March 3 elections firm up
So is there a mayor's race or isn't there? There is, according to the dozens of people streaming into Walter Moore's Wilshire Boulevard campaign headquarters Saturday, an hour after the deadline had past to take out nominating papers for the March 3, 2009 city election. There's not, according to most news coverage. The gist of the headlines: No Rick Caruso, no race.
Caruso, the billionaire developer of Americana at Brand, the Grove at Farmers Market and other Disneyish powermalls, toyed with the public for several weeks after letting it be known that he just might be the one to take on Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Then on Friday, the day before the deadline for taking out nominating papers, he said the city would have to do without him for this election cycle.
Backers of Moore, shown here at his headquarters Saturday, grumbled that their candidate was being ignored. How come? Do the newspapers have it in for him?
The question brings up one of the eternal quandaries about news coverage of local elections. There's no point in reporting on candidates who don't have a chance. Why don't they have a chance? No one takes them seriously. Why does no one take them seriously? Newspapers don't cover them.
Some key factors to help be taken seriously: Be rich (either with your own money, or with campaign contributions). Be famous. Be the winner of a previous election.
Villaraigosa had all three going for him, plus a general feeling of dissatisfaction with the incumbent, when he challenged and defeated Mayor Jim Hahn four years ago. There is plenty of dissatisfaction now with Villaraigosa, but he cleared the field of its toughest potential competitors with several feverish and wildly successful bounts of fundraising. Now Moore, who finsihed sixth in 2005, is the closest thing the incumbent's got to a real opponent.
Moore's supporters bristle at that kind of talk, seeing it as disrespect for a candidate who has been running for the post for well over a year. But he has his work cut out for him.
The potential field of candidates was capped Saturday at noon, the deadline for taking out nominating papers. Check the link for the full list. Not all names there now will show up on the ballot; each candidate has until Dec. 3 to return their nominating petitions and qualifying signatures of eligible Los Angeles voters.
I am the only person running for Rosendahl's job. Why? He is a nice man but too nice to the illegal alien gangsters who come here illegally to kill, to rob the tamale lady. to beat up the tamale vendor who will not give her money to the gangsters. City Hall, including The Mayor, 13 of the 15 City council members, are too kind to the killers who come here illegally. Chief Bratton will not allow his officers to report to ICE all illegal alien gangsters they come in contact with. Dep Chief Diaz said on the radio and in City Council Chambers:"Crossing the border illegally is only a misdemeanor, and is only a misdemeanor at the border. LAPD has no jurisdiction at the border." Tell this to Sgt Shaw, Mrs Shaw is the mom of murdered 17 yr old Jamiel Shaw Jr. He was killed by a known illegal alien gangbanger near his house for merely being black. Shaw was a football player at LA High with several offers for a football scholarship from many colleges. 14 yr old Cheryl Green was killed in front of her house at 204th and Harvard in Harbor Gateway, Los Angeles. She was shot dead by a known illegal alien gangster from El Salvador, shot for being black. The neighborhood is half black and half Hispanic. The gangs that are hispanic want the blacks either dead or gone, as in get out of the neighborhood.This is why I am running for city council. If elected I will instruct Chief Bratton, Dep Chief Diaz, The Mayor {if re-elected} et al the difference between illegal alien tamale vendors and the illegal alien killers who kill, extort, terrorize their own people and all Angelenos. Craig Wilson 310 568 0263 Westchester
Posted by: Harry Craig Wilson | December 09, 2008 at 04:35 PM