LA CITY NEWS MARCH 2011, L.A. CITY COUNCIL - ELECTION EDITION
by Zuma Dogg
Welcome to LA City News - Election Edition. There are important Los Angeles City Council elections throughout the city on Tuesday, March 8, 2011.
As you are someone reading this, we hope you help raise awareness, this election season, letting people know that there is, indeed, ANOTHER election on Tuesday, March 8th.
After the intense round of Gubernatorial and proposition debates during the recent election, some people may think they are reading about the previous election, not able to fathom that it is ALREADY time to once again put on our voter "thinking caps."
The current crop of city-hall-machine, incumbent officials are planning on this election flying under the radar with as low of a voter turn-out as possible...so they can have their political machines send their people to the polls -- with as few real community members casting ballots AGAINST them as possible.
There are seven city council seats up for grabs in the March 8th election: CD 2 (incumbent Paul Krekorian), CD 4 (incumbent Tom La Bonge), CD 6 (incumbent Tony Cardenas), CD 8 (incumbent Bernard Parks), CD 10 (incumbent Herb Wesson), CD 12 (open seat/no incumbent), CD 14 (incumbent Jose Huizar).
DISTRICT RUNDOWN:
CD 2: Paul Krekorian was just recently elected to the seat about a year and a half ago, and hasn't been in the seat long enough to lose support, yet. The slickest of the shady machine-backed incumbents is expected to easily win re-election. So LA City News is not going to get into this election much, in favor of focusing attention on the other tighter elections where the grass root/community candidates have much more of a viable shot at winning the election. Although it would be nice for Krekorian to lose; as he is part of the slick, political, city hall machine...he'll easily win since he is still new, and isn't tagged with being in office while all the disaster was being created.
Although we would like Paul Krekorian to be replaced with a true community member (not a professional, political-insider, seat jumper like Krekorian), it isn't likely.
HOWEVER, Augusto Biasani is the grass roots candidate to vote for to send a message to City Hall! I have gotten to know Augusto, personally, and can vouch that he is a quality, thoughtful, individual. One of the most compassionate and upstanding people I've met in this city as an activist.
CD 8: Bernard Parks is the only incumbent that LA City News actively asks you to support for re-election. We actually WANT Bernard Parks to WIN! He MUST WIN! He is the only councilmember in chambers that has a grasp on the budget, has been warning council all along, trying to get the body to take responsible action -- and if nothing else, is the councilmember who will always press his button to stand up and expose the problem at hand, before council, that the rest would have allowed to go unsaid, and off the public record and TV 35 airwaves.
So we can't kick out the only Councilmember who is trying to put on the brakes for the rest of us watching at home. AND, Councilmember Parks has a lot of competition being thrown at him...some of it most likely from the unions he stands up against. And the political machine opposition they will be running against Parks to try and take his seat will be MUCH WORSE than any other issue you may have with Parks. We are at a BIG PICTURE juncture in this city's history. We aren't gonna lose Park's seat to a grass root candidate. We will lose Park's seat to the TRUE city hall machine candidate.
At least Parks is truly a thorn in the mayor (and many times, his own council's) side. HELP SUPPORT PARKS IN HIS CAMPAIGN AND MAKE SURE HE WINS. AND BERNARD PARKS IS THE ONLY INCUMBENT TO RE-ELECT. ON MARCH 8, 2011, send a clear message to Los Angeles City Hall and vote out all the current councilmembers (except Parks) -- and replace them with the grass roots/community candidate in your neighborhood.
CD 4: Incumbent Tom La Bonge: Tomas O'Grady and Steve Box running against La Bonge.
CD 6: REPLACE INCUMBENT TONY CARDENAS WITH DAVID BARRON. (I know David Barron. A very viable candidate with solid, inside knowledge of the inner workings of city hall. Has been a good friend to Zuma Dogg over the years and I have really benefited by his knowledge.)
CD 8: Re-elect incumbent Bernard Parks.
CD 10: REPLACE INCUMBENT HERB WESSON WITH AUSTIN DRAGON (http://AustinDragon.com). (Althea Shaw supporters vote for Althea. http://AltheaShaw.com) A vote for EITHER is a vote AWAY from Herb! SUPPORT THESE CANDIDATES' CAMPAIGN! (Remember, even if you do not have an election in your district, a councilmember votes on citywide issues that directly affect you and your district.) And Herb is much more of a powerful mover and shaker inside council chambers and city hall than his constituents realize.
Herb is great at having pancake breakfasts, BBQs and monthly movie showings...so he has a lot of support from dummies who vote based on who fed them the largest stack of pancakes. The challenge is to get the word out that Herb voted "yes," for every rate increase, fee hike, new tax and every reduction in service that his constituents are up in arms over.
Herb Wesson is Housing Chair -- and the city's housing policy stinks of corruption allegations and an accompanying lawsuit. Councilman Wesson boasts that his, "best friend is Antonio Villaraigosa." If you don't like the direction of the city under Villaraigosa, then you don't like the direction of the city under Herb Wesson. (Check his voting record.)
The other very real issue, is that Herb Wesson spends WAY too much time, OUTSIDE city hall (as in OUTSIDE with the grass and trees) on smoking breaks -- DURING the city council meetings. It's not about Herb smoking, or not. It's about Herb not being present at the council meeting when the public is giving testimony; when city experts are presenting information that the vote is to be based upon; he doesn't hear the debate of his colleagues...but most importantly, isn't inside council chambers to stand up and fight for his district and his people. And when you read about his involvement on the CRA project merger that is awash in controversy (shady allegations) -- HERB'S GOTTA GO! (Get out the word.)
CD 12: Open seat. Vote for anyone besides insider City Hall machine candidate Mitch Englander. (Sorry, Mitch!)
CD 14: REPLACE INCUMBENT JOSE HUIZAR WITH RUDY MARTINEZ. No matter how dirty Jose goes against Rudy at the end of the campaign...you cannot reward Huizar's behavior as an elected official, nor, Villaraigosa & City Hall with another term. What makes Rudy Martinez a most viable candidate among all the other grass root candidates in the other districts is the big money he is able to personally finance his campaign with as a reality show TV personality and successful business operator. Pull the plug on a this firmly-entrenched Villaraiogsa political machine. If you know someone else running in CD 14 that you want to support and vote for, vote for them. ANYONE BUT HUIZAR.
And keep reading LA City News (online at http://LACityNews.com) for some of the shenanigans (reasons to vote out Huizar) that go on in CD 14 and in the other council districts.
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