local 18, and an erosion of management’s ability to say no to the volatile labor boss.
An example of unchecked bargaining power, Chaudhry writes, is the three-year, retroactive pay raise for Local 18, calling for 5 percent, 4 percent and 4 percent annual increases, despite the lowest inflation rate in 15 years. Retention bonuses offered to skilled line workers during the 1998 Staff Reduction Program were later given to unskilled workers, who received 14 percent raises in their first year. After citing a 60 percent increase in the price of tools, Local 18 received a 300 percent increase in tool allowance, Chaudhry writes. Allowed to handpick management members of the Joint Resolution Board, which approves contracts under the joint labor-management process, Local 18 struck a deal with Martinez, acting alone, to exclude managers in charge of the most labor-intensive units, which typically have the most complaints. Finally, he urges Hahn to demonstrate moral leadership worthy of a second term, and to disabuse Local 18 of the notion that it can exploit the bargaining process at the public’s expense.
Hahn would not comment, but his chief of staff, Tim McKosker, tried to downplay the memo: "This complaint seems to be about some objection to the rights of working men and women to organize and bargain at arm’s length for better wages and benefits." In response to questions about the memo’s allegations that go beyond customary union bargaining tactics, McKosker said, "We support the rights of working men and women to organize and bargain at arm’s length for better wages and benefits."
The Fleishman-Hillard scandal and a criminal probe into pay-to-play at City Hall have bogged down the Hahn campaign. Amid that turmoil the DWP’s proposed 18 percent rate hike has endured as a symbol of government waste at ratepayer expense. Spurred by resistance from the city’s neighborhood councils, the City Council approved an 11 percent increase, but the image of a ravenous public utility lingers. In the last three years the DWP has been the subject of several scathing audits by the city controller. DWP supply contracts have been held up in City Council and found to be out of compliance. However, no public official, agency or mayoral candidate has publicly questioned or examined Local 18’s role in running the city’s dysfunctional cash cow, which transferred $239 million to the city’s general fund last year, while demanding a rate hike. And yet, the open secret in City Hall for years has been the intemperate, demanding and dominating presence of Brian D’Arcy. "There’s a mindset that if you mess with Brian, the mayor will come down on you," says one city official. "Once that idea was out here, the mayor’s staff let it grow. It has resulted in arrogance on Brian’s part. Or greed. Maybe he just keeps asking for more because he knows he can get away with it."
Most of Hahn’s challengers had little to say about allegations that Local 18 is out of control. Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa, a longtime ally of D’Arcy’s, and whom Local 18 backed in the 2001 mayor’s race, did not return calls for comment. Nor did Bob Hertzberg. State Senator Richard Alarcón, who has based his campaign on reform of local government, seemed unconcerned. "Doesn’t management always make these kinds of complaints?" he said. Councilman Bernard Parks, who said the memo is evidence of serious problems at the DWP, called for an independent Inspector General to oversee the DWP. He also wants a full audit of all DWP expenditures. Local 18’s manipulation of the DWP "is not the exception, it’s the rule," he said. "Public unions carry such clout only when the mayor gives up some of his power," Parks said.
As an example of gains that could not be justified, Parks and others pointed to a pay hike for dozens of employees after Local 18 took over the DWP’s members of the Engineers and Architects Association. The remaining EAA members who work for other city agencies still don’t have a contract, union sources say. "It was the worst $5 million the city ever spent," said Parks, who voted against the raise along with Councilman Greig Smith. "There was no discussion by the City Council. People in City Hall have allowed union leaders to believe they are in charge of the city."
Higher DWP salaries for comparable workers — justified on the basis that the DWP is a revenue-generating department — has irked city employees for years, according to Julie Butcher, head of Service Employees Union Local 347. Warehouse and tool-room workers at the DWP start out around $40,000, she said, which is where her members top out. Maintenance workers, for example, earn salaries 20 percent higher at DWP than in other city departments. Mechanics earn 19 percent more. "Anything I say sounds like jealousy, but if you take the revenue-generating argument to its logical limit, it says that people who don’t work for an agency that collects money deserve less," she said.
City officials, including Hahn, are no strangers to the issues raised by the Chaudhry memo. Yet it provides the public with its first look at the deep concerns inside the front office of the DWP. Historically the DWP has remained aloof, almost secretive, in managing its internal problems. Last July, an exposé by the Weekly revealed a 10-year pattern of secret settlements in discrimination, harassment and retaliation lawsuits negotiated by the City Attorney’s Office and its outside attorneys, and approved by the DWP Board of Commissioners. Since then DWP workers from security, fleet operations, central purchasing and janitorial services have persistently voiced concerns of abuse and corruption, some appearing before the City Council and the Commerce, Energy and Natural Resources Committee headed by Councilman Tony Cardenas. Council members Cindy Miscikowski, Wendy Greuel and Dennis Zine have introduced a motion to address retaliation and harassment, which is pending.
