David Berger on Los Angeles

Kevin James Announces Half A Million Dollars Pledged In Race To Be LA's Next Mayor

2011-04-05T12:25:00.000-07:00

Barely a day after a Los Angeles Times op-ed piece deliberately omitted to mention Mayoral candidate Kevin James in what appeared to be a biased review of Mayoral hopefuls, Kevin James responded with the only news that really matters; he has already received campaign contribution commitments which "Exceed $500,000".

Kevin James announced his candidacy on March 16, 2011. In slightly less
than 2 and a half weeks, James has $500k in campaign commitments.

In a statement released on his campaign website, KevinJamesForMayor.com, James stated:

“I am honored and humbled to have earned such strong early support from all across the community. I am encouraged and motivated by their commitment to this campaign and promise to do my best to put Los Angeles back on track to prosperity. We can do better. We must do better.”

James’ political consultant, John S. Thomas, noted: “This early show of support clearly demonstrates Kevin James’ strength as a candidate. Our campaign fully intends to garner the resources necessary to run a winning campaign. This is precisely the kind of momentum an outsider requires to topple the status quo and break through the barrage of special interest money that will be flooding our opponent’s bank accounts.”

What is interesting is how James has been able to raise so much money, so soon. Some clue as to James' remarkable success might be found in something else that Thomas said; "a select list of early contributors will be available by request. These donors have committed to serve as Co-Chairmen ($25k) and Finance Committee ($10k)."

It 's a very smart approach to fundraising, the kind of financial smarts this City will need in its next Mayor who will take over the eight years of fiscal irresponsibility that will be Mayor Villaraigosa's legacy.

Thus far, James has set himself ahead of the pack of Mayoral hopefuls which is said to include L.A. City Council members Jan Perry and Eric Garcetti, City Controller Wendy Greuel, First Deputy Mayor Austin Beutner, County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky and real estate developer Rick Caruso.

On June 30, 2011 all campaigns have to file reports of their fundraising, so it will be interesting to see which of the others will be in second place to James.

Kevin James for Mayor 2013

2011-03-16T22:45:00.000-07:00

A refreshing breath of fresh air swept across the south lawn of Los Angeles City Hall this morning; Kevin James announced his candidacy for Mayor of Los Angeles.

Retired LA Daily News editor Ron Kaye introduced James, a 47 year-old former Assistant US Attorney who currently hosts a late night talk show on KRLA 870.

James gave a short speech outlining his vision for America's second largest city. “LA must become more business friendly across the board. Bringing jobs back is one of my top priorities.” James stated,“Given the wide range of industries based in the Los Angeles region, coupled with the diverse and far reaching pool of talent in our city, there is no city in the country better situated for a major recovery than ours.”

I'm sure it was purely coincidental that the City of Los Angeles decided to cut off the electricity powering the public address system, nevertheless, James's message was clearly heard, leaving little doubt that James means business; business for Los Angeles.

James's business friendly message received enthusiastic applause from the small but influential crown of supporters, and the strong presence of local media showed that James's candidacy is one to be taken seriously.

Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley was amongst the spectators cheering James's candidacy. LA's 'Top Cop' stopped short of an official endorsement, simply describing James as "a very good friend" of many years.

Underlining that James means business, Gary Aminoff a respected businessman and President of the San Fernando Valley Republican Club, showed his support of James's candidacy with hearty congratulations and encouragement on the launch of the campaign website, www.KevinJamesForMayor.com.

James stated that he expected to raise between $2M to $3M for his campaign, and indicated that he had received commitments for "over a hundred thousand dollars" since word of his candidacy spread yesterday.

Good luck Kevin James, Los Angeles needs you.

Kevin James to run for Mayor of Los Angeles

2011-03-15T20:58:00.000-07:00

Kevin James will officially announce his candidacy for Mayor of Los Angeles at 10AM, Wednesday, March 16, 2011 on the South Lawn at City Hall. It's a welcome piece of good news after the doom, gloom and disaster that we've witnessed in the past week - and of course I'm not just referring to the results of the 2011 City elections.

Kevin James, former Assistant US Attorney and current KRLA Talk Show host
led a brave and honorable call to investigate fundraising irregularities in 2009

According to the Los Angeles Times, "Another contender for the 2013 Los Angeles mayoral race is throwing his hat into the ring.

Radio personality Kevin James, who broadcasts on KRLA-AM (870) weekdays from midnight to 3 a.m., plans to announce his candidacy on Wednesday on the steps of City Hall.

Campaign spokesman John Thomas said James, 47, wants to make Los Angeles more business-friendly and believes that "we desperately need new leadership in L.A." James already has working relationships with union leaders, business officials and nonprofit groups, Thomas said.

"One of the secrets to his candidacy is he brings a broad-based coalition to the table," Thomas said.

A radio broadcaster since 2003, James lives in Laurel Canyon and has practiced law for such firms as Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher. He was a prosecutor for the U.S. attorney's office and spent six years on the board of directors of AIDS Project L.A."

Fittingly, the last time James was on the City Hall steps at the South Lawn was in May of 2009 when he was one of a few good men and women brave enough to join me in demanding an investigation into election irregularities by a City Hall insider.

In having the courage then to stand up to the "business as usual brigade," James demonstrated the kind of no-nonsense leadership and commitment to transparency that this City desperately needs after six years of catch-phrases and photo-op failures.

I hope you will join me on City Hall's South Lawn tomorrow to cheer "Kevin James for Mayor!"

Wondering How To Vote on Tuesday, March 8 2011?

2011-03-07T22:32:00.000-08:00

Tuesday, March 8, 2012 is Election Day in LA, although if you don't live in one of the City's 8 even-numbered Council Districts, you might not know it. If you don't know where to vote, CLICK HERE.

In case you are undecided about which way to vote, or whether to vote at all, I have some suggestions for you, as well as some links to others with different recommendations. Although we may differ on our recommendations, the one thing I know we all agree upon, is that you have to vote. Our democracy fails when voters allow elected officials to get a pass because of voter apathy.

So here goes:

COUNCIL DISTRICT 2
No question, vote to re-elect Paul Krekorian. Regardless of the fact that he is the odds on favorite, go and vote for him anyway. The bigger his majority in votes cast, the stronger message it sends to other Councilmembers that they need to be as accountable and accessible as Krekorian in order to justify holding on to office. Vote Krekorian.

COUNCIL DISTRICT 4
This is a hard choice. Incumbent Tom LaBonge is facing credible challenges from Stephen Box and Thomas O'Grady, making the likelihood of a runoff between LaBonge and one of the challengers increasingly likely.

LaBonge is one of the politest people you will meet in City Hall, but many wonder if being a nice guy is enough to justify a third term. My recommendation is a vote for LaBonge if you like the way he has represented your district and respect his 35 years of public service.

But if you want to make a change in Los Angeles, vote for Stephen Box, he endorsed by LA Clean Sweep, and has the wit, desire and will to be an accountable representative in City Hall. Vote Box for CD4.

COUNCIL DISTRICT 6
This is an easy one for me. David Barron is a Los Angeles City Code Enforcement Officer who has a keen interest in the City he lives and works in. Like Stephen Box, David Baron is endorsed by LA Clean Sweep, the movement to oust lackluster incumbents like Tony Cardenas who seem more concerned with special interests than the needs of LA. Vote Barron.

COUNCIL DISTRICT 8
Another easy one. Incumbent Bernard Parks has been the target of a nasty and well funded campaign by Forescee Hogan-Rowles, mostly because he is the most fiscally prudent Councilmember in City Hall. Parks is also endorsed by Los Angeles Clean Sweep. Vote Parks.

COUNCIL DISTRICT 10
If incumbent Herb Wesson Jr. can be beaten by anyone, then Althea Raw Shaw is the person to vote for. I can do no better than to repeat what Higby at the Mayor Sam blog says "Herb Wesson is a joke with his animal shows in Council. He's another recycled politician from Sacramento. Althea Shaw however would bring the sensibilities of a regular person and would be an impassioned advocate for public safety and victims. Shaw was thrust into the spotlight when tragedy befell her family much in the same way Carolyn McCarthy became a respected member of Congress following the shooting death of her family members. Vote for Shaw."

COUNCIL DISTRICT 12
Brad Smith (another Los Angeles Clean Sweep endorsee) could well surprise favorite Mitch Englander with voters associating the name Smith with that of outgoing Councilmember Smith. Vote Smith.

COUNCIL DISTRICT 14
Rudy Martinez. There is no other choice given the way the incumbent has conducted his campaign. Vote Martinez.

WHAT ABOUT THE PROPOSITIONS?
Easy. No on everything. The City's problems will not be solved by propositions, but by sound and prudent fiscal management. If we had a Council where the elected officials care more about balancing a budget than pandering to the special interests who line their pockets at our expense, we wouldn't need propositions to solve revenue shortfalls. Say 'No' to everything, and kick out those who got us into this mess, and install candidates who will run the City responsibly.

COMMUNITY COLLEGE:
Seat 1: Essavi
Seat 3: Write in "Mark Isler"

LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT:
District 1: Lee
District 3: Pugliese
District 5: Fernandez
District 7: Love

OTHER VOTER GUIDES
Check out what others think:

Walter Moore - Walter has a handy-dandy concise voter guide.

Mayor Sam Blog - Very detailed analysis and endorsements from Higby and Joe B.
CD2 Paul Krekorian
CD4 Stephen Box
CD6 Anyone But Cardenas
CD8 Split Decision
CD10 Anyone But Wesson
CD12 Anyone But Englander
CD14 Split Decision

Street-Hassle - Tons of analysis from Mulholland Terrace

Whatever you do, please, please, please, GET OUT AND VOTE!

Apologies - Site Updates In Progress

2011-02-16T19:15:00.000-08:00

As many of you know I have not been active on this Blog since June 2009, due to potential conflicts of interest while serving at the City Attorney's Office. I left the City Attorney's Office in March 2010 and returned to the District Attorney's Office.

I decided to reactivate this Blog yesterday and, in the process, many of you may have received an email with nothing but a list of old posts. I apologize for this unintended intrusion, and assure you that in future there will be something worth reading.

Regards,

David Berger

GET OUT AND VOTE!

2010-11-02T13:08:00.000-07:00

Polling Place at 8:30AM

Yes, it's that time again, and this time the voter turnout looks good, certainly better than the City Elections that were only eighteen months ago. Judging by the number of voters I saw coming and going this morning, I think there will be a higher number of voters than expected.

