Weiss Fundraiser Violates Ethics Laws - What a surprise

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

A shocking revelation in the LA Times shows that on Monday, while the Trutanich campaign held a fundraiser at the Sheraton Hotel in Universal City, the Beverly Hills elite were toasting Jack Weiss at an illegal fundraiser.

The illegal fundraiser was co-hosted by one of Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's pension board appointees; Kelly Candaele, pictured below.


City Ethics Commission laws prohibit city employees from political activity of this sort. Mr. Candaele resigned as soon as the cat got out of the bag, but apparently the Ethics Commission will investigate and take whatever action is appropriate.

Weiss, a self-proclaimed legal expert on everything, will doubtless claim "no knowledge" of either Mr. Candele or that he was a City employee - Weiss's denials are very predicable. Weiss, of course, is no stranger to Ethics Violations, many of which were the subject of a KNBC investigative report "Laundered Elections."

The $20,000 or so raised at the illegal fundraiser will be returned according to Weiss's campaign spokeshole Ace Smith, who issued a written statement "Jack Weiss believes that his campaign must be held to the highest standards." The statement was written, one assumes, because Smith could not keep a straight face during a face to face interview.

Weiss has many wealthy friends and supporters. He is a member of the "westside elite," born into luxury and living in a $3M Bel Air mansion with his trust fund heiress wife and two (presumably) privately educated children. Weiss lives far above most Los Angelenos, literally and metaphorically. Small wonder then, that Weiss has not a clue about the concerns of the vast majority of Los Angelenos, and it's no surprise that he's not above dirty back-room dealings to "get things done."

Los Angeles voters simply cannot afford to allow the perpetrator of such a disgracefully flagrant violation of campaign finance laws to serve as the chief law enforcement officer of Los Angeles.

This time Weiss was been caught before the election and in time to prevent illegal campaign contributions from bloating his hate-filled negative campaign. Previously, Weiss's wrongdoing took years to come to light, by which time the damage was irreparable.

Los Angelenos truly owe a vote of thanks to Carmen Trutanich for focusing attention of Jack Weiss's prior misconduct, and a second and third vote of thanks to LA Times reporters David Zahniser and Phil Willon for breaking this story.

Kelly Candaele's website can be viewed by clicking HERE. Mr. Candaele describes himself as Kelly Candaele "a writer, filmmaker, teacher and elected official in Los Angeles." No doubt the reference to the "elected official" will be removed in due course.

But M. Candaele was not the only person hosting the illegal fundraiser with close ties to City Hall. The LA Times also reported that "Two other hosts of Weiss' fundraiser hold positions with Wetherly Capital, a company that has promoted investing opportunities to two city pension boards, including the one on which Candaele served. Wetherly, known in industry circles as a "placement agent," has become a subject of interest in recent weeks for investigators looking into allegations of kickbacks at the New York state pension fund."

Weiss has long been suspected of overly close relationships with billboard operators, contractors and developers who benefit from their "friendly" relationship with the embattled wealthy westside elitist councilmember for Council District 5.

Weiss will attend another fundraiser April 30, hosted by developer Rick Caruso who currently has a high-density development before the City Planning Committee. Weiss has not recused himself from voting on that development, and can apparently see no conflict of interest.

The Weiss campaign has been becoming increasingly desperate as the election nears and Weiss faces the prospect of a forced departure from politics, perhaps to "spend more time with his family?"

Ethics like those of Jack Weiss are truly the substance of used toilet water. Please vote for an end to this affront to decency and honesty.

Click HERE to read the full report in LA TImes.

Sheriff Baca - "Weiss Does Not Respect the Truth"

Monday, April 27, 2009

The Los Angeles Daily News is reporting that Sheriff Lee Baca has withdrawn his endorsement for Jack Weiss in response to Weiss's latest tv advert.


The Daily News reported that:
Sheriff Lee Baca today withdrew his endorsement of City Councilman Jack Weiss in the May 19 election for city attorney, saying he was upset with the candidate's negative TV commercials.

"I can no longer remain silent about the reckless disregard for the truth that Jack Weiss has brought to this race," Baca said in a statement. "Mr. Weiss' latest television commercial is desperate and an insult to the principles of the American legal system, our Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

"Obviously, Mr. Weiss does not respect the truth or our justice system that guarantees a fair trial for everyone."

Baca had endorsed both Weiss and opponent Carmen Trutanich in the election.