Cardenas has attempted, with limited success, to resolve irregularities in an exclusive cleaning supply contract that has resulted in retaliation against DWP workers who complained, but which Martinez nevertheless extended, days before Deaton took over. Deaton suspended the exclusive contract with Empire Cleaning Supply, but only after Cardenas challenged the DWP’s integrity in the Commerce Committee. On Tuesday Cardenas acknowledged the looming power struggle between Deaton and D’Arcy: "There are reforms that have to take place from top to bottom and some of those will cause conflict between Ron and Brian. As chairman, I have a responsibility to sort those conflicts out in my committee."
Meantime, workers continue to publicly state their fears that Local 18 will not represent them vigorously when they call attention to mistreatment by "favorite sons" of the union and are then punished by management. Some say their union representative sided with management and testified against them at Civil Service hearings. "People don’t trust Local 18," says a custodian who has been threatened with being fired. "But they’re afraid to go against it."
Local 18 has spent $34,000 on city elections since 1998 but its influence isn’t about the money, a City Hall insider says. With each stage in the DWP’s rocky history, managers have ceded more power to D’Arcy. But sources say his style is wearing thin, both on the DWP Board of Commissioners and in City Hall. He is still favored by Miguel Contreras, president of the County Federation of Labor, however, and therefore elected officials step lightly where D’Arcy is concerned. Sources familiar with him say he believes the DWP can run itself — but Deaton is said to see things differently. Last October, Local 18 negotiated a 5 percent raise for line workers who ended up earning more than their supervisors. After a sickout protest by a group of supervisors, D’Arcy joked, "We hardly knew they were gone." Chaudhry in his memo to Hahn concludes, "If the union believes that it cannot be stopped, it will never stop pushing the envelope to see what more can be ‘mutually gained’ at the city’s, the department’s and the public’s expense."
Last Friday Councilman Parks criticized the writing of the memo itself, declaring it a symptom of the politicization of the DWP. He praised the selection of Deaton, adding that Deaton cannot turn the DWP around by himself. "He needs the support of the mayor and an independent board of commissioners, otherwise it is business as usual with a happy face on it," Parks said. "Deaton is not corrupt. But if he cannot get the job done, he has to come before the mayor or the city council and ask for support. A clear message must be sent about what is appropriate and what is not." As for Local 18’s means of intimidation cited by Chaudhry in his memo, Parks said the general manager cannot compromise the DWP under threat of strike, and that discrediting managers who speak up in the face of departmental excess is a cowardly way to manage. "We’ve been unveiling leaf after leaf under the Hahn administration for the last year and a half," he said.
Local 18 is a dominant force in the day-to-day operations at DWP. D’Arcy’s staff attends virtually every meeting concerning DWP operations, according to sources at the DWP and in City Hall. He controls requests for proposals, which bottleneck at his desk, sources say, and Local 18 controls the joint labor-management process. The result has been a fierce protection of union jobs when major city contracts are at stake, such as the $238 million project to replace the Valley Generating Station, put on hold in 2001 when D’Arcy threatened to take the city to arbitration. Yet D’Arcy insists on contracting out services, such as a $53 million contract for tree trimming, which other city workers could perform, and perform cheaper; and oversees two contracting entities that control millions of public dollars, which meet in private and have received no oversight.
Veteran DWP workers say the joint labor-management agreement, which grants the union immense power, is intended to promote efficiency and protect jobs, but has devolved into an unexamined tool of control for D’Arcy. They point to an agreement in May 2002, signed by the DWP and Local 18, guaranteeing fair pay for civil-service employees who work above their classification. Numerous employees alleged retaliation when they demanded higher wages, however. The joint process also created the Joint Safety Institute, funded by the DWP since 2000 at a rate of $1.3 million per year. In 2002, a $6 million trust was created to fund the Joint Training Institute, which leases space for an operation in Sun Valley that executives at DWP reportedly know little about. A veteran employee who has visited the facility says the JSI consists of "two consultants from out of state who keep offering the same seminar over and over, simply changing the tabs on their binders." JTI, the employee says, has produced no recognizable program of any value. Little is known about the JSI and the JTI because they are exempt from public meeting laws according to an Attorney General opinion. The City Council has never asked for a report on the two institutes, although DWP insiders say there has been no rise or fall in workplace injuries, raising questions about their effectiveness. "Why not meet in public?" asks Butcher, whose members meet openly as part of a citywide Joint Labor Management Benefits Committee. "DWP is a public entity."
