Morning Briefs on the Los Angeles Political Machine for Wednesday

Its Official!! Congresswoman Janice "Babs" Hahn is running for Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, seeking to follow in her legendary Father's footsteps.

We wonder what uber-Hahn booster Noel Weiss, thinks of "Daughter of Kenny's" next political endeavor? 

Could the political entity known for its "Five Kingmakers" become majority "Queen" in 2016?

That is a strong possibility as Congresswoman Janice Hahn announced this A.M. that she will forgo reelection to her Congressional Seat to hopefully replace termed-out Supervisor Don Knabe on the five member Board.

The Liberal Congresswoman and former CD 15 City Councilwoman will have a obvious name recognition advantage but her distinctly, left of center record may cause some consternation in the moderate-leaning district.
AFTERNOON UPDATE: Hahn endorses State Senator Isadore Hall for her Congressional Seat. Republican Mike Gin, former Mayor of Redondo Beach joins the list to replace Knabe on the Board of Supervisors.

** The sun rose on the Hollywood Hills this morning to reveal another man-made deluge of water via a 1920s-installed cast iron pipe, which submerged a pair of cars and renewed, again the debate over the need to overhaul a failing water system infrastructure.

** Staying on the DWP topic, DWP Watchdog Jack Humphreville opines whether it was a good think that IBEW/DWP Strongman Brian "D'Arcy Rizzo" stop cooperating with an agreed-upon Audit on the Joint Safety and Job Training Non Profits considering ........., This will allow Ratepayers to ask even more questions about the terms of the settlement agreement and why it does not extend back to 2000 when the Joint Safety Institute received its initial funding of $1.2 million.  And why the unusual terms which prohibit the Controller and CAO from making and preserving copies of appropriate documents?

** Meanwhile, Village to Village Blogger Paul Hatfield muses on the predictability of the breakdown in the agreed upon Audit and cites possible actions that can be taken lieu of a City Council acting decisively in requesting accountability ......, whoops, pardon the blogging day dream.

** Memo to City, County, State and Federal Officials seeking a resolution to the labor turmoil at the Port of LA and Long Beach. Please explain how a small union with members making up to $42 per hour, with FREE Medical Insurance, is going to garner popular support for its latest grievances? Plus, lets not forget looming south of us is a widen Panama Canal, opening soon.

** THIS IS ANOTHER FUENTES/MARTINEZ/CARDENAS/PADILLA/BOCANEGRA MACHINE CHARACTER ASSASSINATION MISSIVE WARNING!!

Northeast San Fernando Valley Democrat Machine Bloggin Tool Rosemary Jenkins, has keyboard another "Wanton Missive of Distortion" (WMD) against a perceived enemy of the NESFV Democratic Machine. This time, with the CD 6 City Council Elections less than two weeks away, "The Bloggin Tool" goes caustic and personal on the latest Grass Roots Challenger to the supposed Ruling Class, Cindy Montanez.

Your thoughts ..............

Scott Johnson in CD 14 



Los Angeles Politics Hotsheet for Friday

Blog away dum dums.

The LA City Council is going to ask for a tax that even a NIMBY could love but it doesn't mean it should be passed. The Clowncil has voted to place a measure on the November ballot that would tax billboards and supergraphics. Though the city is pleading poverty Mark Reddick, President of the Del Rey Neighborhood Council, makes a good point - “We don’t have a revenue problem in the city; we have a spending problem.” Reddick is absolutely right and at some point most of the rest of you will get it.

Clowncilman Greig Smith voted against LA's goofy boycott of Arizona but was wishy washy when asked why.  Not so with County Supervisors Mike Antonovich and Don Knabe who oppose a similar LA County boycott of Arizona.  Antonovich did not mince words calling the boycott "Stupid."  Perhaps Antonovich and Knabe are concerned about the economic impact of a boycott of LA and it's tourist attractions; San Diego lost several million dollars in hotel bookings from Arizona residents when that city only passed a condemnation of Arizona and not quite a boycott. With Arizonans gearing up for a counter-boycott of Los Angeles and other cities those considering sticking their nose into Arizona's business (especially when California already has an identical law on the books to Arizona's) might think twice.

Bloated mush-mouth Clowncilman Paul Koretz compared Arizona's anti-illegal immigration laws to Nazi Germany and caught a lot of heat for it.  But here's something about Nazi Germany Koretz may want to remember as he is cheerleading banning the carrying of unconcealed weapons in public.  It was in Nazi Germany that Hitler required all citizens to register their guns and banned Jews from owning weapons, just before they were loaded on boxcars and hauled to the ovens.  Koretz should think twice and consider that the second amendment is there for a reason.

