Morning Briefs on the Los Angeles Political Machine for Tuesday

Today is the Official Release Day of the long-awaited book collaboration between LA Weekly Scribe Patrick Range McDonald and former two-term Mayor Richard Riordan. A cover to cover viewing is bound to cause an episode of longing for the not-forgotten era of civic rebirth and growth after the 1992 Riots.  

Too bad this must read will never grace the old SEIU 347 "Richard Riordan Reading Room".

With no apologies to former "Mayor Poopy", Failure Mayor Tony Villar, along with current F-ing Mayor Eric Garcetti, its time to flashback to an eight year era of civic rebirth, growth and renewal via the long-awaited book collaboration of former two term Mayor Richard Riordan and LA Weekly Writer Patrick Range McDonald. 

Concise, and to the point, Richard Riordan was the right choice for Mayor after the 1992 Riots. Two terms, eight years, at a cost of a dollar every 365 days later, Los Angeles was bring in $1 Billion dollars more in revenue per year than when he was first sworn in, with thousands of additional police securing a foundation for a crime reduction future. 

Foot in mouth episodes withstanding, the former Toy Company Executive was able to forge cross-party coalitions that enable LA to recover from the Northridge Earthquake and replace the forgotten LAPD Chief Willie Williams with now CD 8 City Councilman Bernard Parks.

Yet, since leaving office, Riordan was never able to capitalize politically on his successful era via the Third Floor, as evident with his failed attempt to replace Pete Wilson as Governor and the inability to get Steve "Mini Riordan I" Soboroff, along Austin "Mini Riordan II" Beutner elected Mayor.

But in the sunset of his political being, discerning Angelinos who care about the civic future of the City of Angels, would find it prudent to read the musings of a historic figure, in the hope of creating a better tomorrow.

** From the blunt talk (mixed with foot on occasions) of former Mayor Riordan, LA Weekly's Gene Maddaus regales us from the musing front end, with the latest "wonkish pronouncements" of a Rhodes Scholar, now tepid (white) Mayor Eric Garcetti via his appearance at the "Atlantic Magazine, Citylab Conference" ..........., (Walter) Isaacson (of the Aspen Institute) asked about encouraging an innovative culture within City Hall. Garcetti said that when dealing with his general managers, "You have to be able to follow from the front." He went on say that low-level employees should be able to "lead from the line." There's nothing necessarily wrong with encouraging front-line workers to solve problems. But "following from the front" is an unfortunate phrase. So much for performance-based utterances.

**  Just wondering if some official government agency will be waving an investigation notice in the direction of Assemblyman Isadore Hall anytime soon, this after a report by the "Weekly of Record" that Hall (or someone from his campaign team) mis-used some dollar bills at a Strip Club?

** Memo to the Friends of the Southwest Museum Coalition, you may be still wondering why CD City Clowncil Central Committee Member Gil "Broken Deal Cedillo" is blowing smoke in regards to your ambitious plans to reopen LA's Oldest Museum? Maybe it has to do with this "Pay to Play Contribution" via someone with "El Plan".?

Remember, all agreements with "Broken Deal Cedillo", are naught unless you "Pay to Play.

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

Scott Johnson in CD 14 

Morning Briefs on the Los Angeles Political Machine for Thursday

Mayor Eric Garcetti uses AFL-CIO National Convention Speech to mend relations with Organize Labor, Will a "Brother and Sister, Cutting of the Bread" with LA County Labor Federation Strongsister Maria Elena Durazo happen in the near future?

Mayor Eric Garcetti gets lift from his Brothers and Sisters in Labor.

Great Thursday to everyone as the healing vibes of progressive brother and sister reconciliation fill the Third Floor Corridor of 200 Spring Street. The "Old Gray Collectivist Hag on Spring Street" ( aka LA Times), is gushing this AM about the pending healing of the riff between Mayor Garcetti and County Labor Federation Strongsister Maria Elena Durazo. What is the big surprise here? Mayor Garcetti was, is and always will be a progressive friend of true laborites, who help him win in May. Thus, the likes of local labor elites such as Boss D'Arcy, Bob Schoonover and Durazo, will only do what comes naturally, that is mend the political fences and push the collectivist agenda forward.