Under the joint labor-management process, Local 18 contracted out the construction of a fuel-cell power plant in 2000 for $2.5 million, but employees say it produces just $150,000 per year in savings. "DWP is paying for someone else’s research and development," an employee says. Local 18 also is restructuring health benefits, workers’ compensation and deferred compensation, according to department insiders. It has called for the termination of a 25-year-old Employee Assistance Program, which monitors claims of emotional or psychological stress. Local 18 is heavily influencing the management of DWP’s $6 billion pension, insiders say. "They want it all," says a veteran of the department. Chaudhry writes that a principal tool in D’Arcy’s arsenal is the ever-present threat of strike. "Preying on that fear, union negotiators are able to leverage any demand, however trivial or irresponsible, into a concession."
So potent is the fear of a strike, Chaudhry writes, when executives of the DWP broached the subject of a strike contingency plan the ranking member in attendance remarked that the union "wouldn’t like it" if such a discussion took place. "After that ominous warning the subject was dropped entirely," he writes. The last strike occurred in 1993. At the time it was the first in 20 years. The nine-day strike resulted in a new contract for Local 18 members and a 9 percent salary increase over four years. The strike came on the heels of unsuccessful efforts by Mayor Richard Riordan to transfer funds from the DWP to the city in excess of the usual 5 percent transfer, and to dip into the DWP pension to pay for more police and firefighters. City Councilman Joel Wachs called the strike "shockingly irresponsible." But it galvanized Local 18 for the long haul.
Former Riordan chief of staff Bill McCarley took over as general manager in 1994 and put in place the joint labor-management structure that Chaudhry and others in the department say has run amok. With a dire need to reduce the department’s $7.9 billion debt, McCarley cut 2,000 jobs in 1994, while the DWP hired an international consulting firm, PSC Energy, for $1.1 million per month to transform the culture from "an entitlement mindset" to a customer-service organization. In exchange for its cooperation Local 18 was allowed to participate in future management decisions such as selecting a new general manager. Labor-management teams were established "to examine and improve all aspects of system operations." When McCarley left the department in 1996 D’Arcy praised him and said, "He brought us in as partners."
McCarley’s successor, David Freeman, the former head of the Tennessee Valley Authority, turned joint labor management into an art form, insiders say. He navigated the DWP through a $350 million buyout in 1997 without threat of a strike, again reducing the staff by 2,000 jobs. In exchange he allowed D’Arcy to pick the management members of the Joint Resolution Board, which was supposed to streamline and improve the employee grievance process. A succession of non-civil service managers came on board — several from Southern California Edison, which is heavily represented by a different IBEW local.
Freeman launched initiatives under the banner of Green Power in partnership with Local 18, but they have been discredited. An audit by City Controller Laura Chick concluded that Green Power — marketed heavily by the Hahn administration through the efforts of Fleishman-Hillard — never produced results. In 1998, Freeman projected a power rate decrease of 15 percent by 2003. Instead, by 2004, the DWP proposed raising rates 18 percent. Freeman did not return calls for comment.
In 1999, Freeman brought in a pivotal figure named Raman Raj to take over corporate services, labor relations, human resources, security and equal opportunity. He had directed pension fund management, union relations, compensation and training at the MTA from 1996 to 1999. Raj is a human-resources veteran who began his career at the Southland Corporation, in Dallas. He later worked for Flying Tigers in Los Angeles and Kaiser Permanente. He left the MTA under circumstances the MTA would not disclose.
Raj’s two-year stint at the DWP marked a period of turmoil for the DWP, during which employee allegations of discrimination, harassment and retaliation peaked. He was fired in 2001 after the department was forced to pay $1.3 million to its equal-opportunity manager to settle a claim of harassment and retaliation alleging that Raj and his subordinates were interfering with equal-opportunity investigations on behalf of Local 18. Raj later negotiated a separation agreement after threatening to sue the DWP. In October 2004, days before Deaton was scheduled to take the helm, acting general manager Henry Martinez approved a contract with Cap Gemini and Raj’s company Resources Roundtable as consultants to the DWP-IBEW Oversight Committee, to devise strategies for "enhancing the use of resources, eliminating duplication of efforts and supporting an integrated approach to the DWP’s implementation of more effective business processes." A source familiar with the inner workings of Local 18 and the DWP says of the contract, "That is typical of managers doing what Brian wants. Henry has never been able to say no to Brian." Raj has not returned a dozen calls for comment. Raj brought political connections to the department, along with Freeman. Raj has been a member of the steering committee of the Saxophone Club of the Democratic National Committee and, sources say, a longtime ally of Antonio Villaraigosa, dating back to the time they both worked at the MTA. Villaraigosa, in past interviews, has denied a close relationship with Raj, who has contributed to Villaraigosa’s campaign.
