Mayor Sam's Hotsheet for Monday

So who does the exit of Antonio Villaraigosa from the Governor's race help? The San Francisco Chronicle says it will be their own Mayor Gavin Newsom however the dean of California's political writers Dan Walters says advantage Jerry Brown.  The correct answer is Jerry Brown.  Newsom has a lot of problems with some of the key voters in the primary such as conservative Democrats in the Central Valley, older Latinos and Blacks, all of whom are more likely to vote than Newsom's base of young people and liberal leaning gays.  Also take note that a Northern Californian has not been elected Governor since the last time Brown was Governor nearly 30 years ago.  And as it it is, though Brown lives in Oakland and is by birth a Northern Californian he spent many years in LA, served for a while as a local elected official in LA and still has a network here so for all intensive purposes Brown is the So-Cal candidate.  Caveat: If Senator Dianne Feinstein gets into the race all bets are off.

Hoping to improve its relations with local Muslims the LAPD has named its first Islamic chaplain.  Sheik Qazi Asad, a Pakistani national, has done work for the LA County Sheriff's Department and the Department of Homeland Security. Asad told the LA Times, "We need to establish very good communication . . . where both parties are talking to each other. This is just opening up the door."

With the City of Los Angeles in a serious financial situation members of the City Council are leading efforts to allow the City to have the option to declare bankruptcy.  Members led by Councilmen Dennis Zine and Bernard Parks are opposing legislation currently being considered by the State Legislature to restrict California's cities from going bankrupt.  Democratic Assemblyman Tony Mendoza of Artesia introduced AB 155 in January that puts review provisions and conditions on cities before they can file for bankruptcy protection.

The one upside to Paul Koretz taking office next Wednesday is Jack Weiss will be long gone. However the Daily News is kvetching that despite that the City Council will still be populated by most of the same jokers who've been there for some time.  That's despite the fact the that former green sheet of record actually endorsed all these clowns and didn't support candidates who could have made the difference they're seeking.