** While the labor progressives make up, the post election honeymoon is over for former Radio Talk Show Host/ Mayoral Candidate/ now Board of Public Works President Kevin James. James takes it on the political chin in a piece by superb ( and sadly), outgoing LA Weekly Writer Patrick Range McDonald, who reports on the secretive process of bypassing community input, in approving a new CD 4/6 Fire Station. We want to wish the blogging best to McDonald as he leaves the "Weekly of Record" to write a book.

** As McDonald sadly moves on from the "Weekly of Record", recent musings from its "Informer Blog" by Dennis "Bloggin Comandante" Romero, are causing us to wonder if he has become the "Lil Assemblyman Mikey Gatto Bloggin Informer". Follow along, Assemblyman Gatto proposes a Bill on broken parking meters, the "Gatto Bloggin Informer" muses. Assemblyman "Lil Porno Mikey" stonewalls on Porn/ HIV Bill, the "Gatto Bloggin Informer" muses. Assemblyman Gatto proposes legislation on Hit and Run Accidents, the "Gatto Bloggin Informer" muses. Then yesterday, Assemblyman Gatto proposes a bill on Carpoll Lanes Assess, the "Gatto Bloggin Informer" muses again. Maybe "Journalist Jill" should ask Gatto Campaign Consultant Parke Skelton to offset the "Gatto Bloggin Informer's" salary?

** Speaking of Parke, if his client is going to run for CD 4, he may want to look up the Silver Lake Environmentalists, who whacked declared CD 4 City Council Candidate and State Senator Kevin De Leon Staffer Steve Veres, with this opinion piece in the Echo Park Patch. Rest assure that Veres Boss proclivities to support plastic bags, is just the beginning of this latest John Shallman Consulting debacle.

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

Scott Johnson in CD 14    



ClassicMayorSam: The 11% Mayor

And finally as the Democratic National Convention, chaired by Antonio Villaraigosa, winds up, probably the most embarrassing thing for Los Angeles is that the Mayor reportedly spends about 11% of his day working on City business, while the rest of the time is spent on political fundraisers, concerts, parties, sitting for a wax dummy carving, dates and other productive events (Oh! Like the DNC!) This now legendary report by the LA Weekly's Patrick Range McDonald was a watershed in local reporting. From 2008...

One of the most delicious stories of 2008 was that of the LA Weekly's Patrick Range McDonald's excellent investigation into the schedule of Mayor Villaraigosa and the revelation that he only spends about 11% of his reported 16-18 hour days actually on any city related business.  The rest of the time is either related to fundraising for himself or other candidates, campaigning for candidates, appearing at photo opps and time spent traveling between all these non city-business related events. (One of the best items from McDonald's report: Villaraigosa's "sitting" for his wax dummy to be placed in Madame Tussaud's museum.)

"Everyone who knows me, knows I work hard. That's why both Sen. Clinton and Obama wanted me to campaign for them."
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa

Apparently Villaraigosa didn't really appreciate McDonald making it known how little work he actually does and threw a zinger against the Weekly in Rick Orlov's Daily News column telling Orlov "It didn't really go anywhere because it wasn't true. They were upset because we only gave them my public calendar. They didn't get to see what I was doing privately, with meetings here (at City Hall) or in other places. Everyone who knows me, knows I work hard. That's why both Sen. Clinton and Obama wanted me to campaign for them."

Yet if you look at the copy of Villaraigosa's schedule the Weekly posted online, you can see that the "private" (blacked out) portions really only account for a small portion of the Mayor's schedule and really don't add up to hours of "working hard."