The former Marine Corps Air Station at El Toro is being turned into a "Great Park" a enormous public space that will create a park twice the size of New York's Central Park.  Now efforts are underway to turn part of the park into a massive urban farm.  Maybe that's a good idea for the Grand Avenue Park in Downtown LA, given how many hungry people we have in LA.  It would be funny to see Eli Broad in overalls don't you think?

This may be bad news for the Republican and Democratic parties: Californians are fleeing both parties in record numbers  20% of voters in the Golden State have registered as decline to state.

If your home is in a hillside area its time to soon to clear the brush around your property.  The LAFD News and Information Blog has great information including how to hire a professional to clear the brush and how the inspection process works.

Citizens' Alert: You Can Kill the Transit Tax Scam

As reported here Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted against placing a half cent sales tax for Westside transit projects on the November ballot. This sales tax must be rejected because 1) It benefits only one part of the region but would be paid for by everyone in the County, 2) With the economy in dire straits the last thing people will need is a half cent sales tax when especially when the Governor is proposing an additional one cent sales tax, 3) You can't build enough trains to get us out of our traffic mess and 4) Mayor Villaraigosa is behind this.

In order to get this on the ballot, the MTA plans to spend more of your money including suing the County and potentially spending $10 million for an election of their own.

You need to contact the MTA board members and tell them to give it a rest. You do not want your tax money spent on lawsuits and elections in order to collect more taxes from you. Please email and call the following board members and tell them to vote to shelve the tax altogether. Feel free to send this post to your friends and neighbors.

These two board members voted against the tax the first time. Tell them to stand strong and continue to oppose it:

Michael D. Antonovich
Los Angeles County Supervisor
Fifth Supervisorial District
fifthdistrict@lacbos.org
(213) 974-5555

John Fasana
City Council Member, Duarte
fasanaj@accessduarte.com

These two members of the County Board of Supervisors either abstained or were not present for the MTA vote but voted against putting it on the ballot at Tuesday's Supervisors meeting. Call and email them to encourage them to vote against lawsuits and special elections:

Gloria Molina
Los Angeles County Supervisor
First Supervisorial District
(213) 974-4111
molina@bos.lacounty.gov

Don Knabe
First Vice Chair
Los Angeles County Supervisor
Fourth Supervisorial District
cpedersen@lacbos.org
213-974-4444

These board members voted for the tax the first time around but come from cities that the transit tax scam doesn't benefit. Tell them to stand with the rest of County and vote against spending any more MTA money on the scam:

Bonnie Lowenthal
City Council 1st District, Vice Mayor, Long Beach
(562) 570-6919
district1@longbeach.gov

Ara Najarian
Second Vice Chair
Mayor, City of Glendale
anajarian@ci.glendale.ca.us

The following are Mayor Villaraigosa's appointees to the MTA Board from the San Fernando Valley. Doubtful they'll cross the Mayor despite their reputation for being fiscally responsible but feel free to call them anyway and tell them not to screw the Valley:

David W. Fleming
City of Los Angeles Mayor Appointee
david.fleming@lw.com
(213) 891.7902

Richard Katz
City of Los Angeles Mayor Appointee
(213) 922-4605
Boardoffice@metro.net

The following board members are lost causes and are either shady or provincial or both:

Antonio R. Villaraigosa
LACMTA, Chair
Mayor, City of Los Angeles

Yvonne B. Burke
Los Angeles County Supervisor
Second Supervisorial District

Pam O’Connor
City Council Member, Santa Monica

Bernard Parks
City Council 8th District, City of Los Angeles Mayor Appointee

Zev Yaroslavsky
Los Angeles County Supervisor
Third Supervisorial District

County Supervisors play games with the transit tax

In a move that may leave taxpayers on the hook for additional printing and legal costs, the Los Angeles County Supervisors have voted 3–2 against consolidating a half-percent sales tax proposal into the November ballot.

Los Angeles Times reports:

In a surprise move, Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors denied a request today to place a half-cent sales tax on the November ballot to pay for up to $40 billion of road and mass transit improvements, including the so-called subway to the sea.

(snip)

Los Angeles County Registrar Recorder Dean Logan said the MTA must now pay up to $10 million for a special second ballot on election day or ask a court to force the measure onto the existing Nov. 4 ballot.

Supervisor Gloria Molina cast the deciding vote against the consolidation move in protest of Zev Yaroslavsky’s “back room deals.” The tax proposal may still appear on a separate ballot this November. A confident aide tells LA Observed:

Voters WILL still vote on the sales tax issue. It will just be a separate ballot that voters will get during the same election.

As mentioned earlier, the half-percent “transit tax,” combined with a one-percent increase proposed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger would raise Los Angeles County’s sales tax rate to 9.75%.