In his memo to Hahn, Chaudhry refers to Villaraigosa when he writes, "I see no reason for Local 18 to abandon its former commitment to your main adversary." Chaudhry then urges Hahn to curb union domination of DWP’s managers as a means of distinguishing himself from Villaraigosa. "The damage attributable to Local 18 is done," he writes. "Your administration and character have been impugned by association. Those who question character can be silenced by a unilateral demonstration of moral leadership worthy of a second term."
Chaudhry, who is on personal leave and out of the country, puts it on the mayor to solve DWP’s problems: "Only the mayor can demand more of management than routine capitulation to inordinate pressure for unreasonable concessions that do not result in mutual gains."
Check out IBEW News and Views for the latest information about the
750,000 members of the IBEW at
http://ibewnews.blogspot.com/
Anonymous annoints L.A. Times as judge, jury and executioner above.
Is that the same L.A. Times that said ADV has done nothing in two years as city councilman? Same LAT that said ADV is plodding along with "vague generalities?" Same LAT that obviously preferred Hertzberg in its endorsement per-primary? Same LAT that sold it's editorial soul to the city and Riordan to make money and extra $1 million on the Staples Center opening? Same L.A. Times whose editorial board is run by East Coast liberals so out-of-touch with this city they might as well publish from Boston?
That one, or is it some "other" L.A. Times that's qualified to determine if a local official is corrupt?
(Think twice before you answer -- there are a lot more Times examples that could be used to embarrass little Tony, from here till doomsday -- which is the same day he'll be sworn in as mayor).
Quote on AV flip flop: Villaraigosa dismissed the charge, saying he respects Parks "profoundly."
"I think his message of fiscal prudence, his message of balancing interests, his message of integrity and accountability in government are messages that resonate everywhere," he said.
Ok I'm sur I'm not the only one who almost fell off my chair when I read this. Fiscal????/ Parks just made the city pay $70 million in lawsuits because of Rampart. Wonder how many officers that would have bought? Integrity and accountability????? Again, I can hardly wait until Connie Rice reports on the Blue Ribbon Panel investigation they did on Rampart and Parks involvement. This city will spin its heads when they read that Parks knew long before it actually broke in the media. Parks daughter was caught with Raphael Perez in Vegas and she had cocaine in her possession. I believe she was arrested. Yeah, just like daddy a crook.
The great question is, which Antonio will show up (to receive the endorsement) -- the one who called for him to be fired, or the one who called on him to be rehired? (on Parks endorsement)
annon 9:46 11:37 11:43 12:06
Right on!!! Why is there no list of Eastside suporters ,only the El Sereno clicka gay bashers.
I CAN HARLDY WAIT FOR THESE COMMERCIALS. DOES ANYONE REALLY THINK PEOPLE WILL VOTE FOR ANTONIO BEING ALIGNED TO ANOTHER CROOK LIKE PARKS WHO DESTROYED THE LAPD?? Sure the Valley and Westsiders love Parks. NOT!
Hahn has only to play the back-to-back endorsements from the two men inevitably responsible for the Rampart scandal, the consent decree, and the payout of $70 million in city funds in lawsuits to primarily minority police abuse claimants as an endorsement for Villaraigosa from the tarnished, poorly managed administration (and expecially its police department), that he replaced.
That will be the spin, and it will begin to energize some 65+ percent that have been so far disinterested. Law and order is a prime concern when it comes to bringing people to the polls. When poorly handled law and order issues bite the voter in the wallet, it becomes a double-whammy. Go Public Safety...Something the former gangbanger Antonio knows nothing about.
I liked that last message better when I posted it on a different blog. . . oh well, same "team" I guess?
"And you don't have to be a deist to quote scripture. " (Athena)
Thank you, Athena, for confirming your (previous) arrogant, racist, blogger identity... that is EXACTLY word for word the defense you used against someone else chiding you for quoting scripture to support Villaraigosa some weeks back (under a different fake ID). Next time, be a little more creative after you storm off and say, "I'll never return" especially in your responses -- then maybe you won't get caught "sneaking back in" to the dogpile, Harriman. (Are you still married to one of ADV's main campaign consultants, or was that who you were trying to "protect" by disappearing in a huff, I forget.
OOPS, time to harrumph off again...
P.S. First "handwriting on the walls, then keys to the henhouse...?" Always a new spin, but never an honest retraction when shown to be wrong. That's the ADV way -- just keep bobbing and weaving, and hope no one notices that it also means your always off balance -- especially when it comes to the truth.
