Los Angeles Politics Hotsheet for Tuesday

The City Council Monday night approved a nearly $7 billion budget for fiscal year 2010-2011 after months of trying to close hundreds of millions of dollars in deficits.  Key to the budget is the layoff of over 700 City staff unless unions agree to concessions.  What say you that the unions will agree or the Clowncil will back down?

Big doins' and the blowback coming on the controversial Arizona Immigration Law, SB 1070, and the boycotts against it.  First off pro-illegal immigration activists were incensed by remarks made by LA Lakers Coach Phil Jackson that indicated the winningest coach in NBA history either supported SB 1070 or at least didn't oppose it.  That created a firestorm of controversy calling for boycotts and protests of the Lakers yet activists could gather only about a score of folks to picket the Staples Center Monday evening.

Next up hotels in San Diego were reporting handfuls of Arizona residents were cancelling trips and room reservations in America's Finest City as a counter-boycott against the border city was brewing in the cactus state.  While it doesn't yet represent a groundswell more rooms have been cancelled than there were protesters at Staples and it has the local tourism folks worried.

A Tulare County (CA) trucker is encouraging other truckers to boycott Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego Counties over the boycotts.  A group of Arizonans has created the BUYcott Arizona website to encourage supporters to boycott cities that are boycotting Arizona and to spend money in the Grand Canyon state.  Conservative radio talk show host Tony Katz is leading a group of SB1070 supporters to travel to Arizona and spend money in support.

From the how come no one thought of this before department, existing California law was compared to the new Arizona law that has everyone up in arms.  Section 834b of the California Penal Code contains remarkably similar language to SB1070.

Back in LA-LA land the City Council - fast to act on the  boycott of Arizona - is languishing on legislation to cut City ties and business with firms that do business with the Islamic Republic of Iran.  A really terrible place where folks actually are asked for their papers all the time, racial profiling and segregation is the law, women are legally treated like property and well we don't even want to say how they treat da gheys. I wonder where Paul Koretz stands on all this because remember it's Iran, not Arizona, that has missiles pointed at Israel.

And finally moving on to our favorite goofy recall and the gift who keeps on giving, Phil Jennerjahn.  Recall leaders, including David Hernandez a really good guy we can't figure out why he has teamed up with Phil, is seeking the financial support of Arizonans pissed at LA who might want to exact a pound of flesh from Mayor Villaraigosa.  Fair enough I am sure a lot of help can be ginned up but this is a strategic error even if it generates a short term gain. LA's non-partisan politics has created the environment for left-wing yuppie liberals in Silverlake to be simpatico with Republicans from Sunland-Tujunga or Latinos from CD14 over issues like over-development, billboards, phony ballot measures, etc. and be united in their disdain for the Mayor and Clowncil.  The moment you attach the recall to anything that sounds like Minutemen or even Tea Partiers two of those three legs of that table fall out, it becomes  Republican movement and the numbers aren't there in LA for that.  That doesn't stop Phil Jennerjahn though who doesn't care what anyone else says, he's going to win!