Los Angeles Politics Hotsheet for Thursday

Can I get a refund?

-With the overwhelming defeat of Proposition 23, the Koch Brothers/Texas Oil attempt to halt implementation of AB32; environmentalists, venture capitalists, and conservation groups are now feeling empowered;

"It (the defeat of Prop 23) is the largest public referendum in history on climate and clean energy policy," said Fred Krupp, president of the New York-based Environmental Defense Fund. "There has never been anything this big. It is going to send a signal to other parts of the country and beyond."
  
-Harry Reid, who narrowly defeated Tea Party/Screw Loose candidate Sharon Angle, says that "Nevadans chose hope over fear". Sharon Angle, along with Colorado gubernatorial hopeful Tom Tancredo, had run campaigns heavy on the anti-illegal immigration rhetoric. All three lost in Tuesday's election. 
By contrast, Arizona's Governor Jan Brewer easily won re-election by making the state's controversial (and currently suspended) SB1070 immigration law the cornerstone of her campaign.


-In related news, Republicans, who now control the House, took the opportunity today to offer an olive branch to Democrats and pledged a spirit of compromise and new cooperation by promising to overturn Obamacare. They also vowed to defund any programs that Obama protects by vetoing their actions. Senator Mitch McConnell went the extra mile and assured the conservative Heritage Foundation that this was all an effort to deny Obama another term in 2012. McConnell also said that Democrats would pay the price if they don't cooperate with the new Republican agenda. Compromise is a beautiful thing, isn't it?

-UCLA's world arts and cultures dept, will be transforming LA City Hall into a dance performance space this Saturday and again on Nov 13. The show, called "Governing Bodies" will feature dancers costumed as government workers who will explore and utilize various area of City Hall;

"The performance will take the audience through all parts of the historic building, beginning at the rotunda, passing through long hallways into the City Council Chambers, which includes a half circle of chairs and pews, and eventually arriving outside on the courtly Spring Street steps."
Full details at The Daily Bruin.

And finally, did you know that President Obama saved capitalism but it cost him the mid term elections? Now you do.

Obama Denied Teleprompter at Debate

The Commission on Presidential Debates won't allow Barack Obama to use a teleprompter at Friday's first of three debates. That's too bad for the Democratic candidate as he as often struggled through debates whether it was with Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden during the primary or with himself at Saddleback Church.

"Yes, Obama can turn a phrase better and do more with a Teleprompter than any other modern era politician. But does his special skill set here actually mean anything, or is it instead the political equivalent of a dog walking on its hind legs--unusual and riveting, but not especially significant?"
Dean Barnett
The Weekly Standard

By the way, despite John McCain's suggestion that the debates be postponed until Congressional leaders get an agreement on the bail-out before we all wind up on the corner selling apples, short of a total break down, the debate will go forward with both both McCain and Obama. During McCain's meeting at the White House today, the Bushies, the Congressional Dummycrats and Repugs will come to Jesus mighty quick and agree on a good plan. Obama will look like a deer in the headlights, surrounded by annoying Democrats like Pelosi and Reid who won't be able to help him. Advantage: Johnnie Mac.

And finally for the ludicrous suggestion that neither McCain nor Palin want to debate here are two points for you. First, it was McCain not Obama who proposed a weekly series of multiple debates that Obama shot down. Secondly, don't worry about Sarah Palin debating Joe Biden. She should have no trouble going against a guy who asks people in wheelchairs to stand up like he's a faith healer, thinks that President Roosevelt went on television in 1929 and that Barack's commercials are terrible.

Reid to McCain: Don't Come Back to Capitol!

ABC NEWS September 24 2008, 5:14 PM

A Democrat tells ABC News that, in a phone call late this afternoon, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., told Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., that it would NOT be helpful for him to come back to Washington, D.C., to work on the Wall Street bailout bill.

McCain this afternoon suspended his campaign and said he would skip the first presidential debate in order to return to Capitol Hill to work on the log-jammed Bush administration legislation, which, as of Wednesday afternoon, was in peril.

McCain had phoned Reid to ask about the prospects of him, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and others to sit down and work together on hammering out a bipartisan proposal.

"Sorry," Reid said to him, a Democrat close to Reid says.

Reid then read McCain the statement he had just put out: "This is a critical time for our country," says the Reid statement. "While I appreciate that both candidates have signaled their willingness to help, Congress and the administration have a process in place to reach a solution to this unprecedented financial crisis. I understand that the candidates are putting together a joint statement at Sen. Obama’s suggestion. But it would not be helpful at this time to have them come back during these negotiations and risk injecting presidential politics into this process or distract important talks about the future of our nation’s economy. If that changes, we will call upon them. We need leadership; not a campaign photo op. If there were ever a time for both candidates to hold a debate before the American people about this serious challenge, it is now.”