So, if you haven't already voted, please do.

If you're not sure how to vote on the nine propositions, here's a link to my suggestions.

If you don't care for my suggestions, check out Walter Moore's, and Mayor Sam's.

And if you're not sure where to vote, this link will help you to find your polling place.

The most important thing, of course, is that you do get out and vote.

Couldn't Say It Better - Weiss Is "Unfit"

2009-05-19T01:13:00.000-07:00

Monday, May 18, 2009

The LA Times says it so well.

Take a look for yourself by clicking on the images above.

Read'em and weep Jackass Weiss, you are about to be flushed down one of the toilets that the Mayor's buddies just cleaned.

Hit the road Jack!

Who Said "I Am Not A Crook"

2009-05-17T18:49:00.001-07:00

Weiss Campaign Crumbles - Desperate Times For The "Experienced" Loser

2009-05-17T10:08:00.000-07:00

Sunday, May 17, 2009

I did so look forward to this morning's Sunday LA Times, especially as in it's endorsement section, these TRU-ly joyous words:

"Los Angeles city attorney: Carmen Trutanich. He's a lawyer with solid prosecutorial and defense experience and would bring some needed new perspective to the city attorney's office. Opponent Jack Weiss is running a progressively negative campaign that underscores his unfitness for the post."

Read the Time's own words by CLICKING HERE.

If I needed any further proof that Weiss is "UNFIT" for the post, the evidence was provided by Jack Weiss's supporters, who vandalized three Trutanich Yard Signs last night. Neighbors are also reporting that their Trutanich signs have been similarly vandalized.

Oh, did I say that the LA Times CALLED JACK WEISS "UNFIT" FOR THE POST OF CITY ATTORNEY?

It's a sure sign of desperation in the final days of Jack Weiss's political career, that those who support him commit the crimes of Vandalism, Trespass and Littering. But it's no surprise really - many of Jack's supporters are criminals.

Weiss supporters beware. As David Vahedi also suffered similar attacks from Paul Koretz supporters, video cameras caught the culprits.

Oh, and don't worry, there are more signs and we'll be waiting for Weiss supporters to vandalize them. It would make a great election day headline "Weiss Supporters Arrested For Vandalism." I don't think the Times will need too much persuasion to run that story...

Where To Vote

2009-05-16T21:09:00.001-07:00

If you, like me, have not received your Voter Information pamphlet, don't worry.

Thanks to the League of Women Voters Education Fund, you can find out where you will be voting by CLICKING HERE.

Weiss Campaign Has Lost The Media

2009-05-16T18:53:00.000-07:00

Saturday, May 15, 2009

As the days to the election dwindle down in the single digits, the press has been ablaze with reports of Jack Weiss-related misconduct, deception and negativity.

Today's LA Times carries two interesting articles:

David Zahniser digs deeper into Jack Weiss's illegal fundraiser in "Former L.A. pension board member may have broken ethics law."

Maeve Reston debunks some of the lies in Jack Weiss's ads in "Analyzing the facts in city attorney's race ads."

Earlier in the week, Sherri Okamoto's article in the Metropolitan News Enterprise "Zine Joins Attorneys’ Call for Investigation of Weiss’ Campaign Fundraising" discussed calls for an investigation into Jack Weiss's illegal fundraising.

The LA Weekly's article; "Bill Bratton's Endorsement Spectacle" is sharply critical of Chief Bratton's 'no-brainer' endorsement' of Jack Weiss and the unsavory nature of the Weiss-Villaraigosa machine.

Perhaps "Article of the Week" award should go to Roger Grace at the Metropolitan News Enterprise for: "Jack Weiss’s Campaign Approach Is Affront to the Legal Profession."

If "Article of the Week" goes to the Metropolitan News Enterprise, the Emmy goes to FOX 11 News reporter John Schwada.

Amid John Schwada's reportage of shenanigans with various Los Angeles pensions board appointees and advisors, Jack Weiss's got an unexpected visit from Schwada.

Weiss looked completely like a deer in the headlights when confronted by poor choices with his fundraising activities. The significant part of the story is Weiss's initial flat out lie when he tries to pretend that this was the first time he was made aware of the matter. Please CLICK HERE to see Jack Weiss trying to fool us on broadcast television.

I have just learned that the Sunday LA Times will carry an Editorial that will be sharply critical of Jack Weiss and may go as far as to call him "unfit" for the position of City Attorney.

What does all this mean?

There are voters who only know Jack Weiss because his name has been around Los Angeles politics for 8 years. This week's media attention will make them realize that they recognize the name "Weiss" for the same reason that they recognize the name "Blagojevich."

Averill 'Ace' Smith, Jack Weiss's strategist and architect of the dirtiest of campaigns, might now be ruing what he believed was Jack Weiss's strongest asset; "name recognition." The problem for Smith and Jack Weiss is that name recognition is a double edged sword.

The Weiss name has only been recognizable in this critical week because of his alleged involvement in illegal fundraising. That, in turn, has revealed his appalling record of arrogance, disregard for residents, affinity with special interests, and absences from City Hall.

The importance of getting out to vote and getting others to do the same has never been more important in our city's history. If you want to save Los Angeles from the clutches of someone who is in my opinion a morally corrupt politician, then share this week's news with as many of your friends, family and co-workers as possible.

They don't have to take my word for it, they don't have to take your word for it, just tell them to use the linked media reports above and form their own opinions.

Those who have truly known Jack Weiss because of his disservice to the community that elected him, as opposed to his service to the 'community' that pays him, will only breathe a sigh of relief when the last vote is counted and Weiss's political career is over.

Has Jack Weiss Lawyered Up?

2009-05-15T01:16:00.001-07:00

Friday, May 15, 2009

I reported on Wednesday's Rally to Call For An Investigation Into Jack Weiss's Illegal Fundraising.

Thankfully, reporters Sherri Okamoto from The Metropolitan News Enterprise and Greg Katz from The Daily Journal reported the demands of Councilmember Dennis Zine, KRLA 870AM's Kevin James, and your humble servant, to Investigate Jack Weiss's Illegal Fundraising.

Additionally, I demanded that our Police Chief Bratton now withdraw his inflammatory and controversial endorsement of Jack Weiss as Jack Weiss is either a 'Person of Interest' or a suspect in the illegal fundraiser held in Beverly Hills by the disgraced former City Pensions Commissioner Kelly Candaele, who unlawfully hosted a fundraiser for Jack Weiss on April 27, 2009, and who promptly resigned the following day.

I also reported that during the Rally, I was intrigued to see Averill 'Ace' Smith - the Jack Weiss campaign strategist, paying close attention to our Rally.

After the Rally I noticed Averill in a somewhat dejected state, standing head bowed with his hands in his pockets, while some then unidentified sharply dressed male was engaged in an animated conversation with reporters. I took a photograph because it intrigued me. Who was that man? What was he saying? I thought it newsworthy, so I reported separately on what appeared to be a sign of 'Weiss Camp Worries."

Imagine my joy and surprise upon reading Sherri Okamoto's excellent reportage this morning. Sherri identified the sharply dressed male as one of Los Angeles's top criminal defense attorneys; former Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven G. Madison, currently a partner with Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges LLP.

Sherri Okamoto reported that Steven G. Madison was "Accompanying" Averill - Jack Weiss's campaign strategist. Why would one of LA's top criminal defense attorneys be "Accompanying" Smith at my Rally?

During the lunch hour I received a call from KRLA's Kevin James, who had also read Okamoto's piece. Kevin was fired up "Do you realize who Steven G. Madison is?" he said. "Yes, a criminal defense attorney, how ironic that Weiss, who has vilified the criminal defense bar, would have a criminal defense attorney in tow at the rally." I replied.

But as Kevin James pointed out, Steven G. Madison is no ordinary top defense attorney. It was Steven G. Madison who just recently defended George Tores - the boss of Numero Uno who was convicted on 55 out of 56 federal racketeering charges on April 20, 2009. That's no reflection on Madison; a good attorney with a truly bad client hasn't got much to work with.

Ex Numero Uno Boss George Tores

Kevin James pointed me to an article written by LA Weekly reporter Jeffrey Anderson on April 30, 2009. I recommend you reading the article to get some sense of how corrupt the Numero Uno boss was. If you haven't the time to read the whole article, let me excerpt the really interesting part here, as it may relate to why Jack Weiss's campaign manager had a top criminal defense attorney in tow.

"Yet the jury heard enough to reach a speedy decision: Torres was convicted on almost every count, including his attempt to bribe former L.A. City planning commissioners Steven Carmona and George Luk to secure a zoning permit.

Still, the question remains, how many other public officials were influenced by Torres’ money? How many other L.A.P.D. officers got close enough to Torres to arouse suspicion? The indictment states that an L.A. City Councilman appeared to be waiting in the wings to receive bag money from Torres, via Carmona and Luk.

Who could that have been? Is that person still in office?"

Unfortunately, neither the LA Weekly article nor the Indictment names the "L.A. City Councilman," leaving us to wonder who it might be.

Jack Weiss sits on the Planning and Land Use Management Committee where controversial decisions on zoning variances are often made. It has been widely reported that Jack Weiss has often sided with developers over the interests of his own constituents in granting zoning variances to allow for unpopular developments that are hugely profitable to developers.

Jack Weiss's campaign finance reports show that Weiss receives the bulk of his campaign contributions from developers, contractors, and all the law firms associated with the over-development in Council District 5 that led to the recent recall effort to remove Weiss from City Hall.

Of course, developers, contractors, and their law firms are free to contribute to politicians' campaigns, but in Jack Weiss's case, it has been established that Jack Weiss has received illegal campaign contributions from persons associated with Alan Casen's development company. Illegal campaign contributions that Jack Weiss has steadfastly refused to return in accordance with Campaign Finance Law, and as recently demanded by the California Fair Practices Political Commission.

As recently as April 27, 2009, Weiss again was party to the receipt of illegal campaign contributions, and this time he cannot claim to be 'ignorant' of the illegality, as he voted to appoint the City Pensions Board Commissioner who co-hosted the illegal fundraiser, and he voted for the law making fundraising illegal for City appointees.

So what was Jack Weiss's campaign strategist and spokesman doing with on May 13, 2009, at my Rally with Steven G. Madison, one of LA's top criminal defense attorneys?