Weiss campaign manager Ace Smith said Baca has not done much for Weiss since endorsing him but has been very supportive of Trutanich, a former registered Republican who has since re-registered as an independent.

"This is a partisan endorsement," Smith said. "We stand by every word in our commercials."

Baca spokesman Steve Whitmore said the sheriff had warned Weiss that he would pull his support if he saw any hint of a negative campaign.

"The sheriff talked with Mr. Weiss last week to tell him of his concerns," Whitmore said. "Then he saw the commercials of this past weekend and decided to pull his support."

Weiss Abandons Morality For Personal Gain

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Jack Weiss (right), Rat used by Weiss at public debates (left)
The Westside Jewish Community Center, Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Jack Weiss’s use of a rat in front of a Jewish center demonstrated extreme insensitivity and must be condemned.

The most reviled Nazi propaganda film of all time, “Der Ewige Jude (The Eternal Jew)," portrayed Jews as rats as a way to validate their extinction. A description of the film states, "Nazi filmmakers also turned their cameras on their victims, methodically reducing the popular perception of Jews to that of vermin, fit only for extermination."

A quote from the film (please excuse the reprinting of this racist filth, but it is important to understand the historical insult Weiss used in his quest to be City Attorney):

"Wherever rats appear they bring ruin, by destroying mankind's goods and foodstuffs. In this way, they (the rats) spread disease, plague, leprosy, typhoid fever, cholera, dysentery, and so on They are cunning, cowardly, and cruel, and are found mostly in large packs. Among the animals, they represent the rudiment of an insidious and underground destruction - just like the Jews among human beings."

Jack Weiss has demonstrated this same willingness to violate all standards of ethical behavior throughout his career as a City Councilman. He blithely crosses legal, moral, and ethical boundaries to advance to higher office. He models behavior that we must reject, for ourselves and for our children.


In 2005, Jack Weiss put out a mailer that stated "When they burn a house of worship, they burn everybody's house." In this campaign, Jack Weiss, through his insensitivity and moral bankruptcy, has insulted a house of worship and has thus insulted everyone.

Weiss' actions are unacceptable and Trutanich is correct to deny Weiss a chance to spread even more filth, and to repeat the slur yet another time. Three of the upcoming debates were to be held at Jewish centers or temples.

Trutanich made a hard choice to protect Jews from further degradation by Jack Weiss and his thugs. He did so even though he was going to get criticized for doing so. That is real leadership.

Jewish and non-Jewish leaders from across the city must call on Jack Weiss to renounce his actions and apologize to the community for exposing them to his truly unconscionable behavior.

Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters - 3rd Debate

Photo Without A Caption


A picture paints a thousand words...

Full report to follow.

4 Candidates Debates before Election

Here are the details of remaining debates scheduled to take place before the May 19, General Election:

Wednesday, April 22, 2009
The Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters
Doors open at 5:30pm for the 6:30pm debate at the Westside Jewish Community Center at 5870 W. Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles 90036 (about 4 blocks east of Fairfax).
To attend, one must send a request for no more than 2 tickets for to: info@lalcv.org
Be sure to give the names of the two attendees. For more information Click Here.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009
National Center for the Preservation of Democracy
6:30 PM Reception for 7:00 PM Debate and Audience Q&A
111 N. Central Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90012

Tickets $20, call 213.628.8141 or
www.townhall-la.org/programs/register/1282.

Thursday, April 30, 2009
Neighborhood Councils of the Westside
7:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Skirball Center - Magnin Auditorium
2701 North Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90049
More Info/Tickets: 430tix@gmail.com or call (310) 427-7166

Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Westside Homeowners Associations
7:30 pm to 8:30 pm
Temple Isaiah
10345 W Pico Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90064
Limited seating, RSVP and confirmation required. RSVP to Forum@Tract7260.Org

Weiss Evades Questions in South LA Debate

Saturday, April 18, 2009
The Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable again hosted a City Attorney Candidates Forum at the Lucie Florence Coffeehouse in Leimert Park. The difference this time, was that Jack Weiss had to attend.

Previously Weiss dodged debates hoping to avoid awkward questions not about his relationship with property developers who funneled illegal campaign contributions to him, but a slew of other issues that led to the recall effort in 2007.


Today, however, Weiss cannot dodge the debates and he has to face a real opponent; Carmen Trutanich. Saturday morning's debate was typical of the previous two debates between Trutanich and Weiss; Weiss refuses to answer questions and instead asks Carmen Trutanich to "tell us your client list."