A source close to Reid said McCain didn't have much to say after that. Reid, the source says, thinks McCain's maneuver is a gimmick born from bad poll numbers and the fact that "debate prep must not be going very well."

- jpt

Why We Think Harry Reid Is Constipated

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) is having a lot of problems this week during the Republican National Convention.

First off, through an aide, Reid said he was "very disappointed" with Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman's speech at the Convention Tuesday night.  So much so, Reid, asseuming he's still the Majority Leader next January and Lieberman doesn't become Secretary of State for John McCain he's planning to punish Lieberman and take away his Chairmanship of a key Senate committee.

In the meantime, proving beyond the shadow of a doubt that Reid is indeed facing constipation this week, in describing the RNC speech by Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin, the Senate Majority Leader used the word "shrill."

We all know that use of the word shrill is a sexist double standard applied against strong women.  This happened to Hillary during the primary campaign.  However Democrats are the masters of the double standards where Joe Biden can make racist remarks about Indian -Americans and liberal commentators can apply stereotypes to African-American Republicans such as Condoleeza Rice.

Reporting from the NALEO Conference in DC

Reporting in from NALEO's 25th Annual Conference here in Washington, DC. Members of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund represent all political parties, all levels of government, and diverse constituencies – from metropolitan cities to rural communities.

The room was more than packed for the National Leadership Luncheon and there were many standing on the sides and in the back of the room. New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez was the first one I heard and he had a few observations and asides:

• The first Latino to fall in the Iraq War was an undocumented immigrant.
• 17 million Latinos are eligible to vote in the 2008 general election.
• Latinos face the highest rate of unemployment of any group in America.
• 45 million are without health insurance--which includes many Latino families.
• America needs to move forward on "Comprehensive Immigration Reform."
• There are more tortillas and salsa sold in America than white bread and ketchup.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid (D-Nevada), spoke about the importance of family with the Hispanic community and his personal and professional relationship with NALEO founder and the first Latino elected to the Los Angeles City Council, the late Ed Roybal. Reid, a subdued but deliberate speaker, received his biggest applause line when he called the Iraq War the "worst foreign policy blunder in the history of our country."

One of the real standout NALEO stars is Assistant to the Speaker of the House, Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Los Angeles) who touched upon several issues--some light- and some heavy-hearted:

• Spoke about Speaker Pelosi's leadership in passing the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (which deals with Medicare reimbursement cuts to physicians set to take affect on Monday and makes assistance available to the most vulnerable members of society [i.e. seniors] who need medical care but cannot afford it.


• Shared a Texas maxim on speechifying: "A speech is like a Texas Longhorn: a point here and a point there--with a lot of bull in between."

U.S. Speaker of the House, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), suffered from laryngitis but gave a raspy but heartfelt speech on her connection to Ed Roybal and how "Latino voters will decide who will be the next President of the United States of America." Like Reid, she spoke emphatically about electing Obama to the White House and the need to end the war in Iraq and "bring the troops home." Speaker Pelosi also spoke about legislation--authored by Rep. Becerra--and signed into law by President Bush last month that will study the potential creation of a "National Museum of the American Latino."

NALEO and Bronx Borough President, Adolfo Carrión, gave a rousing introduction of former First Lady and presidential aspirant, New York Senator Hillary Clinton, who closed the luncheon with thoughtful and gracious remarks. Amidst calls of "We love you, Hillary!" and the longest standing applause for any of the speakers, Clinton gave a passionate call to Democratic action and the need for change in Washington. Waxing nostalgic on her recent run for office and standing up for "all who felt invisible in our country," she gave a special shout out to her supporters in the Puerto Rican primary ("a 600 car caravan with extraordinary energy and pulsating music that traveled for 7 hours throughout the island").

Senator Clinton also spoke in glowing terms of her event with Senator Obama tomorrow in Unity, New Hampshire: "We will be making the case for a Democratic victory in November. I know that this was a hard fought primary campaign and I am very grateful for the passion and determination of everyone that supported me. Thank you. [APPLAUSE] But every issue you care about personally, every issue your constituents care about, every issue that NALEO is fighting for, is really at risk. We cannot afford four more years of the same. It won't be good for any of us. And therefore we have to be determined to chart a new course and we cannot do that without electing Senator Obama our president. So that is what I'm going to be working for; that is what I'm going to be fighting for."

More to report as things unfold; Senators Obama and McCain will be speaking on Saturday.