I did a little research into Steven G. Madison. All the information I have come from his firm's website. Madison's 'Notable Representations' include the following:

"Represented several witnesses in a political corruption investigation of a sitting Los Angeles City Councilman."

"Represented a City Councilmember in a criminal environmental investigation arising out of waste water spill during an El Niño storm; government determined the Councilmember was only a witness, not a subject or target."

Now I stress again that Steven G. Madison is a highly respected and ethical defense attorney. Everyone guilty or innocent has the right to the very finest legal representation they can obtain. I have no doubt whatsoever that based on the information on his firm's website, Steven G. Madison is highly skilled and effective in the defense of Councilmembers.

In Sherri Okamoto's article, Steven G. Madison is quoted commenting on the call for an investigation into Jack Weiss as saying '“what we’re seeing here is…partisan politics infecting the criminal justice system,” insisting that the criminal justice system should not be used to “investigate my political enemy.”'

You might well believe that Steven G. Madison is setting up a defense for any indictment that might result from an investigation into Jack Weiss's illegal fundraising.

The fact, of course, is that we do not know whether Steven G. Madison is Jack Weiss's attorney, or Averill Smith's attorney for that matter. But I think Walter Moore is entirely right to ask of Jack Weiss "Who are your attorney's and why are they representing you?"

The cornerstone of Jack Weiss's vile and deceitful campaign has been repeated demands to know the clients represented by Carmen Trutanich. So Jack Weiss should have no problem in informing us of which defense attorneys represent him, and why. Don't expect Jack Weiss to answer that question. After all, with Jack it's always "Listen to what I say, don't look at what I do."

On a final note, Sherri Okamoto reported that Averill Smith told her that 'Trutanich’s failure to make an appearance at the event [Rally] “speaks volumes about the lack of seriousness of the charges,” and criticized the candidate for lacking the “courage to stand out here himself.”'

If indeed there was a "lack of seriousness of the charges," why was Jack Weiss's campaign strategist and spokesperson there in the first place, and why was he "Accompanied" by one of LA's top defense attorneys who seems to be an expert in the defense of Councilmen?

I cannot put it better than Walter Moore "As a voter, I’d love to know whether this race is between a criminal defense lawyer, on the one hand, and a criminal defense lawyer’s client, on the other hand."

Weiss Camp Worries at Calls For Investigation

2009-05-13T23:41:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Los Angeles City Hall

Today's Rally on the steps of City Hall drew a mixed crowd. The vast majority were there to show their support for the calls to investigate Jack Weiss, as reported below.

But there was another small group watching intently, Jack Weiss's campaign advisor, Ace Smith (blue shirt, hands in pockets), and two sharply dressed unidentified men, seen here engaged in obviously highly animated tones with reporters Sherri Okamoto and Greg Katz from the Metropolitan News, and the Daily Journal, respectively.

The old adage, 'a picture paints a thousand words' is perhaps most apt here. As Ace Smith stands head bowed, perhaps in despair as his carefully crafted campaign falls apart, the unidentified gentlemen holds his hands defensively as he tries to address accusations of Jack Weiss's corruption and incompetence.

From the expression on his face and his gestures, he may be failing to answer the reporter's questions convincingly.

Investigate Jack Weiss!

2009-05-13T23:22:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Los Angeles City Hall

We gathered on the steps of City Hall today to demand an immediate investigation into Jack Weiss's illegal fundraising activities.

It was my honor to introduce Councilman Dennis Zine and KRLA 870AM Talk-Show host Kevin James to the media.

Councilman Zine spoke passionately about his 8 years of experience with the arrogant, corrupt and (perhaps thankfully) largely absent Jack Weiss.

Councilman Zine had a dire warning for Los Angelenos, electing Jack Weiss would be disastrous.

There's no question that Jack Weiss's record of law breaking raises more than a question mark over Jack Weiss's moral and ethical suitability for the Office of City Attorney.

Councilman Zine is a hard act to follow, but KRLA 870AM's Talk-Show Host, Kevin James was up to the task. James is a former prosecutor and he knows a crime when he sees it.

James demanded an immediate investigation into the crimes in Beverly Hills when Jack Weiss attended a fundraiser co-hosted by shamed ex-City Commissioner Kelly Candaele. Fundraising by a City appointed individual is a violation of the Los Angeles Municipal Code, and Weiss knows that as he voted for that law.

James questioned why, when the evidence against Jack Weiss is so compelling and basically unchallenged by Jack Weiss, there is still no prospect of an investigation before the May 19 election. It's not like there's that much to investigate - the law is clear, and the facts are uncontested. James called for the assistance of the media in demanding a swift investigation.

Kevin looked straight into the eyes of Jack Weiss spokesperson Ace Smith (bue shirt, hands in pockets) as he piled accusation after accusation of documented misconduct on Jack Weiss. Smith had no answer or statement for us, doubtless waiting for an opportunity to spin the story to the media after the event.

I wrapped up the Rally with my thanks to Councilman Zine and Kevin James, as well as all the supporters who took time from their busy schedules to show their support for restoring truth and integrity to City Hall.

I urged the media to inform the public of the need for an investigation into Jack Weiss's involvement in violations of our election laws, and called on them to deliver my demand to Chief Bratton that he immediately withdraw his endorsement of Jack Weiss. "It is wholly unacceptable that the Chief of Police of the nation's second largest city is endorsing Jack Weiss - a suspect in election law misconduct."

We'll all be scanning the newspapers in the next few days to see if our message is delivered.

Rally to Demand Investigation Into Jack Weiss Illegal Fundraising

2009-05-12T22:34:00.000-07:00

When: 2:00PM May 13, 2009
Where: City Hall - South Lawn steps

There is now so much public outrage at Jack Weiss's flagrant and brazen flouting of our campaign finance laws that on Wednesday, May 13, 2009, at 2:00PM Councilman Dennis Zine will hold a Rally on the steps of City Hall, on the South Lawn.

Councilman Zine will lead the call for action for an investigation into Jack Weiss's illegal fundraising, and he will be joined by KRLA 870AM's talk-show host Kevin James in the call to action to put an end to the cynical disregard for law demonstrated by Jack Weiss.

I will also be joining Rally to add my voice to those of Councilman Zine and Kevin James, and I will additionally demand that Chief Bratton now withdraw his endorsement of Jack Weiss, pending the outcome of the investigation.

This is not a fundraiser, this is an opportunity for you to voice your support for an important call to end the corruption in City Hall.

'X' marks the spot where we will meet on Wednesday. I have marked the nearest public parking with a 'P' if you decide to travel by car.

Please join the growing tide of public outrage at Jack Weiss and demand an investigation.

Fox 11 News - John Schwada Nails Weiss in Lie

2009-05-12T15:33:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

In case you don't have time to read the detailed report into Jack Weiss's fundraiser hosted by a convicted felon (see below), here's Fox 11's investigative report by John Schwada.

The really enjoyable part is at the begining where Weiss tries to lie his way out of the entire interview by saying "It's the first I've heard about it."

The look on Weiss's face tells the whole story; Weiss is caught red handed and doesn't know where to go. You also get to see the really nasty side of this arrogant failed politician.

It's not hard to understand why Weiss is so roundly hated and despised by everyone who knows him.

Weiss Lies About Attending Fundraiser Hosted By Convicted Felon

2009-05-12T00:58:00.000-07:00

Monday, May 11, 2009
More Jack Weiss Hypocrisy - Jack Attends Felon Fundraiser

Not content with holding an illegal fundraiser to bolster his failing campaign to become Los Angeles's next City Attorney, City Hall's 'Teflon Don,' Jack Weiss decided to do his fundraising at the home of convicted felon Michael Gottmann Rosenberg (54), on Sunday, May 3, 2009.

A pair of Jaguar sedans and a brand new Lexus grace the driveway of Rosenberg's $4M South Rimpau Blvd. home in L.A.'s exclusive Hancock Park neighborhood.

It was here, on Sunday, May 3, 2009, that Jack Weiss was rubbing shoulders with with Rosenberg and his guests to collect campaign contributions.

Court records show that on November 15, 1995, Rosenberg was convicted of a massive health industry fraud involving his operation of elder care and drug treatment facilities known as Walnut Convalescent Hospital, Convalescent Care Center, Hope House (also known as Merit Manor and Citi Lodge .

Rosenberg was sentenced to time behind bars and 5 years felony probation by the Judge who also issued an order that Rosenberg was "not to seek employment in the nursing-home or health-care industry."

Rosenberg opened his home to Weiss on Sunday to help Weiss raising money for his campaign. Weiss attended and must have thanked his host for his "support." Weiss, a former prosecutor must have known of Rosenberg's criminal past, but he must also have assumed that so close to the election, nobody would find out until it was too late.

Weiss was wrong. Very wrong.

Tonight Fox 11 News reporter John Schwada broke the story in the 10:00pm news. Weiss was visibly horrified at being confronted with the facts about his questionable fundraising.

Weiss tried to pretend that he did not know anything about it, but when Schwada told him that his campaign was aware of the 'problem' last Wednesday, Weiss changed his story and said he would be returning the money.

You can take that statement with a pinch of salt. Weiss was supposed to return funds from the illegal Beverly Hills fundraiser he held on Monday, April 27. But Weiss's campaign finance report dated May 2, 2009, failed to disclose any returned contributions.

The day after Weiss's campaign finance report was filed, Weiss went to the Hancock Park Felon Fundraiser, and today's promise to return those funds as well is just political hyperbole - a lie.

Jack Weiss has built his campaign on attacking Carmen Trutanich for being an attorney who defends criminals. Yet Weiss has no problem breaking the law himself to raise money, neither does he have a problem taking money from a convicted criminal. In return for what, you may rightly ask?

Court records show that Rosenberg was defended by two private attorneys, R. Tallcott, Esq., and J. P. Martin, Esq. I assume Weiss did not take campaign contributions from them, but with Jack it's all about "Listen to what I say, but don't look at what I do."

Thanks to the internet and modern technology, Jack's lies are failing to work and the truth is coming out.

Not a moment too soon.

Jack Weiss Picks Up Major Endorsement

2009-05-10T23:51:00.000-07:00

Sunday, May 10, 2009

With the polls for Carmen Trutanich and Jack Weiss "too close to call" a week and change before the May 19 election to see who will be our next City Attorney, the Weiss Campaign have released their bombshell secret weapon; an endorsement from former candidate Noel Weiss.