The South Los Angeles audience, however, see through the Weiss facade when both candidates are asked a really straightforward question "Tell us something about your background?" a question seemingly designed to gauge how candidates relate to issues that effect the regular folks of Los Angeles.

Trutanich answered that he was the son of immigrant parents, he worked at the tuna canning factory in San Pedro where his father worked to pay his way through further education. In other words, he comes from an obviously working class background.

Weiss declined to answer the question. Weiss, of course, is the paradigm of privilege. Born into wealth on the fashionable westside of Los Angeles, Weiss not only benefited from wealthy professional parents, but also from his marriage to a trust fund heiress. Weiss certainly cannot afford his $3M Bel Air home on even a City Councilmember's salary, so it was hardly surprising that Weiss chose to dodge the question.

Click here to read the Los Angeles Times report on Saturday's debate, and credit for the photo reproduced here goes to Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times.

So far, the Weiss campaign have tried to pack the audience with young, loud supporters. I do not encourage anyone to be disruptive or discourteous, however, I do believe that if there is a strong presence of people who are more interested in hearing candidates answer questions than simply listening to evasive political platitudes, the rowdy element will be kept at bay.

I therefore urge you all to make the effort to attend as many of the debates as possible.

Here are the details of remaining debates scheduled to take place before the May 19, General Election:

Wednesday, April 22, 2009
The Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters
Doors open at 5:30pm for the 6:30pm debate at the Westside Jewish Community Center at 5870 W. Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles 90036 (about 4 blocks east of Fairfax).
To attend, one must send a request for no more than 2 tickets for to: info@lalcv.org
Be sure to give the names of the two attendees. For more information Click Here.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009
National Center for the Preservation of Democracy
6:30 PM Reception for 7:00 PM Debate and Audience Q&A
111 N. Central Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90012

Tickets $20, call 213.628.8141 or
www.townhall-la.org/programs/register/1282.

Thursday, April 30, 2009
Neighborhood Councils of the Westside
7:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Skirball Center - Magnin Auditorium
2701 North Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90049
More Info/Tickets: 430tix@gmail.com or call (310) 427-7166

Weiss Weakened by Worries Over Record - The Second Debate

April 15, 2009

A large crowd of Valley residents crammed the hall at Notre Dame High School on Wednesday Night. It was standing room only as voters watched Carmen Trutanich and Jack Weiss take part in the second public debate of the general election campaign, hosted by the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association.

A fuller report will follow, but using the old adage "a picture paints a thousand words," the evening debate started off as it continued throughout the evening with Jack Weiss avoiding questions about his woeful record, and instead attacked Carmen Trutanich for being a defense attorney.

But while Weiss thought he could win the audience with his attacks, he clearly hadn't anticipated Trtanich's fusillade of questions about his poor record of attendance, representation, illegal campaign contributions, over development, and billboard blight.
Weiss was forced to listen to Trutanich making point after point showing Weiss to be a failed politician, and as those points resonated with the audience, Jack's demeanor changed dramatically.
Weiss remained tight-lipped as Trutanich described Weiss's refusal to return illegal campaign contributions was an 'ongoing crime.' Stunningly, Weiss offered no answer for the audience to that accusation.
But while Jack thought he was scoring points by repeatedly asking Carmen Trutanich to name his clients (a question that Trutanich cannot answer under State Bar Rules of Ethics), the audience tired of Jack's strategy and after Jack asked the same question for the fourth time, the audience shut him down with jeers and shouts to 'move on.

As Weiss's attack strategy failed to deflect attention from his record, I'll leave it to you to describe the look on Jack's face...
Weiss appeared relieved when the debate was over, and rushed out of the room.
Trutanich was happy to stay and talk to to LA Times reporter Maeve Reston,

as well audience members who seemingly could not get enough of the man they clearly see as being the next City Attorney.

Voters Call Jack Weiss on Missing 33% of Council Meetings and 1500 Votes

Many thanks to the Mayor Sam Blog for reporting the following:

Jack Weiss' poor attendance at Council Meetings was reported months ago by Zuma Dogg. But now it's gathering steam as a respected group of his constituents call him on the carpet.

The La Brea Willoughby Coalition has filed a Public Records Act request with Councilmember Jack Weiss’ office after learning that he has missed over one third of all Council meetings and 1,500 votes. The document requests immediate access to inspect Weiss’ calendar, correspondences and all other documents that may explain his whereabouts during those important votes.