The truth is the Mayor is an attention addicted photo opp junkie who makes himself look silly whether it's hanging out with Dr. Seuss characters  or playing the conga drums with celebrities  at a taxpayer financed hotspot.

I have a feeling the Mayor could come to regret his statements to Orlov.  Stay tuned.

Afternoon Briefs on the Los Angeles Political Scene for Thursday

"Reigning Los Angeles Journalist of the Year Patrick Range McDonald".

LA Weekly's Patrick Range McDonald latest missive that takes Mayor and MTA Chairperson Antonio Villar to task for his latest nefarious dealings regarding the "Westside Subway Extension", will be his last Villar piece for the next six months.

Former RINO Mayor Richard Riordan has retained the pen behind the "11% Mayor" to write his memoirs, a task that some would be surprise to see McDonald undertake. But as McDonald stated, any perceived political barriers between McDonald and Riordan are not so profound to hinder their working relationship. "Some people may wonder, because I'm a liberal Democrat openly gay man, why am I helping to write a memoir about a Republican? But Riordan always been strongly in favor -- going back years -- of gay rights and gay marriage." We wish the best to Patrick on his latest effort to bring grammatical order to an gaff-prone politico narrative.

More news after the jump............

Read more »

President Villaraigosa!

Well, President of all the Mayors.

The LA Weekly reports that Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was chosen as the President of the US Conference of Mayors today.

Apparently however the Presidency of this august body rotates amongst board members, kind of like the Moose Lodge.

Expect the 11% Mayor to be even more BUSY!

Los Angeles Politics Hotsheet for Friday

The LA Weeky's Patrick Range McDonald hits it AGAIN with a cool Jack-O-Lantern full of the Mayor's hype over the Subway to the Sea. The MTA board passed what Stupidvisor Don Knabe called a "historic" vote to bring the Purple (FKA Metro Red Line Wilshire Extension) Line somewhere near Santa Monica.  McDonald enumerates the Mayor's fantasies about the line unlike all the rest of the press release journos out there noting everything from the canard that the Subway will end traffic as we know it, even though studies say less than one percent of suburban Westside motorists will get out of their four wheeled monsters and board the choo choo.

Will Jerry Brown, if elected Governor, raise taxes? Yes if what his former Chief of Staff and former Governor Gray Davis says is true.

Read more »

Speaking of Recalls Who Started the Janice Hahn Recall?

LA Weekly piece by the great Patrick Range McDonald asks the very good question, "Who's Behind Janice Hahn Recall Effort."

Unlike the recall of Mayor Villaraigosa where blogger Phil Jennerjahn was a more than willing spokesman, the Hahn effort has remained somewhat of a mystery.

When the recall was announced in May, it appeared a bright constellation of South Bay political activists and organizations had jumped on board.

But while a significant portion of community leaders in Hahn's district would love to see her go, many who have been associated with the effort say they are supportive but not involved.  At least three different Recall Hahn websites have been launched but again, no one knows who is in charge.

So that leads to today's conspiracy theory.  Internet astroturf is abuzz these days in political campaigns.  Do you think a phony recall effort could have been started by opponents to Hahn's run for the Democratic nomination for Lt. Governor as an effort to embarrass her?

Whether you like it or not!

Measure of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's Support from East Hollywood

"Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa before.............."
"Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa after..................."

LA Weekly photographer Ted Soqui snapped these photographs of a mural in East Hollywood with the image of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, two days apart.

Soqui had notice the mural during his routine of driving LA in search of one-of -the-kind images that define the "LA scene".

He posted the initial Villaraigosa image on his blog tedsoqui.blogspot.com Then upon driving by the same location two days later, found that the mural had become the setting for an act of civil disobedience. One can notice at the lower end of the "after" picture, the words "This Is Our Town" are spray painted on the ground below the mural.