Correct Parks(dog park) destroyed the LAPD, the best thing that ever happened to LA was Chief Bratton. Well now with the endorsement of (dog park) Parks maybe the LA TIMES will do a story on the endorsment, the 80 Negh. watches and the positions of Antiono and (dog park) Parks on the LAPD 3-12 flexible work plan.That would be a disscussion that would benifit the city.Is there the interigity on the part of these two men?
Jessica Garrison needs to watch CNN Sun at 8:00 program.Also shown on Sat April;16.
A SPECIAL HOLLENBECK HOMICIDE!!!
that is the honest name of the program. So much for civic pride.
AV has put the district on the map with the gang banging killings.
It was the councilman who wanted to make it show-biz by attending every killing. Now the whole city is learning of the CD14th in crisis.
HOLLENBECK HOMICIDE nothin to be proud of, but what the district has to live with. They say AV runs the DEPT DIV now not the CAPT. if you look at the district and what is in your face that is obviously true.
Jessica could do that story.
Bout time EVERYbody realized that 99 percent of the time these endorsements have nothing to do with who thinks which candidate is going to win, or whether they share philosophies, expecially in a race that started out with 5 liberal democrats with barely a whisper of difference in their stands and philosophies. But they're ALL about who's pissed at who(m), who's beaten who(m) before and wants revenge, who's ego is hurt the most. It's grade school, gang-banging politics -- "he hit me first..."
1 in every 100 pols reasons these things out politically; the rest just try to settle scores, and then let their spinning flaks tune us up with stories that they really BELIEVE "candidate A is better than B for XYZ reasons" (none of which ever entered the picture during the decision process).
I agree with the poster who said all it will take is to remind people how Parks destroyed the LAPD and didn't care about his officers. The city loves Bratton and we can give credit to Hahn for that one. Word is Antonio wants to select George Gascon the biggest idiot on the department now the 1st Latino Chief. That loser capt. at HOllenbeck is an AV supporter and licks his butt any chance he gets. Word is though he's been called on the carpet for it. Get rid of his ass. Here's the info:
CNN Presents Reports on Domestic Terrorism in ‘Homicide In Hollenbeck’
Anderson Cooper Highlights America’s Growing Gang Problem in Documentary to Air Sunday, April 10
Thank you Harriman, you can harrumph off again now. . .
Here's some Bible for you and ADV, Harriman... "be sure, your sins will find you out..."
Oh, but that's called "vicious attacks" when Antonio's sins "find him out." And that's what his campaign people rely on to bleed millions more (up to $8 million now, in 5 years, for 3 city races?), out of his feckless supporters. Every few days it's a new "Parke E-ppeal" -- "SEND MORE MONEY, we "know" Hahn's going to "attack" again, any day now, we can't afford to lose momentum.
If this guy can't get 51 percent -- spending nearly $2 million a year, on average, every year since he tried to go citywide the first time -- then he REALLY better hang up his political spin beanie for good, and take his worn out hacks with him.
Just how bad and damaged a candidate do you have to BE to require that kind of constant investment, and still be in a statistical dead heat with your own primary performance, 4 years ago. WOW, someone call Ripley's.
Harriman, your "opposing viewpoints" are always welcome... they're among the VERY easiest to debunk, (sleazy) bar-none.
Spin away. . . each lousy response opens up new weaknesses in the seemingly never-ending argument, "how does one of the LOUSIEST, most inattentive councilmembers in recent history (winner of the "dumbest CM poll on the former Mayor Sam's/now-Chief Parker Sister city blog by a 3X margin), have the CHHHHutzpah to say I 'deserve' a promotion????
Annon 7:23 Here too in city hall gossip was that Hanh got some supporters from CD 14 over the weekend.Is it true ? If it is what happened. Some one said he was poitive about it.
Read better, Athena/Harriman, practice what you preach...
H-O-M-I-C-I-D-E-S, specifically.
I saw the Villaraigosa mailer back then, too (I think he used it several times). Had the whole prior year on it -- specifically targeted HOMICIDES... don't hide behind bigger categories (that'
is SO Harriman, tried to pretend once that Holden's district was ALL Black, got caught there, too). HA!
Violent crimes as a whole, DOWN! (Bratton, NOT ADV).
Homicides, UP! (You think CNN is doing a special because they're going DOWN????)
ALSO, please explain what ADV has done regarding any of this? Started invisible, non-existent neighborhood watches? Are the gangbangers running in fear because they hear there are 80 neighborhood watches now that NO ONE CAN SEE (and they might get caught that way)!