Just take a moment to see what Noel had to say on the topic of his new BFF, Jack Weiss.

If the video does not play in the window above, use this link to view it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRkRecemaks

Weiss Campaign - Prison Prospects Provoke Pandemonium

2009-05-08T22:27:00.000-07:00

Friday, May 8, 2009

As scandal after scandal continues to plague the house of cards that is the Jack Weiss campaign for City Attorney, the wheels appear to be coming of the wagon.

Whoever is writing the script for the last days of the Jack Weiss campaign must be wondering what else can possibly go wrong for the erstwhile 'Teflon Don' of Los Angeles politics.

As parallel investigations by the SEC, City Ethics Commission and the District Attorney's Office continue to probe into what has become known as 'Kellygate" - the illegal fundraiser held at the home of Beverly Hills philanthropists Daphna and Richard Ziman by Kelly Candaele (a City Pensions Commissioner), another scandal is emerging; Weiss has covered-up evidence of the illegal fundraiser.

Weiss spokesperson, Ace Smith (82), had promised that Jack Weiss would return the illegally obtained contributions, however, Jack Weiss's latest Campaign Finance Disclosure fails to mention any returned contributions, as required by law.

10 days remain before the May 19, 2009 election when former deputy district attorney Carmen Trutanich is poised to take out the 'Teflon Don.' Weiss looks likely to lose the election having failed to raise the $2M that he needs to buy his seat as Los Angeles City Attorney. But the real question is, will the indictments come before or after the election?

Weiss Tries To Cover Up Evidence of Illegal Fundraiser

2009-05-08T16:48:00.000-07:00

Friday, May 8, 2009

The saga of Jack Weiss's Illegal Fundraiser continues as it now appears that Weiss has not returned the illegal donations he received as a result of his illegal Beverly Hills fundraiser held on Monday, April 27, 2009.

The invitation to the exclusive, but illegal fundraiser

The LA Times reported that Weiss "...Will give back roughly $20,000 raised from Monday's event" said his campaign consultant Ace Smith.

Weiss spokesperson Ace Smith (72)

According to City Election law, Weiss has to report all contributions received as well as those returned to the City Ethics Commission.

According to the most recent Campaign Finance Report submitted by the embattled Weiss campaign, NO CONTRIBUTIONS WERE RETURNED WHATSOEVER.

Interestingly, no contributions were reported as being received from Daphna or Richard Ziman, owners of the secluded mansion where the illegal fundraiser was held. This fact leaves one to wonder whether the Weiss campaign are illegally withholding details of all the illegal campaign donations they received at the Ziman's residence.

Crime Scene; the Ziman's $16M Beverly Hills home

The fundraiser was illegal because it was co-hosted by a City appointee, Kelly Candaele, who resigned within 4 hours of the Mayor's Office being questioned about the illegal activity. Under Los Angeles Municipal Code Section 49.7.8, a city appointee may not engage in political fundraising.

Weiss is, of course, no stranger to failures to return illegal campaign contributions. Weiss has still not returned the money-laundered campaign contributions he received from developer Alan Casden's employees and associates.

Complaints into Weiss's illegal conduct have been submitted to the District Attorney's Office, as well as to the City Ethics Commission.

With less than 2 weeks to the May 19, 2009 election, Weiss must be praying that the attempts to cover up his illegal conduct continue to deflect media attention.

Crime Scene - Philanthropist Daphna Ziman's Home Hosts Illegal Fundraiser

2009-05-04T02:35:00.000-07:00

Monday, May 4, 2009, Beverly Hills

It's altogether another world for the vast majority of Los Angelenos; the world of the rich and privileged who clubbed together on Monday, April 27, 2009, to pay money to Jack Weiss.

Unbeknownst to most of them, they were participating in a crime - violating campaign finance law for the benefit of a corrupt politician; Jack Weiss.

An apparently small group of Beverly Hills super-rich elitists gathered at the Ziman home; a 10,311 square foot, 7 bed, 7 bath $16,000,000 (yes, that's $16M) Mega-Mansion that hides behind dense manicured foliage and a matched pair of wrought iron gates that costs more than the average Angeleno earns in a year.

The price of admission? A check for $1,000 to Weiss and no questions asked, thank you.

The gated compound that is 1006 N. Rexford Drive, Beverly Hills, 90210 is home to the super-rich celebrity couple Daphna and Richard Ziman. But on Monday night it was nothing more than a sordid crime scene.

The multi-millionaires, philanthropist Daphna (pictured above with American Idol winner Ruben Studdard) and her husband, former lawyer Richard, were probably unwitting accomplices to the filthy world of Jack Weiss politics that the LA Times bravely uncovered in their recent article.

The aerial photographs above show what is invisible to the majority of Los Angelenos; a secluded multi-million dollar home that offers a lavish lifestyle that few can achieve, let alone aspire to.

Welcome to the world of Jack Weiss, where hard work is a dirty word, and deceit and dishonesty are simply the incidences of admission.

Jack Weiss is engaged in a desperate battle to salvage his failing political career, and chose to ignore the law and shake down as many of his wealthy 'friends' as possible to finance his filthy, negative and untruthful campaign to buy the City Attorney's Office.

Co-host to the illegal fundraiser was Kelly Candaele (pictured above), a self-proclaimed "writer, filmmaker, teacher and elected official in Los Angeles."

In 2005 Candaele was appointed by Mayor Villaraigosa to the Los Angeles City Employees' Retirement System Board of Directors. In one of his rare appearances at City Hall proceedings, Jack Weiss as Councilmember for Council District 5, unquestioningly voted for the Mayor's appointee.

Equally unquestioningly, in 2004 Weiss also voted for a law that prohibits City appointed officials such as Candaele from engaging in campaign fundraising activities. Doubtless, Weiss relished basking in the illusion of being an "ethically correct politician."

However, at the same time that Weiss voted for the law, he was under investigation for being the recipient of thousands of dollars of money laundered illegal campaign contributions from property developer Alan Casden's corporate connections.

Ever the master of deceit and deception, Weiss evaded prosecution claiming that "He did not know" that the contributions he received were illegal. However, despite Weiss's ignorance he has has steadfastly refused to return the illegal campaign contributions as required by the Los Angeles City Charter and demanded by the Fair Political Practices Committee.

Given Weiss's apparent comfort level with accepting illegal campaign contributions, it cannot have bothered Weiss one iota that the Ziman's home was to be a crime scene on the night of Monday, April 27, 2009.

On that fateful night Weiss was unquestioningly admitted behind the wrought iron gates to the mansion where he doubtless obsequiously greeted co-host Kelly Candaele - the man he voted to appoint as a commissioner to the Pensions Board. Weiss cannot possibly have not known that Candaele was breaking the law in fundraising for him - he voted for Candaele and he voted for the law prohibiting Candaele from doing what he was doing; fundraising for Weiss.

But Weiss's desperation to finance his acquisition of the City Attorney's Office was more important than the law he's supposed to follow. Weiss needs that money to finance his hate-filled campaign airing glitzy misleading television advertisements proclaiming himself as some sort of super crime fighter. The law seemingly only applies to ordinary people, not the elite who worship at the feet of Jack Weiss.

Weiss apparently scooped up about $20,000 in donations on the night of the crime. You may well think that $20,000 is far less than the Mayor's 'Golden Boy' should have been able to extort from the Beverly Hills elite, but the reality is that Jack's arrogance and lack of people skills has finally caught up with him, and the donations are far and few between.

Big Union money now holds the key to Weiss's future, but as the sordid details of the 'Kellygate" scandal now unravel the incredibly arrogant and facile deceit Weiss practiced on his wealthy 'friends,' perhaps organized labor will chose to distance themeless from the slow motion train wreck that is the Weiss campaign.

Weiss's campaign manager s currently Mayor Villaraigosa and his campaign strategist is San Francisco based Ace Smith who masterminded Hillary Clinton's failed Presidential campaign.

Both Villaraigosa and Smith are probably wondering how they could have been so inept as to hitch their wagons to Weiss, and both are probably looking for a convenient bus under which to throw Jack Weiss.

While Jack Weiss was busy raking in illegal campaign donations on Monday night, Carmen Trutanich was hosted at a legal fundraiser at the Sheraton Hotel in Universal City.

Carmen Trutanich has been endorsed by the LA Times, the LA Daily News, the Metropolitan News and every single law enforcement agency in Los Angeles County including District Attorney Steve Cooley, Sheriff Lee Baca and the LAPD Union. Now you know why.

In the face of overwhelming evidence of either ineptitude or arrogance, or both, anyone who stands by Jack Weiss is condemned to be tarred with the same brush of cynical derision for the laws of mankind.

Jack Weiss's illegal conduct has gone unchallenged for too long. The very thought that this sort of elitist scum has any place in civilized society is an affront to basic notions of decency, and it's time to let criminal prosecution determine Jack's future.

It's time to elect decent and honest City Attorney, and Carmen Trutanich's appellation as the 'People's Lawyer' is perhaps the most fitting description of who we need to look after our interests.

As for Weiss, the "Elitist's Lacky" - as long as the super-rich continue to thrown their money like confetti at Weiss, they risk being sucked down into the dirty world of unethical conduct that is Jack Weiss; Los Angeles' version of Rod Blagojevich.

Weiss Fundraiser Violates Ethics Laws - What a surprise

2009-04-29T00:10:00.000-07:00

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"

2009-04-27T23:27:00.000-07:00

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

2009-04-26T16:11:00.001-07:00

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

2009-04-22T23:17:00.000-07:00

Photo Without A Caption

A picture paints a thousand words...

Full report to follow.

4 Candidates Debates before Election

2009-04-20T20:07:00.000-07:00

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

2009-04-20T11:08:00.001-07:00

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

2009-04-16T07:40:00.000-07:00

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

2009-04-13T22:34:00.000-07:00

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

2009-04-07T22:56:00.000-07:00

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

2009-04-03T11:08:00.000-07:00

I'll let the video speak for itself.

Weiss Lies?

2009-03-29T13:52:00.000-07:00

After receiving a drubbing in the March 3, 2009 Primary Election, Jack Weiss launched his campaign for the May 19 General Election at a fundraiser hosted by the Los Angeles County Young Democrats.

Weiss's pitch to the audience centered around his representation of their values. Seemingly none of the audience were aware of Weiss's actual values.