Thanks to LA Weekly's Patrick Range McDonald for posting this at the Weekly's "LA Daily"

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

Mayor Sam's Hotsheet for Tuesday

Zuma Dogg is attempting to unravel an extremely tangled web of overlapping relationships, business arrangements and political alliances that could very well be at the heart of a deep scandal around public employee pension funds, perhaps rivaling Watergate in intensity and potential impact.  Rather than go on about it here, check out the story at Zuma's blog.

The LA Weekly's Patrick Range McDonald dissects a recent gun buy-back program sponsored by the Mayor where those who turned in uzis and other illegal assault weapons received gift cards. McDonald shows how the event, despite the Mayor's spin, was a useless exercise and was handled in such a way that may have discouraged some folks from turning in guns.  In the meantime yuppie sandwich shop and wi-fi hangout Panera Bread apparently classifies the Weekly as pornography and it's firewall blocks patrons from accessing the fishwrap.

Going into the final days of the campaign, City Attorney candidate Carmen Trutanich has significantly more cash on hand than his opponent Jack Weiss.  Trutanich has nearly $350K on hand while Weiss is just shy of $200. In the meantime Trutanich's campaign once again criticized Weiss for refusing to return funds from a fundraiser held by City Commissioner Kelly Candaele, in violation of ethics laws.

Political blogger Meghan McCain continues to piss off both Democrats and Republicans which leads me to think she must be doing something right.  Both Right Wing Blogging Dentist Flap and Left Wing Blogging Mommy Debbie Lopez once again bitch slapped the political scion over a recent celebrity PMS moment McCain had at the White House Correspndents dinner, itself an event where overly self-important scribes, pols and celebrities fete each other and spend way too much time after talking about it.  Most of the details come from the bitchy celebrity gossip site Wonkette which should be noted is a competitor to the site McCain blogs at, The Daily Beast. 

Panera Bread Censors the LA Weekly

Our good friend Patrick Range McDonald from the LA Weekly sent me a link to a recent story he wrote on Mayor Villaraigosa's gun buyback program but as I sit here at Panera Bread, following a business meeting, I see that Panera has an objection to the LA Weekly:

The SonicWALL Content Filter Has Blocked this site.
If you feel this site has been blocked in error,
Please submit a URL Rating Review at:
http://cfssupport.sonicwall.com

URL: http://blogs.laweekly.com/ladaily/politics/villaraigosa-trades-gift-cards/

Reason for restriction: Forbidden Category "Adult/Mature Content"

Time to switch over to the Sprint modem and read the article.

Happy Birthday to the LA Weekly's Patrick Range McDonald!

Patrick Range McDonald of the LA Weekly has a big birthday this week! Wish him a very happy one and tell him how grateful you are for the Weekly (that is unless you're a third floor spin jockey).

An Intervention for Matt Szabo?

I am beginning to get concerned for Mayoral spokesman Matt Szabo (pictured here with co-spokesflack Janelle Erickson).  I first met Matt about six years ago when I was working as a volunteer for Wendy Greuel's first Council race. In addition to working phone banks, Matt's team sent me to canvass goats in Sunland-Tujunga.  

I digrees.  Matt seemed like a very nice young man and intelligent political operative - not unlike the character played by Michael J. Fox in Spin City or Rob Lowe in The West Wing. 

Sometime later Matt was hired as Mayor Villaraigosa's spokesman.  It seemed like a good idea at the time but considering everything he's been through - from Mirthala to toilets - one wonders if Matt wishes he could reconsider the decision.

The latest kerfuffle Matt was forced into involved the re-stating of his bosses boastful remarks about the LA Weekly, issued some months after the great Patrick Range McDonald story that made the case Mayor Villaraigosa spends about 11% of his time on actual city business.  You may remember the Mayor got a little too big for his britches when he claimed to Rick Orlov of the Daily News that they were upset because they never got to see his private schedule - something that would actually be illegal.  As PRM reported Matt had to come back and say the Mayor "misspoke." There was only one schedule and indeed The Weekly did have it - which means Patrick's calculations are correct.