Double HA!!
Athena why don't you throw those stupid figures to the residents in Boyle Heights who have had almost 1 homicide a week since the begining of the year. 15 HOMICIDES IDIOT and Antonio hasn't done or said jack shit about him is a major problem. The gossip in city hall today is absolutely true.
If ADV's master plan to decrease homicides in CD14 two years ago was 80 neighborhood watches, why didn't he just say so?
If it wasn't, when does he start work on that "master plan" he promised that would improve the area.
More "hidden" stats within stats there. CD14 is not ALL of Hollenbeck or Northeast and vice-versa. Burying bad stats in larger, better one's is SO... corrupt?
ANON at 5:45, the answer there is simple. For the lovestruck ADV groupies, statistics are now about people's suffering, or fear, or solving any of that.
Statistics are ONLY for getting ADV elected to the next position. People be damned!
Hanh supporters in CD 14. Please. I doubt it.
MEAT
"...it's Antonio's fault."
EXACTLY, you're catching on, FINALLY... because HE SAID HE WOULD FIX THIS!
He mailed maps out and said "THIS WON"T HAPPEN ANY MORE IF YOU ELECT ME!"
(While he was telling people face-to-face, "I WON'T RUN FOR MAYOR IN TWO YEARS")
He bounced the last guy out saying HIGH HOMICIDE NUMBERS ARE HIS FAULT.
What part of this endless train of lies and broken promises is it that keeps going over your head?
NOW, the same man who said "HOMICIDES WILL GO DOWN" back in 2003 is TODAY, saying "CORRUPTION WILL GO DOWN" in 2005... IF YOU ELECT ME MAYOR.
It don't get anymore plain!
Promise anything, but keep those campaign funds banked for the next job, as soon as they discover YOU ALWAYS LIE!!!!
Athena, you and the today 10:16 incredible posting by Mustang,Commissioner Gynthia Ruiz show that you will do and say anything to protect Antiono V.
Awesome clip of Hahn on KFWB denying that he asked Parks for his endorsement and then admitting it in the next sentence.
ADV is indeed overemphasizing endorsements, because in a high-profile race like this they don't really matter. One exception is Hertzberg, and he will never endorse ADV nor Hahn.
Well, all that's very easy to explain... Antonio Villaraigosa is a pathological liar who can't be trusted to do what he says.
Someone prove me wrong.
End of story!
the homicides have been in Boyle Heights. Yes, NOrtheast has their share but not nearly as many as BH. Antonio promised when he ran for council that "public safety" is his #1 issue. Yet, he's failed to say or do anything. He's never in the district.Even his moron field staffers didn't know the exact number. Residents have had to tell those idiots when another homicide would occur. If it's not about Antonio he doesn't care about it. The officers have had it with him and his staff. They said they have never worked with such disrespectful, rude people in all the years they've been in the community.
Ricardo Torres and Nick Pacheco were right.
They had the courage to stand up to ADV, and they suffered the consequences.
It's not fair that Ricardo and Nick are struggling, professionally and personally, shunned by the public, and continue to be under a cloud of accusations of corruption.
They both should be given the opportunity to come clean.
It was DWP's fault that customers got burned, not Ricardo's. Perhaps he promised too much, but give the guy a break, he was taking on a giant.
And Nick doesn't deserve all the blame for mixing non-profit and political money -- that's Martin GutieRuiz' fault.
Well, did Bratton (and Hahn), promise to decrease violent crime? Yes.
Has it gone down? Yes.
Did Villaraigosa promise to decrease homicides in CD14 when he ran in 2003? Yes.
Have they decreased?
Have they?
Decreased?
(Can anyone post any promise he made two years ago that's even HALF-delivered in the first two years of his term on council?).
OH yeah, just one. He promised to serve a full term and he HALF-delivered!
Maybe he'll cut city hall "corruption" in HALF before he skips out on the check, this time?
HA!
Anonymous 6:31pm, get a life.
You can't blame Martin. He and Mothers of East L.A. were totally taken advantage of by Pacheco. Pacheco even had the nerve to squeeze MELASI for campaign money -- after he gave them discretionary funds from his COuncil account. He single-handedly almost ruined the reputation of a fine organization, and brought so much negative publicity to them.
Someone needs to nominate ADV for Deadbeat Councilmember of the Year! If separated fathers got as delinquent on their child support as he is on his district-support, they'd have assets seized.
That's funny (in a tragic sort of way), Sac. "Help is RUNNING away."
Baloney! Baloney!
Why is it that reporters never write about ADV's dirty campaign tactics, yet they single out Hahn and Pacheco?