Leader of the La Brea Willoughby Coalition, Lucille Saunders, states, “I am deeply disturbed to learn that you have neglected your role as a Councilmember in keeping our community safe by missing nearly one third of your council meetings and skipping 1,500 votes…[and] you have canceled an astonishing total of 43 Public Safety Committee hearings.”

Saunders, questions Weiss’ commitment to public safety by asking, “What possibly could you be doing that is more important than the public safety of the citizens of Los Angeles?”

Jack Weiss was nearly recalled last year when over twenty thousand residents of his district signed a petition and complained that his neglect of his duties and his support for developers had led to traffic and overcrowding. Weiss received hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from lobbyists and developers — and then voted for their projects. Weiss was fined by the Los Angeles Ethics Commission for past campaigns and has refused to return illegal, laundered campaign contributions from a major developer.

Weiss Forced To Retract Lie On Campaign Website

Saturday, April 4, 2009

It's the first debate in the City Attorney run-off election race, and already Jack Weiss has blotted his copybook with a lie that he was forced to retract.


The Los Angeles Times is reporting that Jack Weiss was forced to remove the headline he inserted over the LA Times' report of the debate. Jack Weiss's headline read ’’Jack Weiss Wins First Debate,’’ however the Times article was entitled ''City attorney candidates trade some pointed jabs.''

It's hardy surprising that Jack Weiss tried to misrepresent himself as the 'winner' of the debate. After all, the debate did not go to plan, at least not the Weiss plan.

Even before the debate started, Weiss had placed a large inflatable rat outside the hall. The rat was named 'Tru' and a sign accused Carmen Trutanich of being anti-union. Regardless of the fact that the issue of unionization is irrelevant to the City Attorney race, the cheap shot was harbinger of the 'Weiss plan' for the day.

Weiss had recently courted the Los Angeles County Young Democrats and the Bruin Democrats as partisan supporters for his campaign. Judging by the otherwise inexplicable number of young people holding pro-Weiss signs, LACYD (and the rat) were there to cheer for Weiss without regard for whatever Weiss said.

Once the debate got underway, however, the pro-Weiss cheers appeared to fade as Carmen Trutanich deftly countered Weiss's "Vote for my opponent if you like guns" attacks.

Weiss made frequent reference to the recent acts of gun violence in Oakland and New York, to promote himself as the anti-gun candidate. However, Trutanich countered with the fact the Los Angeles Police Protective League, the LAPD Union, had endorsed Trutanich the day after the New York massacre and well past the slaying of four Oakland police officers. Clearly the 10,000 officers on the streets of Los Angeles feel more comfortable with Trutanich than Weiss.

Trutanich's responses were deft because they laid open Weiss's woeful record. There was a palpable hush in the crowded meeting room when Trutanich revealed Weiss's lack of experience; When Trutanich stated that Weiss had only conducted 2 jury trials in his entire career, Weiss did not dispute that fact even though Weiss previously claimed to have tried 'about 8' jury trials. The "Go Jack Weiss" signs remained still as their holders pondered the record of their hero; Weiss the self proclaimed 'experienced prosecutor.'


Yet more damning evidence of Weiss's inadequacies were visited on the LACYD when Weiss challenged Trutanich's claim that he (Weiss) had been absent from 33% of City Hall meetings.

Weiss said that Trutanich was wrong and should check his facts. Trutanich then produced a print-out of Weiss's attendance at City Hall meetings, including the Public Safety Committee that Weiss chairs. Trutanich offered Weiss a pair of reading glasses and suggested Weiss look at the figures. Oh, and Trutanich also apologized for being wrong on the figures; Weiss was absent 38% of the time, not 33%!



Weiss can hardly claim to have won the debate, unless he considers having his own supporters starting to have doubts a victory. Oh, and the rat? Most of the regular attendees at the LA Coalition of Neighborhood Councils thought the inflatable rodent more akin to Weiss - full of hot air.



The fact that Weiss now has to resort to 'Big Lie' tactics to try to convince the uninformed of the merits of his candidacy underlies the weakness of his candidacy. The real problem for Weiss is just as much his lack of experience as it is that Carmen Trutanich seems to have the facts at his fingertips to not only challenge but refute Weiss's claim to be 'the experienced prosecutor.' Indeed, Trutanich's claim that Weiss is a 'novice' went substantively unchallenged.

One Brave Lady

I'll let the video speak for itself.