So in the latest round Matt sat down with Patrick to parse the Mayor's statement to Orlov word for word.  However it must have been a near impossible task because all Szabo could do was to continue to assert that “Mayor Villaraigosa works harder and longer than any other big-city mayor in America, and everyone in Los Angeles knows it.”  Remember those two clauses because Pat deconstructs both of them.

Pat went to Fred Siegel, no, not the clothing store magnate, but professor of history at the Cooper Union for Science and Art in New York City, strongly.  Siegel - a recognized expert on municipal affairs - finds  Szabo's statement ridiciulous and descibles Villaraigosa as a “ceremonial mayor.”   Siegel grants the title of "hardest working mayor" to Richard Daley of Chicago, Thomas Menino of Boston and Cory Booker of Newark, New Jersey.  He probably doesn't know about South El Monte Mayor Blanca Figueroa who works so hard, statying in her office until 11:00 at night, that her City Council wants to take her keys away from her.

As far as "everyone" knowing and agreeing how hard the Mayor works, Patrick isn't sure about that one too. It appears that beside the usual suspects such as this blog and inflammatory talkradio host Doug McIntyre the story has been covered by decidely non-Villaraigosa haters such as Fishbowl LA and the LA Times.  150 readers commented on the Weekly's piece; most of which were highly critical of the Mayor.

If I was someone close to Szabo, I would perhaps direct him towards another job.  Remember the first part of conquering it is admitting it.

"The Mayor Misspoke"

Separated at birth
Mayoral Spokeholes Matt Szabo and Janelle Erickson

That's what Villaraigosa spokeshole Matt "I can't believe I took this job" Szabo told Patrick Range McDonald of the LA Weekly when the paper challenged statements made by the Mayor in response to McDonald's September article that in-depth probed the Mayor's schedule over a period of time; that discovered the Mayor spends most of his time on campaign events, photo opportunties, press events and social occasions with little relation to actual city business and that about only 11% of the Mayor's working day was actually spent on Mayoral duties.

"The Mayor mispoke."
Matt Szabo

It took a while for the Mayor to respond to the Weekly's story, since he was busy with Dr. Seuess events, dancing at the Conga Room and holding press conferences in Men's Rooms, but a few days ago Villaraigosa told the Daily News' Rick Orlov of "It didn't really go anywhere because it wasn't true. They were upset because we only gave them my public calendar."

Of course inherent in that statement that the Mayor - who said that much of his City work is conducted in "private" meetings - was keeping two calendars. One for public view and one for his own. If true, that would be a big no-no under California's public records laws. Not so however, according to Szabo who backpeddled from the Mayor's previous statments and who told McDonald that there is only one calendar and the Weekly has it. That being said, McDonald's calculation stands, and the Mayor is only clocking in at 11%.

The most delicious part of Villaraigosa's whine to Orlov was the example he gave to show how hard he does work. "Everyone who knows me, knows I work hard," the Mayor protested, "That's why both Senators Clinton and Obama wanted me to campaign for them." Funny Antonio, I wasn't aware that was a Mayoral duty.

The Weekly scribe McDonald conculded following his analysis of the Mayor's schedule was that it had "revealed a mayoralty unlike anything Los Angeles has seen in the modern era." No doubt when the Mayor spends his time taking Hillary Clinton to King Taco, installing waterless urinals and appearing in parades with Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Tommy Lasorda.

Antonio Villaraigosa: The Hardest Working Man in Politics? Yea, right.

One of the most delicious stories of 2008 was that of the LA Weekly's Patrick Range McDonald's excellent investigation into the schedule of Mayor Villaraigosa and the revelation that he only spends about 11% of his reported 16-18 hour days actually on any city related business.  The rest of the time is either related to fundraising for himself or other candidates, campaigning for candidates, appearing at photo opps and time spent traveling between all these non city-business related events. (One of the best items from McDonald's report: Villaraigosa's "sitting" for his wax dummy to be placed in Madame Tussaud's museum.)