Hahn and Pacheco play by the rules. They get blamed for the mistakes made by others around them.
How can Hahn possibly be blamed for accepting free advice from Fleishman, for example? He didn't know they were overbilling the city. How can Hahn be blamed for no-bid contracts? His commissioners are responsible, and Hahn probably didn't even know how much in contributions he received from all the contractors. The only mistake Hahn made was trusting people like Troy Edwards and Ted Stein and Mark Abrams, who took advantage of him. And why should Hahn be held responsible for the O'Donnell laundering, or any of those other idiots who are screwing up Hahn's campaign?
Reminds me of how Pacheco took the fall for the idiots around him, like Ricardo Torres and Martin G. and Mario S-M.
What a friggin' joke. Please. Comparing the integrity of Pacheco to Hahn, you just lost all credibility.
It is not a crime to receive laundered money.
It is not a crime to grant no-bid contract renewals to contributors.
It is not a crime to intervene on behalf of contributors who are getting the runaround at city hall.
It is ridiculous to portray any of this as corruption! Jim Hahn benefited from the actions of others -- he did not have anything to do with those actions.
Jim Hahn is innocent!
If Antonio Villaraigosa is NOT responsible for current higher homicide rates in CD14 (and I don't believe he is), then Pacheco was not responsible for them two years ago when ADV's mass mailings blamed him for them -- and Villarigosa owes him an apology, at LEAST, for using that lie for political gain.
Since that will happen just as soon as pigs fly AND go on Jenny Craig, then we'll just have to keep saying the increase in homicides in CD14 IS really ADV's fault.
Tin-horn demagogues like ADV really HATE it when you use their own words and logic against them when they fail. . .
What substance is being smoked here?
Yes, if there is one bad apple, it can be passed off as an aberation. But Hahn has Wong, Edwards, Stein, Dowie, Acevedo, Hammond, Abrams, Pierce O'Donnell and heaven knows how many more that are yet to be uncovered.
When he is told waht is happening and has the opportunity to step in and put an end it o it, his standard response is "I don't know anything about that, but I'll look into it>"
He never does, because to know would rob him of plausable deniability.
Who wants a CS Mayor like this? Do you really hate Antonio so much that you'd endure another four years of this charade?
How dumb can you get?
Anderson Cooper, are you kidding?
Watch Imus in the Morning; every time Anderson Cooper's name is mentioned, Bernard says "Anderson Cooper likes it in the pooper".
I can no longer watch Anderson Cooper.
*******FLASH FLASH FLASH*****
Jane Fonda to endorse Hahn.
Today, on the steps of the Vietnam memorial, Jane said: "I am proud to join these other large luminaries, Janice Hahn, Hal Bernson, Nate Holden, and Bert Boeckmann in supporting our outstanding Mayor (What's his name?) to serve another stellar four years in San Pedro".
"I said it was poor judgment turning in that POW for giving me his serial number, so get over it" she added as she was booed off the stage.
Later she added "Buy my new book".
Mayor Hahn could not be found for comment.
Let's get back to the real issues. Antonio on Public Safety, ZERO. Traffic, ZERO. Schools ZERO even though he has one of the most overcrowded high schools in the city. And the list goes on.
To paraphrase a previous ANON:
"Yes, if there is one bad apple (ADV), it can be passed off as an aberation. But ADV has his ENTIRE council staff, his ENTIRE field staff... not one SHARED clue, among the whole lot.
This isn't about "hate" this is about stopping epidemic incompetence before it's all the way to the top.
Hahn has made many good appointments and hires. ADV has NONE (zero, zilch, nada....!)
STOP HIM BEFORE HE HIRES AGAIN!!!!
If Hahn is a "CS mayor" this administration's "S" will smell like expensive perfume compared to what comes with an ADV administration.
The only reason you ain't smelling it out there, is you're not close enough to the action.
We KNOW Villaraigosa's promises are "BS" -- find one he's kept in two years. I dare you!
Antonio is not only MIA in his own district he's not even again sitting in his council seat AGAIN. Other council members have been in attendance but Antonio seems to stay in his office doing campaign work instead of his elected duty to be in council chambers. How can he get away with this?
I'm not going to lie, I'm an Antonio supporter, but I voted for Bob in the primary. What I don't get on this site is nobody is saying anything good about Hahn, there are people that like antonio and people that don't and there are people that don't like hahn. But nobody is coming out and saying why Hahn has done a good job and deserves another four years. It feels very much like Kerry (who I obviously supported) where nobody liked him, but there were those that were so against Bush that they voted for him.
Well, tell us why you are supporting Villaraigosa. Look at his track record for the last two years as CM - he's been a disaster. One lie after another. So, tell me: Why does Villaraigosa deserve to be mayor based on the 2 years he's served on the city council?