See the video to gain a little insight to those values...

I wonder how much support for Jack's campaign will continue to crumble now that more and more voters are becoming aware of dirty tricks like this? Are dirty tricks the 'values' that Jack claims to share with the Democrats?

We'll get the answer on May 19, 2009 when Carmen Trutanich is elected to the Office of City Attorney, and Jack Weiss is left to actually get a job. Now that'll be an interesting experience for the career politician won't it? Perhaps he'll become a lobbyist - after all, it seems to be the only occupation in which he's had any experience; well that and dirty tricks!

Watching The Last 46,000 Ballots

2009-03-09T23:44:00.001-07:00

My day began with a welcome email from Walter Moore. The election isn't over, well not completely, and as Walter's missive reminded me, 46,000 provisional ballots remain to be counted.
The City Clerk's Election division is also willing to allow members of the public to observe and so, at Walter's suggestion, I went back to where it all started, 555 Ramirez Street in Downtown Los Angeles.

I was met by Lucy, one of the many helpful workers at the Clerk's Office. My first question was "What is a provisional ballot?" Lucy was kind enough to explain (if only the DMV were so helpful) that these are basically
1) postal (absentee) ballots that were handed in at polling stations,
2) ballots that were cast by persons whose name could not be found at the polling station, or
3) ballots cast by persons who should have voted by mail, but turned up polling stations and claimed not to have cast a postal ballot, and
4) ballots that are damaged or unclear.
There are probably more reasons why a ballot might be considered "provisional" but you get the idea.

The first step, Lucy explained, is to check that the signature on the ballot matches a signature of a registered voter. Below is where that process takes place.

And they really check! Here you can see one of the election workers actually looking up a ballot and comparing the signature in their database to the signature on the ballot.

Once the signature match test is passed, the ballots go to this big room where further examination is carried out:

There's even a section where damaged ballots are repaired so that they can be counted:

Then the hard task of trying to discover the voters' intent begins for those postal ballots where, for example, the dot's in the wrong place - perhaps between two candidates, but more over one than the other. Or, a dot for one candidate has been 'x'ed out and another dot placed for another candidate.

It's a painstaking process,

requiring a skilled eye to make determination.

Postal ballots that were mailed after the deadline, but which arrived postmarked before the day of the election are considered "provisional" and will be counted too, as long as everyone is satisfied that the postal voter has not also cast a ballot at a polling station.

Finally, when all the provisional ballots that have passed all the tests are ready to be counted, they will be taken to this sealed room where a number of counting machines will tally-up the final vote.

I left the City Clerk's Election Division full of praise and admiration for the hard work that all the workers put in to ensure fairness in the count. I am satisfied that when the final count is known, it will be a fair and accurate count. Now I also know why it is that we will not know the final count until March 24, as you can see it is fair from a simple process.

Buy the way, I asked if the May 19 run-off election will be counted here and it seems that the County of Los Angeles will actually count those votes as the run-off coincides with a statewide special election.

So there you have it, democracy in action.

Election Results - A Champion Comes Forward

2009-03-04T10:40:00.000-08:00

It's a long story, but the bottom line is that I scored a major victory last night; Jack Weiss failed to cruise to outright victory and now must face Carmen "Nuch" Trutanich in the May '09 election.

Realistically, the best I could hope for was that my candidacy would do more to make voters aware of the danger Jack Weiss presents to democracy than it would do for me.

This election was never "all about me," it was about my life's mission; public service, and I feel I have done the people of Los Angeles a service in making them aware of the need to demand leadership, experience and integrity from City Hall. 31,556 voters agreed with me. Not enough for an outright win, not enough for a run-off, but a very respectable 4th place and more than enough to make Jack Weiss rue the day I threw my hat into the ring.

In the couple of months I've had on the campaign trail, I've gotten to know my fellow candidates really well. No other candidate impressed me as much as Nuch. Frankly, my worst nightmare would have been a run-off with him, as there's nothing about him that I don't like! He is a man of honor, principal and achievement. In the past he did the same job as I currently do; he was an accomplished Deputy District Attorney who founded our Environmental Crimes Division before embarking on a successful and honorable career in private practice.

So it's no surprise that I'm throwing my support behind Nuch and hope you will do the same.

Keep checking back and I'll be posting news here on how we can help to make Los Angeles a better place by electing a true champion of our values.

Election Results - Live as they come in

2009-03-03T10:27:00.000-08:00

KABC 790AM will be covering the election.

The City Clerk's Office website will have results updated every 20 minutes starting at 8PM

Here's the link

http://cityclerk.lacity.org/election/

VOTE!

2009-03-03T00:51:00.000-08:00

A picture paints a thousand words, so what more should I say?

The Final Forum

2009-03-03T00:39:00.000-08:00

The night before Election Day, KABC hosted a "Pitch Forks & Torches" Tour at the Four Points Sheraton Hotel at LAX.

The room was packed to capacity with motivated voters who gave me an uproarious reception!

My thanks go to KABC's Doug McIntyre and John Phillips for providing all the candidates with a final opportunity to "Pitch" their campaigns to the electorate. It was an important public service and a tremendous boost to all the candidates.

Thanks also to Nigel Skeet from The California Leader for following my campaign and providing me with splendid pictures that really tell the whole story.

Dirty Tricks from Jack Weiss's Desperate Campaign?

2009-03-01T12:58:00.000-08:00

Today I was shown a mailer that was sent to registered Republican voters. Jack Weiss features prominently on the mailer, suggesting to me that this is one of his "dirty tricks."

Why is it a "dirty trick?" Well, Jack Weiss is not a Republican, neither is Walter Moore, neither are ANY of the candidates mentioned on the mailer, with the exception of Suzy Evans.

So what's the deal here? Clearly the NBC News RAW poll showing me leading and Weiss trailing miserably despite his now all-spent $1.5M war-chest, Jack has no alternative but the desperate move to try to fool a handful of Republican voters that don't know better, that he's "one of them!"

Of course, Jack Weiss will deny any knowledge of this dirty trick. But Weiss has something of a record of denying knowledge, doesn't he? NBC's investigative report "Laundered Elections," into illegal campaign contributions that flowed to Weiss from Alan Casden's development company quoted Weiss as "not knowing" anything.

When called to testify before a Grand Jury, Weiss also claimed to "know nothing" about a $8,000 bill for "lap dancers" paid for by the Entertainment Industry Development Corporation.

When asked if he had received campaign donations from billboard operators, Jack Weiss "did not know."

When asked if he had received campaign donations from anyone connected with the expansion of the Buckley Private School in Sherman Oaks that he approved, Jack Weiss "didn't know" and said "go look it up on the City Ethics Commission website."

For someone who claims to be smart enough to be City Attorney, there's an awful lot that Jack Weiss doesn't know, isn't there?

Berger Leads NBC Poll

2009-02-27T08:36:00.000-08:00

NBC's News RAW is holding a "Quick Poll" for the City Attorney race.

As of Thursday, I was in second place:

Today, Friday, I'm leading the polls:

If you haven't already taken part in the poll, please use this link to go to the New RAW website. When you see the "Quick Poll" box about halfway down the page, click on my name and you've voted!

I don't know how long the poll will stay open, so be quick!

Here's the link to the poll:

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/City_Elections.html

David Berger on NBC News RAW

2009-02-24T06:54:00.000-08:00

NBC News RAW let me talk about my campaign for Los Angeles City Attorney

Campaigning Appeals to Kids

2009-02-22T22:33:00.000-08:00

Nina and Emily had a great idea to help my campaign. Watch the video:

Thankfully my good friend Ardy had a video enabled cellphone handy to capture the moment!

News from the Campaign Trail

2009-02-18T06:35:00.000-08:00

Tuesday, Westchester Neighborgood Council

With two weeks to go to Election day, I'm busy attending as many public meetings as possible. Often these meetings go on late into the night, but a couple of things impress me; Ordinary people care enough to come out and see the candidates, and my message - that they can kick out the career politicians and elect real people to do the job, is resonating.

You can see all the places I will be visiting on my website. Hope to see you there!

Hit The Road Jack!

2009-02-15T10:02:00.000-08:00

It's been a busy week on the campaign trail, more details to follow, but the highlight of the week was Friday's interview by Doug McIntyre on KABC 790AM.

'See' the interview here:

Please share this with everyone you know!

Tune In To AirTalk on KPCC 89.3FM on Tuesday Feb 10

2009-02-07T11:59:00.000-08:00

All City Attorney Candidates have been invited to Tuesday's live on-air Candidates Forum on AirTalk which 'airs' on daily NPR's KPCC from 10:00am to 12:00noon If you cannot tune in live, you can listen to a podcast later in the day from their website. Will Jack Weiss show up? Will he answer hard questions? Tune in and find out!

TWTWTW - That Was The Week That Was!

2009-02-05T22:54:00.000-08:00

It's been a busy week with Neighborhood Councils throughout the City of Los Angeles hosting Forums and Meet the Candidates events.

I have been blown away by the warm and friendly reception at every event, without exception or reservation. Here are some of my observations and comments. First and foremost, however, I must extend a sincere "Thank You" to all the residents who gave up two or three hours of their time to find out about their choices in the March election. Second, to the officers of the Neighborhood Councils who hosted the events, I truly appreciate your efforts in hosting these important opportunities for voters to be better informed, and for making all of the candidates feel welcome.

Monday, February 2, 2009
North Hills West Neighborhood Council City Attorney Forum
All candidates gave the audience some spirited answers to tricky questions. When I say "all candidates" I have to exclude Jack Weiss, as he could not be bothered to attend. He's either too important for 'ordinary voters,' or he's scared of being confronted by me over his dismal record as Councilmember for CD5, and his unethical conduct in failing to repay tax-payers for the matching funds he received by using illegal money-laundered campaign contributions. The Forum was expertly conducted by David Hyman, the North Hills West Neighborhood Council Outreach Chair, who graciously allowed all candidates to be heard, and all questions to be answered.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Harbor Gateway Neighborhood Council Candidates Forum
Again, Jack Weiss was a no-show. The cowardice and spinelessness of the man who claims to be some sort of super crime-fighter is palpable, and so I used a photo of the tight-lipped disgraced soon-to-be former councilmember to the delight of the audience. Gang crime, graffiti and overcrowded rental housing seemed to top the list of concerns in this neighborhood, all of which are matters I would be delighted to tackle as City Attorney.

Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Chatsworth Neighborhood Council - City Attorney Forum
Guess what? Jack Weiss was a no-show again! Jack's speechless photo again entertained the audience as I questioned the self-professed super crime-fighter's arrogance, distain and utter contempt for homeowners. On a personal note, I truly appreciated the delicious food and coffee provided by Vicky as I didn't have time to eat as I battled the rush hour traffic to get to Chatsworth on time. I also appreciated some pointed questioning from Dan, who should seriously consider a career in politics - I'd vote for him in a heartbeat! I also appreciated the way that Judy Daniels conducted the meeting and moved things along with her inimitable style and sharp wit.

Even though the Chatsworth Neighborhood Council officers were kind enough to let the candidates speak before they conducted their important regular business, all candidates stayed to learn a little about the issues that concern this friendly equestrian community.

Thursday, February 5, 2009
South Robertson & Palms Neighborhood Council
This was a forum for Councilmember candidates seeking to win the seat Jack Weiss is leaving in disgrace. The meeting room at Hamilton High School was packed with standing room only. Of course it now goes without saying that Jack Weiss was not in attendance. While the audience struggled to decide which councilmember candidate they dare to trust to be their voice against over-development and billboard blight, every member of the audience that I spoke to were decided on one thing - they do not want Jack Weiss to be City Attorney. Music to my ears, as almost all the people I spoke to were interested and intrigued by my candidacy.

Best Yard Sign Picture

2009-02-02T23:20:00.001-08:00

OK, so it's not a Lion, but it's certainly not a lap-dog!

The spirit of this campaign is capturing the imagination of ordinary people throughout the City, and worrying the big budget campaign of Jack Weiss.

Quoted in The Times

2009-01-31T23:59:00.000-08:00

Today's LA Times picks up on a theme I warned of; a Weiss-Villaraigosa pact would be a terrible thing for the City.

See the article here:

and of course, thanks to YouTube, see and hear me saying it:

Happy New Year!

2009-01-26T23:39:00.000-08:00

To all my supporters in the Chinese community, I too welcome the Year of the OxPeople born in the Year of the Ox are patient, speak little, and inspire confidence in others. I think I will need all those qualities for this campaign!

What Jack Weiss Doesn't Want You To Know Pt 1

2009-01-23T12:35:00.000-08:00

KNBC's Emmy winning investigate report "Laundered Elections" focuses heavily on City Attorney wanabe Jack Weiss as well as the current (soon to be ousted) City Attorney Rockard "Rocky" Delgadillo.

Both Weiss and Delgadillo received illegal campaign contributions from one of Los Angeles' biggest developers, as well as contractors and other associated special interests.

Both Weiss and Delgadillo failed to return either the dirty money, or the taxpayer matching funds based on the dirty money. Weiss claims he "didn't know" the money was dirty, so he doesn't have to return it.

Jack Weiss claims to be some sort of "hot shot supper crime fighter" well what does him saying "I didn't know" tell you? He's either stupid or dishonest. Either way it stinks.

Any decent moral person would not want the taint of dirty money, and would put their hand in their pocket and at a minimum repay the taxpayers for the matching funds based on the dirty money. But Jack doesn't want to put his hand in his pocket, he'd rather put his hand in your pocket - that's what matching funds are; taxpayer funds that are given to candidates who raise more than $75,000.

Jack's raised a lot of money, nearly all from developers, contractors, and their like. Jack must like being in their pockets. The question is, do you want him in yours?

What Jack Weiss Doesn't Want You To Know Pt 2

2009-01-23T12:32:00.000-08:00

Here is Part 2 of KNBC's Emmy-winning investigative report on Jack Weiss and illegal campaign contributions. It's appropriately titled "Laundered Elections."

Is Jack Weiss really what you want for your next City Attorney?

Had Enough of Weiss? See What A Real City Attorney Should Be

2009-01-23T12:28:00.000-08:00

If you've just finished watching KNBC's Emmy-winning investigative report on Jack Weiss, and feel as disgusted as I do, then take a look at what I can do for Los Angeles. This is my interview on "The Legal File."

KPCC 89.3FM To Interview Candidates

2009-01-23T09:03:00.001-08:00

A producer for National Public Radio station KPCC has invited me to participate in a live radio "candidates forum."

Larry Mantle the dynamic host of "Airtalk," a mid-morning current affairs program, will chair the debate.

I will post an update with the date of the broadcast as soon as it confirmed.

Sunday's Yard Signs

2009-01-18T20:52:00.001-08:00

Yard signs are going faster than I can get them!

Perhaps it's got something to do with the campaign logo - some think it reminds them of a recent campaign....

I've asked people to send me digital photos of the "planted" signs, and here are a few of the ones I've received;

If you would like a campaign Yard Sign, please go to my website and send me an email. I'll find a way to get one to you.

Yard Signs Roll Out!

2009-01-17T22:37:00.000-08:00

Coming soon to a neigborhood near you:

The striking Nigel Skeet inspired Yard Sign is an eye catcher.

Go to my website, click "Contact" and send me an email and I'll figure out how to get a yard sign to you.

Jack "No-Show" Weiss Ducks Questions

2009-01-17T19:29:00.000-08:00

The Coalition of Homeowners Associations for Council District 5 held a Forum for Candidates for City Attorney. Now, you would think that Candidate Jack Weiss would be there. After all, he's been the elected Councilmember for Council District 5 for 8 years. Surely he would want to meet with the people he represents?

Take a look at this video from the Forum

It was no surprise to me that Jack Weiss didn't want to face the people that know him better than anyone else; his constituents - the people of Council District 5 whose interests and concerns he has consistently ignored in favor of developers and their associated special interests.

If Weiss won't face the people he represents as councilmember, how different will he be as City Attorney? My guess, and that of everyone else in CD5, is that he will be no different. He will ignore "ordinary" people in favor of Big Money. That's Jack.

"Pay to Play" & The Press

2009-01-13T23:09:00.000-08:00

Both of Los Angeles' leading print newspapers the LA Times and The Daily News published stories on the upcoming municipal election. Both seem completely intoxicated with fundraising. Only those candidates who had raised the most money got a mention, leaving their readers completely uninformed as to the very existence of other candidates.

Is this really the state of news reporting in Los Angeles? Haven't we seen enough of the evils of the "Mega Bucks" attitude that has led to our current economic woes? It's a very worrying message isn't it? Raise the most money and the press will roll over and love you for it without even questioning the source of the money.

Jack Weiss is the hero of the Los Angeles press, it seems, with a special interest warchest of $1.2M. The LA Times article at least mentioned that his campaign manager is non other than disgraced Mayor Villaraigosa, and at least mentioned two other candidates who have raised significant campaign funds. The Daily News article was strange. The Daily News has historically been less behooved to Mayor Villaraigosa and the special interests that fuel his campaign. Yet the Daily News failed to mention the names of any other City Attorney candidate whatsoever.

Worse still is that neither the Times nor the News conducted any analysis whatsoever as to of the source of Weiss's warchest. So here it is:

Yes. The ugly truth is that over $1M of Jack Weiss' money comes from developers, developers' lawyers, and their associated special interests. These figures are based on the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission's figures.

We all know that print media is facing extremely hard times, with newspapers losing money faster than a Bernie Madoff investor.

Could it be that editors overrode their reporters copy? After all, with Mayor Villaraigosa and Jack Weiss poised to spend their combined warchest of almost $4M on advertising, perhaps the Times and the Daily News editors want to make sure they don't upset their political "bailout packages" by printing anything negative about the Mayor and Weiss?

Just a thought.

CD5 Coalition Homeowners Associations rates me "Excellent"

2009-01-11T10:08:00.001-08:00

On Saturday morning, January 10, 2009, the Coalition of Homeowners Associations for Council District 5 held a Candidates Forum for all five City Attorney candidates. I was rated "Excellent."

The forum consisted of an intense two-hour series of questions designed to probe candidates' qualifications, ethics and stance on issues. The goal was to find the optimal candidate who will fairly represent the concerns of homeowners.

Pictured above and below, from left to right are; Michael Amerian, David Berger, Carmen Trutanich, and Noel Weiss.
My thanks go to Marcia Selz for hosting the forum and to my fellow candidates for showing up and making for what was a lively and informative forum.

By the way, candidate Jack Weiss refused to attend. He was probably scared at having to face me in an open forum where I could fairly challenge him over his lack of ethics in receiving and keeping money-laundered illegal campaign contributions.

Protect Yourself - You Won't Hear About This In The Press

2009-01-09T23:06:00.001-08:00

I don't want to cause a panic, but you should be aware of this.

So, while we have 26 less cops on the Westiside because the Mayor and Jack Weiss think that's "OK," and that despite the failing economy and time-proven statistics that show that crime goes up when the economy goes down, you might want to take a good look at the locks you have on your home, because burglars are getting all the information they need to "bump" the lock on your door.

The inconvenient truth for people other than elitists like Jack Weiss,, by which I mean ordinary people who don't have private security and certainly don't have the same level of protection from LAPD now that Jack Weiss has "approved" the reduction of police services in his council district, is that we're all more vulnerable to the inevitable increase in crime that will occur as criminals pay their bills by breaking into our homes.

Even if you don't vote for me on March 3, 2009, do please take a look at your personal security. Good locks, good lighting, and a strong bond with your neighbors are probably the best way you can protect yourself and all you've worked for.

Crime Down in LA? The Inconvenient Truth...

2009-01-09T22:46:00.000-08:00

While the media headlines Chief Bratton and Mayor Villaraigosa's claims of their successes in reducing crime in LA, the rest of us know better. We see more and more ugly gang graffiti everywhere. As soon as it's painted over, it's back again.

Ask any expert on gangs and they'll tell you that gang graffiti is like an earthquake seismograph, it's a clear sign of what' is actually going on. And the clear sign here is that the gangs are getting bigger, bolder and more at ease in showing their colors, while the Mayor and his followers glad hand each other and try to palm us off with massaged statistics.

Mayoral candidate Walter Moore, a man who isn't afraid of confronting inconvenient truths, wrote a stunning analysis of the true state of crime in LA. I urge you to read it, then contrast what Mr. Moore says with what the Mayor says, or rather doesn't say.

The true statistics published by Chief Bratton show that you and I are almost twice as likely to be murdered here in LA, than if we lived in what was once the murder capitol of the USA; New York City. Yes, the murder rate in Los Angeles is 51% higher than that of New York City. Surely that should be a headline?

