Los Angeles Politics Hotsheet for Wednesday

Vas te faire encule Conseil municipal!

Shades of France.  How do you get the City Council to stop doing something? Get a powerful public employee union who has several bought and paid for members on the Clowncil to yell and scream.  That's what happened when Bernard Parks brought a motion to rein in the DWP's employee pension program and put under the control of the City. "Uh-uh," said the union that represents the utility's employees.

It's coming down to the wire for the Clowncil to put Jose Huizar's series of election "reforms" on the ballot for next spring.  You need to pay attention to this.  It includes things that sound good like "instant runoff voting" (where the devil may be in the details) and extremely concerning schemes such as consolidating neighborhood polling places into "Neighborhood Voting Centers" where "trained staff" would help people vote.  Contact your Councilperson on this one folks.

If neither jovial 4th District Councilman Tom LaBonge nor his bearded bicycling opponent Stephen Box are your cup of tea you may have another choice for that CD.  Neighborhood Council member Tomas O'Grady has thrown his hat into the ring and is catching attention for his work to help save libraries in Los Angeles.  Of course there is blogger Phil Jennerjahn also in the race and some folks are still pushing businessman Jack Humphreville to run.

KABC's John Phillips deconstructs a questionable LA Times poll that shows candidate for Governor Jerry Brown up by massive numbers.  As in past OLD GRAY HAG ON SPRING STREET's fall classic polls this one is clearly overstating turnout models.  Phillips says the poll is nothing more than "Democratic Party masturbation." Next week both the Times and Democrats may have to find other ways to pleasure themselves.

It happens somewhere every election cycle and this time here in Southern California we have a dead politician on the ballot.  Former State Senator Jenny Oropeza died last week but election rules require her name to stay on the ballot and were she to get a plurality of votes she could even win the race.  John Stammreich has been Oropeza's opponent and while some polls have been showing the South Bay Republican in a dead (pardon the pun) heat with Oropeza no one knows how her untimely passing will impact the final tally.  If Oropeza happens to win the election her office would be declared vacant and another election would be required.

Mayor Sam's Hotsheet for Tuesday

State Senator Jenny Oropeza is a hold-out on enabling legislation for the MTA's half percent transit tax scam. In an interview with Steve Hymon at the Fishwrap of record Oropeza denies claims of Mayor Villaraigosa she's seeking more pork for her district or wants to get the Mayor back for not endorsing her in her political races. Again, despite the flowerly claims of those who support this boondoggle, you can't build enough trains to get LA out of gridlock. We have more trains and public transit than ever and traffic is worse than ever. The answer comes in revisiting how we zone land in LA and letting the free market have a crack at public transit.

If you want to legally mount a windshield GPS unit in your car you'll have to wait a bit. The LA Times reports that a bill by State Senator Jenny Oropeza of Long Beach is being held back to avoid becoming collateral damage of Governor Schwarzeneggers's promise to veto any bill until California has a budget.

Britney Spears is denying reports that she will pay a murderous lesbian stripper in a remake of the 60s cult classic Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill! to be helmed by Quentin Taratino. A spokesperson for the pop diva says Britney wants to concentrate on her next album.