Attention all losers slamming Rolando "The Big O " Cuevas please do not blog behind my good name.
I
The Parks endorsement will help Antonio somewhat. I think the African American vote is key in this race. Last time, Antonio fell narrowly 53%-47% with a large black turnout and 81% (or around there) of blacks going for Hahn. Hahn needs those voters back, in fact, he really needs them more this time. With prominent African American endorsers like Burke, Waters, Parks, Martin Ludlow, and Karen Bass, all supporting Tony Villaraigosa this time, it's gonna be much harder to bring in those votes this time. I also don't think Antonio is losing that much latino support, despite the pleadings from the bloggers here.
Also I'm not sure Hertzberg will endorse Villaraigosa. If Villaraigosa did really make a pass at him, I can see why Cynthia Telles wouldn't like him and would try and stop an endorsement. However, Villaraigosa is going to get a majority if not most of the Hertzberg votes. Those votes were not valley white Republican votes (those went mostly to Hahn in the primary), Hertzberg got liberals, Jews, westsiders, intellectuals, gays and lesbians. Traditional liberal Democrats really liked him. Those people that I know who supported and voted for Hertzberg are going to vote for Villaraigosa. He was their #2 pick. None of them like Hahn.
Now that doesn't mean Hahn can't win reelection, he is an incumbent after all and people are still a bit unsure about Villaraigosa. However, in order for Hahn to be reelected, he's going to need the full support of the African American community.
anon 9:14, well said. As someone who organized people for Kerry, I totally see what you're saying. It seemed to me that there were a ton of people just voting against Bush because they didn't like him and few people who actually liked Kerry. Hell I didn't like Kerry either. I knew from the minute I first saw him in person, that he couldn't beat Bush. Of course I am no one to talk. I supported Howard Dean who would have been beaten by Bush by a lot more. Sad fact. Go Villaraigosa.
Bob Hertzberg as a write-in candidate anybody?
Here is "Antonio Villaraigosa's ten-point plan to reduce violence" in CD 14 from 2003 and now CNN is doing a Special on Violence in CD 14. What's wrong with this picture?
Antonio Villaraigosa's ten-point plan to reduce violence
1. Interagency cooperation.
2. Expand police presence in parks.
3. Work with schools.
4. Early intervention.
5. Target graffiti.
6. Hire more police officers.
7. Expand real community-based policing.
8. Protect witnesses.
9. Train officers to prevent conflict.
10. Tougher gun laws.
These two promises were included in the mailer.
Villaraigosa will work on creating an after school program for every middle school in the 14th Council District.
Villaraigosa will work to coordinate with our schools and libraries to provide alternatives to our children.
Has anyone seen any of this in the last two years?? Any motions in council to advance this plan? Any after school programs created by Villaraigosa in the middle schools?
Talk about "missing in action". He should be ashamed of how CNN is coming into the 14th Council District to expose his failure on crime.
Jim Hahn deserves another four years as mayor because he isn't Attention Deficit Villaraigosa.
Period!
Been saying it for quite awhile now, and no one seems to catch on, or prove otherwise (although I've been insulted several times for saying it), but sometimes the truth hurts.
Antonio Villaraigosa is a pathological liar who can't be trusted to do anything he says he'll do. Someone prove me wrong.
End of story!
All Hahn has to do is put out there what the media isn't reporting on Antonio's MIA. Antonio's has no accomplishments in the last 2 yrs let alone done anything the last 7 months. Put out there that he has a police record, a former ACLU who supports gangs and finally put out there how Parks almost destroyed the LAPD, just lost city $70 million in lawsuits, LAPD lost over 1,000 officers and this is who Antonio is hugging. Blacks will never vote for a Latino mayor. Mark my words. My friends in the South are already saying no matter what they will not allow a Mexican to become mayor in this city.
OK, I get it, vatos. No black endorsement means anything; not Maxine, not Yvonne, not Herb and not Bernard.
So, let me pose a hypothetical question (grab your dictionary):
Would Magic Johnson's endorsement mean anything? To Jimmy or Antonio?
Since our host has quit scoring (due to the lopsided nature of the score), we don't know how many points he'd award for Earvin's endorsement, but I'd guess at least two.
Hahn can't manage a burger king let alone the city, he has cut street paving by 90% don't belive the hype he took fake numbers he included slurry which is not resurfacing and called it new streets, I have a pothol in front of my house I have called the city OVER 50 times over 4 years and guess what it ain't fixed! hahn has taken money from nearly everyone who has a city contract; let's not forget how he turned the valley away.
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