The fact is that in the City of Los Angeles, with a population of 4 million, there were 381 murders last year, that's 95.3 per million Los Angelenos. In New York City, with a population of 8.2 million, there were 514 murders in the same period, that's 62.7 per million New Yorkers. Do the math yourself, please don't trust me or Walter Moore. The murder rate in Los Angeles is 51% higher that New York City. Why?

Well we all know why. While we all know that Los Angeles is seriously under policed when compared to New York, and while Mayor Villaraigosa claims he's committed to increasing the number of cops in LA, the facts are wildly opposite to the Mayor's claims. Instead of hiring more cops, he increased his personal staff from 70 to 93 this year. 23 more aides to carry his bottled water, marker pens, pads and his Listerine breath strips.

As Mayor Villaraigosa's personal staff swelled by 23 more acolytes, the Mayor and his lap-dog in waiting, Jack Weiss, applauded a reduction of 26 cops on Westside so that they could be deployed at a new police station. The new police station in Koreatown had been built at a cost of $25M, but no money had been set aside for hiring cops to staff it, so they pulled vitally needed cops from the Westside.

All it would have taken is for the Mayor to suffer the inconvenience "only" having 70 personal assistants, and hired 23 cops to staff the new Koreatown police station. But, the Mayor and Weiss are determined to move on to being Governor and Attorney General, so they need aides more than we need cops.

In the meantime, we have to live (or die) with the inconvenient truth. The Mayor and the person he (only he) wants as his City Attorney, Jack Weiss, are more concerned with their political aspirations than public safety.

On March 3, 2009, you will have a chance to tell Weiss and Villaraigosa what you think of their abysmal lack of commitment to public safety. I urge you; vote Moore for Mayor, and Berger for City Attorney and let's put a stop to pretend play politics.

Bumper Stickers!

2009-01-05T23:34:00.001-08:00

Thanks to a steady stream of much appreciated campaign contributions, I have ordered an initial batch of bumper stickers.

I hope you approve and if you want some, shoot me an email from my website.

Weiss Dodges Campaign Contribution Question

2008-12-28T19:31:00.000-08:00

It's a simple enough question;
"Have you received money for your upcoming campaign from the Buckley Schools, and if so, how much?"

Well, click on the 'Play' button bellow to see if Jack Weiss answers the question...

When pressed for a simple "Yes or No," Weiss said "I don't know," and "Go look it up on the internet."

Some might say that it's perfectly reasonable for Jack Weiss not to know the identity of all the people who give him money. However, the issue here was that Weiss approved the expansion of the Buckley private school over the objection of local residents. It is highly likely that parents and supporters of the school contributed to his campaign, so why try to avoid the question?

Is this what you want from your next City Attorney? Evasiveness? Arrogance? A total lack of accountability?

This short piece of video provides an interesting glimpse into the disdain, contempt, and disregard that Jack Weiss holds for "ordinary" people.

I am running for City Attorney because I do not believe any elected official should be allowed to act like this. Fair questions deserve open, honest and frank answers. If Jack Weiss is ashamed of accepting campaign donations from special interests, then why doesn't he return them?

The Legal File Interviews David Berger

2008-12-22T23:54:00.000-08:00

I was fortunate enough to be interviewed by The Legal File host, Charles B. Parselle, Esq., an accomplished attorney and experienced mediator.

I hope you enjoy the show.

Weiss Silent on $24M Gang Program Secrecy

2008-12-21T22:03:00.000-08:00

As reported in the L.A. Weekly this week, the City Council will not reveal the names or credentials of the 50 people who will decide how $24M will be spent on the City's anti-gang program. It's a fait accompli according to the Mayor and Rev. Jeff Carr, the City's new "Gang Tzar," and the public are not to be told who will decide how to dole out the money. What does Jack Weiss say about that? Nothing.

Given the City's appalling record of doling out money to questionable anti-gang programs - remember the $1.6M given to self-proclaimed "former" 18th Street gang member Hector Marroquin for his "No Guns" program? Well Marroquin turned out to be not so much of a "former" gang member, and more of an active gang member supplying guns to gangs. After recovering from a gang drive-by shooting, Hector Marroquin was sentenced to prison for his illegal arms dealing.

The City's last anti-gang program doled out funds to 49 "non-profits" and half of those 49 non-profits were also run by former gang members. With no oversight, it was hardly a surprise that the program failed. This time, the City wants to "do it right" but with no oversight from you, the People. They don't want pesky probing questions from you.

* Don't you think that you have the right to know how our money is being spent?

* Don't you think the person running for City Attorney should be challenging the Mayor over this secrecy?

Jack Weiss has made no comment on this whatsoever, presumably because he'll upset Mayor if he does. Perhaps Jack Weiss knows better than the rest of us ordinary folks, so we should trust his judgment.

As your City Attorney I would not resort to secrecy and backroom dealings when it comes to how public funds are spent. I don't trust Jack Weiss's judgment, and I do not believe secrecy is justified when spending Millions of dollars. Neither should you.

On March 3, 2009, you can decide if Jack knows best.

Much Ado About Nothing

2008-12-18T08:38:00.000-08:00

Much Ado About Nothing

My opponents, Jack Weiss and Carmine Trutanich spent Wednesday squabbling over the merits of a new Los Angeles City Council laws that, amongst other things, will ban the sale of large caliber ammunition in the City.

After a typical press conference photo opportunity for Mayor Villaraigosa, Chief Bratton, and of course Jack Weiss, who has to be seen to be doing something, but actually does nothing, spokespersons for Weiss and Trutanich traded barbs. Trutanich made the point that the laws will not prevent the sale of such ammunition in other cities or over the internet, while Weiss slurred Trutanich over his law firm's alleged ties to the National Rifle Association.

Much ado about nothing.

The law itself is showboating;
I've never seen a gang-gun case where the gangmember possessed lawfully obtained firearms or ammunition.
I've never heard of a gang-gun case that was prevented by anti-gun laws, gangs by their very definition defy laws.

So what's this all about? Well in an election cycle the old school career politicians dig out the old tripe and serve it up again.

What we need is more cops to arrest gang members. In CIty that currently pays lip service to fighting gangs, where the Mayor spends the scarce budget on increasing his personal staff from 70 to 93 (yes he gets 23 more aides) instead of spending it on 23 more cops, it's a telling that people like Weiss and Trutanich are squabbling over the law, instead of tackling the Mayor over increasing his personal staff, rather than increasing LAPD's ranks.

Last week, Weiss said he supported Chief Bratton's plan to cut police on the Westside because their were not enough officers to staff two new stations. Perhaps if Weiss even knew that the Mayor was spending OUR money on his personal staff instead of on putting more cops on the street, he might have challenged the Mayor. But, wait, this is an election cycle, and Weiss needs the Mayor's support, and Trutanich needs publicity. So it's much ado about nothing, business as usual, photo ops and slurs.

Wake up Los Angeles. Weiss and Trutanich are the "old school" and it's time for some leadership and personal responsibility in City Hall. If either candidate reallly cared about public safety, their press conferences should have been held outside the Mayor's office, and they should be condemning the Mayor for wasting our money on his vanity. They should be screaming about the need for more cops, not relishing in more photo ops.

David Berger
Candidate for Los Angeles City Attorney 2009
www.berger4ca.com

More on Thursday's Town Hall Meeting

2008-12-13T13:24:00.000-08:00

When I spoke to Chief Braton at the Town Hall meeting on the planned reduction in police services to the Westside, I told him I was a huge fan of his, but that after he heard what I had to say, he might not be a fan of mine!

The Chief took it well, but would not budge from his position; he will not delay opening the new police stations, and that means 26 less police officers on the Westside.

I was not alone in condemning the politicians who have allowed this potentially disastrous state of affairs to exist. Richard G. Cohen, chair of the Pacific Palisades Community Council spoke passionately and directly to the Chief, demanding a change in this plan, pointing out that valuable Westside property was being put at risk, and challenging the "7 minute response time" claimed by Chief Bratton.

Another critic of Bratton's plan was Jay Handal of the West LA Chamber of Commerce, and owner of the San Gennaro Cafe. Jay's had first hand experience of the risks faced by Westside residents; he was robbed at gunpoint at his Brentwood restaurant. Jay also disputed LAPD's "7 minute response time," and was one of many in the crowded meeting to condemn Jack Weiss and other elected officials for spending $50M on two new police stations while lacking the foresight to provide funding to staff them.

The hero of the evening? My vote goes to Bill Rosendahl, Councilmember for City District 11, who had the guts to face the public and let them have their say.

Needless to say, Jack Weiss, Councilmember for City District 5, who has spoken in favor of the planned reduction in police services, and whose residents are equally at risk, was not at the meeting. He was too busy fundraising with Ron Galperin, who hopes to take over from Weiss in the March election.

Anyone who thinks Jack Weiss is suitable for the Office of City Attorney needs to listen to the outright public condemnation of his imperious, unaccountable and out of touch style of candidacy.

New Look for Campaign!

2008-12-12T19:33:00.001-08:00

CaliforniaLeader.com's Nigel Skeet told me that I better do something with my campaign cards and website to send a clear message. Here's his suggestion. I like it.

Poor City Leadership Causes Westside To Lose 26 Cops

2008-12-12T13:42:00.000-08:00

Last night (Thursday, December 11, 2008) I attended a Town Hall meeting hosted by Councilmember Bill Rosendahl (CD11) where guest speaker LAPD Chief William Bratton tried his best to justify his reasons for pulling 26 officers away from the Westside to staff 2 new police stations, set to open in January 2009.

I won't bore you with the details, but the following facts were established:

1) The City Council approved the construction of two new police stations, but did not even think about how they would staff those police stations.

2) The only way that Chief Bratton can staff those new police stations is to take officers away ("harvesting" as he described it) from existing duties. In chosing where to "harvest" cops, Bratton selected areas of Los Angeles where violent crime is lower than other areas, i.e. the Westside.

3) LAPD is in the process of hiring the 1,000 extra cops that are supposed to be funded by the City as as a result of the trash tax. As of December 2009, 550 have been hired, but all are still in training. Bratton expects the new cops to be available for deployment in "3 to 6 months."

Given the above, wouldn't it be sensible to postpone opening these two police stations until the newly trained cops can fill the void?