"Everyone who knows me, knows I work hard. That's why both Sen. Clinton and Obama wanted me to campaign for them."
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa

Apparently Villaraigosa didn't really appreciate McDonald making it known how little work he actually does and threw a zinger against the Weekly in Rick Orlov's Daily News column telling Orlov "It didn't really go anywhere because it wasn't true. They were upset because we only gave them my public calendar. They didn't get to see what I was doing privately, with meetings here (at City Hall) or in other places. Everyone who knows me, knows I work hard. That's why both Sen. Clinton and Obama wanted me to campaign for them."

Yet if you look at the copy of Villaraigosa's schedule the Weekly posted online, you can see that the "private" (blacked out) portions really only account for a small portion of the Mayor's schedule and really don't add up to hours of "working hard."

The truth is the Mayor is an attention addicted photo opp junkie who makes himself look silly whether it's hanging out with Dr. Seuss characters  or playing the conga drums with celebrities  at a taxpayer financed hotspot.

I have a feeling the Mayor could come to regret his statements to Orlov.  Stay tuned.

Revolution by Newsrack

If the revolution that takes down LA's kleptocracy happens in 2009 it will no doubt be due in part to the excellent reportage of David Zahniser in the LA Times and the folks at the LA Weekly namely, Jill Stewart, Daniel Heimpel and Patrick Range McDonald.

Indeed, Weekly helmstress Stewart offers up thanks for her former colleague David Z., one of a few honest reporters at the Times not enamored with the 11% mayor, who recently broke the story of a secret report critical of the City's solar energy boondoggle, Measure B, which has us asking the question "What did Eric Garcetti know and when did he know it." Heimpel's excellent reportage has been dishing out the outrageous details of Jeff Carr's secret panel of "deciders" who dole out millions of taxpayer dollars for mysterious "anti- gang" programs.

Rounding out the foursome with their finger on the reality of what's happening on Spring Street is McDonald whose expository composition on the phenomenon that is Zuma Dogg was an excellent introduction to the deeper story of the shadniness around fellow Mirthala banger Fabian Nunez and his giveaway legislation benefitting cable television providers. A piece that well past his prime "blogger" Kevin Roderick dismissed as a "puff piece."

With "Mayors" like Villaraigosa and "journalists" like Roderick thank God we have Stewart, Heimpel, McDonald and Zahniser to squeeze the truth out of those who are full of something else.

Kevin Roderick Puffs Away

Just when I thought that maybe I could come around to finding some value to Kevin Roderick's reporting he comes up with something stupid. 

Antonio Watch's hot sheet tipped to an excellent Patrick McDonald LA Weekly piece about local government shadiness around public access TV in Los Angeles featuring profanity laced tirades from Fellow Mirthala Banger and Father of the Year Fabian Nunez.

McDonald did an extensive interview with Zuma Dogg who prior to becoming the public advocate for the community he was a veteran local public access show producer and host.

So Roderick presents the grandest display yet of his Westside suburban crank driven myopia and manifestation of the ever present need of an aging, forgotten Anglo newspaper "reporter" to preserve the Sherry Bebitch Jeffe "I don't know any other bloggers from Adam" status quo, the amazing talent that allows Roderick to continually win Pulitzer Prizes in the ballrooms of his mind, he pens the following in today's LAObserved:

LA Weekly runs a puff piece on City Hall gadfly and candidate Zuma Dogg, the paper's past freelancer. LA Weekly

I'm almost wondering if our favorite Westside White Guy actually (AngloLA)Observed Patrick's piece?

Sure, WWG continues to get the brute force share of west of the 405 bluehairs who are curious about the latest Zocalo series on the Peruvian midget Diaspora and the newest place to have some foie gras, as well as the willingness of well funded but mostly irrelevant local public radio stations to put their imprint on him,  but for sure given the actual news reported on blogs throughout this city, LA Observed hardly leads on anything that actually matters.