I asked Chief Bratton that very question, and his response boils down to this:

a) He's not goinging to mothball these two stations, and

b) If he did mothball them, he believes that the City Council will keep them closed so as to avoid having to hire more cops.

c) He's going ahead and cutting police services to the Westside, and if you want to blame anyone, blame the City's elected officials.

Now that's a fine state of affairs, isn't it?

British American Bar Association Endorses Me!

2008-12-07T09:29:00.000-08:00

At their annual Christmas Luncheon (sorry if you're PC "Holiday" Luncheon) members of the British American Bar Association ("BABA") enthusiastically endorsed my candidacy for Los Angeles City Attorney.

"It's about time Los Angeles had someone in office who actually wants to do the job," was a frequently heard comment from members.

The BABA Xmas Luncheon was held on Saturday, December 8, 2008 at the White Hart pub in Woodland Hills. The White Harte is run by BABA member Doug Turner, he really is a member of the Bar!

Thank you, BABA members, for you support and belief in my ability to do the job.

Thanks also to our guest speaker, the Hon. Judge Charles W. McCoy, Jr., Assistant Presiding Judge of the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

Judge McCoy gave us all an informative, if somewhat alarming insight into the trials and tribulations of running the largest court system in the State, if not the Nation.

The Los Angeles Times

2008-12-04T23:03:00.001-08:00

Well, news of my candidacy reached the Los Angeles Times today ...

In a 20 minute interview I tried my best to explain my position on;

The threat that the growth of gangs in Los Angeles means in terms of what Los Angelenos should expect in fighting crime from their next City Attorney, and

How alternatives to jail for low risk convicts could be used to make sure gang members serve their full sentences, and

How it should not be necessary for the City Attorney's Office to have spent $35M on hiring private attorney's to handle "special cases" when the 500 plus deputy city attorneys who work for the Office should be able to do the job, and

How training and cross assignments with other agencies will improve morale and performance in the Office, and

How Jack Weiss' ridiculous plan to cut police services on the Westside is a formula for disaster,

Click here for what they reported.

In all fairness, Maeve Reston, the LA Times reporter who interviewed me was thorough and meticulous. I suspect the problem lies with an editor...

Thank You - City Clerk's Election Division!

2008-12-03T22:46:00.000-08:00

Of course I'm overjoyed at having qualified to have my name on the ballot for the March 2009 Primary Election, and full of thanks and gratitude to the 771 registered voters who signed my nominating petition, as well as the many unpaid volunteers who helped with the thankless task of trying to persuade people to sign my petition.

There is another group of people who deserve a huge vote of thanks, namely, the excellent staff at the City Clerk's Office, Elections Division.

Here you see them as one of my opponents, Noel Weiss, files his petition. They were as kind, courteous, and professional to him as they were to me. We were both rather like expectant fathers, anxiously waiting to hear 'good news' on the birth of our campaigns, and safe delivery of our candidacy.

The City Clerk's Election Division staff handled us with just the right amount of good humor, graciousness and efficiency that makes me wish that all government offices were as pleasant as this.

Noel and I had a good chat while the Elections Division took care of our 'babies' and thankfully we both qualified to be placed on the ballot for the March 2009 Election.

I'm now looking forward to getting down to the serious business of campaigning.

STOP PRESS !!! WEISS IS WRONG FOR LA

2008-12-03T08:01:00.000-08:00

The Los Angeles Police Department is about to cut police services to the Westside. This is foolish in the extreme when crime is rising because of the economic recession. Jack Weiss, the man who wants to be City Attorney, is in favor of this ridiculous plan.

Please read my letter to the Editor of the LA Times.

Weiss has an appalling record on crime, and his chairmanship of the Public Safety Commission is a disgrace - he thinks red light traffic cameras are the priority, while he ignores the uncomfortable realities of fighting crime. It's a pity Weiss isn't more concerned about protecting decent honest people, instead of pandering to special interests and campaign endorsers in his bid to be be the City's next chief law enforcement executive.

Weiss is wrong on crime, and wrong for Los Angeles.

Qualified!

2008-12-02T19:25:00.000-08:00

Hot off the press...

I turned in my signed petitions at lunchtime today, and just checked the City Clerk's website, I've qualified to have my name on the March 3, 2009 Ballot.

Thank you all those who circulated and signed my petition and have made this possible.

More to follow...

Signatures Are In

2008-12-02T01:05:00.000-08:00

YES!!!

Thank you, all those who patiently signed my petition, and thank you to my friends and family members who helped me with the laborious task of trying to get people to believe in the democratic process.

I will be taking the 765 signatures to the City Clerk's Office later today, and hopefully, if they're not too busy, I'll be a confirmed candidate for the March 3, 2009 election.

The Final Furlong

2008-11-30T21:53:00.000-08:00

Today was a good day for signature hunting. I need 500 qualified signatures and my total now stands at 663, just over the 650 I wanted, and that should give me a decent buffer should the City Clerk's office disqualify signatures for any reason.

Once again I was really encouraged by the kind words of support that so many of today's signatories gave me. It's only the early stages of my campaign, but I'm getting the impression that voters are hungry for a candidate that offers something different, honest and practical.

On the lighter side of things, Dennis Woodruff, a documentarian who has finally 'made it' stopped by my local Starbucks aka "temporary campaign HQ," and stuck a videocam in my face and interviewed me. Fame at last!

Dennis Woodruff is a familiar sight on the Hollywood trail, he used to drive around in bright red Cadillac plastered with signs, photos and Oscar statues as he brazenly promoted his movies. Seems like his determination has paid off.

My determination to be the next Los Angeles City Attorney is stronger than ever.

Getting Closer...

2008-11-29T21:19:00.000-08:00

Yes! I'm now past the magic 500 signatures needed on my Petition to place my name on the Ballot for the March election. With four days left to submit my signed Petition to the City Clerk's Office, I'm planning on submitting around 650 to be safe.

You may wonder why it is necessary to 'overshoot' by so much? The answer is that despite the best intentions of those who enthusiastically sign my Petition, some signatories lack the penmanship necessary to pass the City Clerk's standards, while others don't print their name exactly as it appears on the Register of Electors.

Although I initially found the signature gathering process somewhat burdensome, I have come to enjoy the process. Some signatories simply sign because it's part of the democratic process, while others enjoy the opportunity to engage me in conversation about my policies. It is really encouraging to hear people get so enthusiastic about my candidacy when they hear what I have to say.

The goodwill and good wishes of so many people have strengthened my belief that Los Angelenos are ready for a change in the way their City has been run, and strengthened my resolve to be the person to bring that change.

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-27T22:14:00.001-08:00

Today there are many things for which I am truly thankful;

In no particular order:

(o) Thank you to all the people who have been gracious enough to listen to me as I passionately explain my reasons for wanting to be your next City Attorney.

(o) Thank you Walter Moore for encouraging me to take this huge step towards my commitment to public service. You truly are a man with a vision and a plan for Los Angeles, and that plan resonated with me, as well as many other Los Angelenos who want to see the best city in the world live up to its potential.

(o) Thank you to the 517 registered Los Angeles voters who have already signed my petition. Thank you for your comments, positive and negative. I have listened and I have learnt. I know what you want and are entitled to expect from your City Attorney, and I intend to deliver.

(o) Thank you to the remaining Los Angelenos who I will be pestering for signatures over the next 5 days. I want to submit well over the minimum 500 signatures on my petition, because I not only want to be safe, but I actually enjoy listening to you and hearing your words of encouragement.

(o) Thank you Nigel Skeet at the CaliforniaLeader for documenting the birth of my campaign, and to Doug McIntyre, Bill Handel, Jon & Ken, Al Rantel, Leo Terell, and the many other talk radio hosts who have allowed me a forum to air my views over the years.

(o) Thank you to the United State of America, the greatest country in the world. Thank you for welcoming me here 19 years ago when I was an immigrant arriving at JFK in New York having finally been given Resident Alien status. Thank you for showing me hope and spirit of America - offering immigrants the chance of a better way of life; a chance to live free from oppression, snobbery and a class culture designed to preserve elitism. Most of all, thank you for giving me a chance to give something back to the community.

God Bless America, my home sweet home.

California Leader Covers Campaign

2008-11-26T15:41:00.001-08:00

The online news magazine CaliforniaLeader.com has been covering my campaign.

Photo courtesy of Nigel Skeet, California Leader's ubiquitous photo journalist. The full article "Birth of a Campaign" makes for good reading, even if I say so myself!

Crime Fighter of The Year

2008-11-25T23:32:00.000-08:00

Unlike every candidate for the Office of Los Angeles City Attorney, I'm the ONLY one who has actually prosecuted violent felons in the past 20 years.

Not only have I sent dangerous criminals to prison for lengthy terms, but I have introduced, passed and implemented laws designed to make communities safer.

My accomplishments as a prosector earned me a US Congressional "Crime Buster of the Year" Award - that's something NO OTHER CANDIDATE has ever even come close to achieving, and that's because they might talk the talk, but they've never walked the walk.

The Campaign Has Started

2008-11-25T22:53:00.000-08:00

I'm meeting lots of interesting people who seem to like what I have to say.

In order for you, the voters of the City of Los Angeles, to get the chance to decide whether you want me to be your City Attorney, I have to get 500 signatures on my ballot petition by December 3, 2009.

Easy? Well, those 500 signatures have to be from people who live in the City of Los Angeles, and are registered voters. Those signatures also have to be legible, and backed up with a residential address and date of birth, otherwise the City Clerk will not count them.

Most people don't understand that what I'm doing in asking them for their signature, is simply part of the process demanded by the City Clerk's Office to get a candidate's name on the ballot.

"Why are you doing this?" is a question I'm constantly asked.

The answer is that I don't have a mega-dollar budget to pay people to do the work for me.

Neither do I have a hard core of party faithful, like my Democratic and Republican Party opponents, who will sign anything for "their" candidate.

All I have is my ability to connect with you, the voters, and get a few minutes of your time to convince you that signing the petition is essential f you want to get the chance to decide who is best suited for the Office of City Attorney.

Today is day 10 of my campaign. I have almost 500 signatures, but to be safe, I want to submit at least 700 to the City Clerk. So, if you do happen to see me campaigning outside a local Starbucks, I do hope you will sign my petition and ask me about what I will do as your City Attorney, and also please, please, please, ask me what I've done as a crime fighter.