Jose Huizar: Poverty Pimp

I am receiving disturbing reports from friends who are active in the CD 14 election campaign.

The latest skinny?

Jose Huizar associates are going around in the housing projects promising that everyone getting their low rent/free ride will continue to get a good deal... if Huizar is re-elected. Huizar will "protect" their status like some type of "Barrio Godfather" if he is re-elected.

The not-so-subtle threat to these poverty-stricken people is that if Rudy Martinez is elected, he will be a tool of developers who will trash the housing projects to build something else.

Rumors, panic, fear-mongering... subtle threats and intimidation.

But intimidating people who are desperate to hold onto what little they have... wow... a new low in this campaign.

In Los Angeles politics, you always come to expect the worst in people.... and Huizar is setting a new standard.

Jose Huizar is a "Poverty Pimp", who is hoping to achieve success off the backs of those who have nothing.

I hope Rudy Martinez sends Jose Huizar into the ranks of the unemployed on March 8th.

Trouble Brewing at RPLAC & State Convention

Well, I don't like having to re-tell this story, but here it goes....

Former RPLAC Chair Linda Boyd has become a problem for the party. She doesn't know how to take an election loss with any dignity and grace, and she shouldn't be involved with the leadership of the party anymore.

Back in 2008, at the scheduled organizational meeting of RPLAC, Linda Boyd and Jane Barnett found out early that they didn't have the votes or support necessary to win the called-for election of County officers. In a huff, they stormed out of the meeting. This fact alone indicates to me that they lack the maturity necessary to be leaders. The election was held, and new officers took over the County Party.

Months later, in what has become known as "May 14th", Barnett, Boyd and others came storming back into power. They pulled off a "beer hall putsch" by charging into the meeting with supporters and angrily demanding to vote out every officer that had been elected in December. As they were the only ones who had knowledge of this maneuver beforehand, they had the numbers... violated the rules and regulations, and seized power.

The result of this was a lawsuit filed by those who had been elected to two year terms in December of 2008. The legal bill for this action is over $100,000 and counting.

Now comes word of this....

A younger crowd of Republicans has decided to move on with new leadership. At the scheduled February meeting, the Committee voted to endorse Adam Abrahms as our candidate for State Regional Vice Chair for Southern California. Unfortunately, Linda Boyd is also running for this position, and -- as witnessed in the past -- she cannot take defeat without reverting to highly unusual machinations.

Word is spreading that Linda is having Jane Barnett "pack" the committees with sudden and unusual appointments just before the trip to the State Convention later this month. The goal is to improve the numbers supporting her and to steal the election from Adam Abrahms.

I can't say for certain this is 100% accurate, but my sources swear that another dirty maneuver is underway at RPLAC.

Will Linda Boyd steal the election from Adam Abrahms? Maybe.

Jane Barnett very recently made some unusual and unneccessary appointments to fill committee vacancies at a highly questionable time. This tends to lead me to believe my sources are correct.

And from all the angry emails flying around ...others are not too happy about it, either.

Endorsement: Austin Dragon for Los Angeles City Council

This might be a bit of a tricky one for me, but I have to take a stand.

My former organization, Westside Republicans, along with The Republican Party of Los Angeles County are choosing to endorse Andrew Kim in this 10th District City Council race.

Me? I'm going with Austin Dragon.

Austin might possibly have switched his voter registration to "Decline to State" for political reasons. I don't know the facts, I just heard something like that. I'm still going with Austin.

I have seen Austin passionately speak about and defend Conservative principles at multiple political events over the last few years. That convinces me that he is a good representative for our cause.

Andrew Kim? I have never seen Andrew Kim at a single event that wasn't being held to promote his election.

No speaking at City Council. No rallying to the causes of others. Nothing.

Not to say he didn't do it, but I've been involved in politics and running for office for a few years now, and this Andrew Kim hasn't done anything that I have noticed.

Endorsement: Rudy Martinez for Los Angeles City Council

I have to be honest about one thing: I don't really know Rudy Martinez that well.

I haven't had time to research his issues or to know everything about him.

I did catch about ten minutes of him on his TV show "Flip This House" and he seemed like a responsible businessman who understands that you cannot spend more than you take in.

My main reason for endorsing Rudy Martinez is that Jose Huizar has become an embarrassment to the 14th District. Huizars recent revelations about his Nixonian "enemies list" made it clear that he is a self-centered egomaniacal politician who only cares about himself. Any community member who found their name on that list can be sure that they would not receive fair attention or efforts from Huizar or his staff.

Selective constituent services was what this mafioso-style thug was into.

He also appears to have embezzled City money to pay sky-high salaries to his staff members.

The voters there need a clean break from this dirty past with Jose Huizar in CD 14.

Rudy Martinez would be the fresh start that CD 14 needs.

I endorse him and encourage others to vote for him this March 8th.

Endorsement: David Barron for Los Angeles City Council

I could not be happier or more confident in my endorsement of David Barron for Los Angeles City Council in the 6th District.

Barron is a man of rare integrity and honesty. I have met him in person and have come away very impressed.

His opponent, Tony Cardenas, is a very different story. Cardenas is basically a gangster who wears a politicians suit as a disguise. Cardenas continues to commit crimes against the taxpayers, and he continues to loot the City treasury for his many ridiculous pet projects.

I urge all voters in the 6th District to help stop the Cardenas crime spree.

Elect David Barron to City Council on March 8th.

You will be glad that you did.

Endorsement: Joe Essavi for L.A. Community College Board of Trustees

This is one of the easiest choices for me to make in this upcoming March 8th City election. I have known Joe Essavi for a couple of years now, and I have always been impressed with him. He is a man of honesty, integrity, and dignity and he has earned the respect of many others in the political community here in Los Angeles.

I am happy to endorse him and I openly encourage others to vote for him in this election.

Green Party? OK. I'll listen....

Last night I attended a forum held by the Green Party. Not normally my type of thing, but I was invited by local activist and Green Party member Michael McCue.... and McCue has always been very fair in his local politics and campaigns. Even when he opposes you, he is willing to hear your side of things. I figured ... I can do that, too. The forum was lightly attended...only about 50 people showed up, but I consider that a big success for the Green Party, being as they are a small third party that doesn't win elections.

The first speaker up was this guy pictured above...I didn't catch his name. He's a Green. He went off on a long spiel about this ballot Measure H, where the Greens want to "get the money out of elections". Unfortunately for the Greens, they are living in a fantasy world. Money and power have always gone hand in hand for thousands of years. If this lunacy goes through, every shopping-cart pushing maniac will try to run for office simply to get their hands on government funds. The way it stands now, you have to raise a lot of money to cross a certain threshold to get funds. I would prefer no public funding.

The world is an unfair place. Wealthy people have bigger homes, drive better cars, and go to better schools. They also have an easier time winning elections. That's just part of life.

If you want to win, go out and raise more money. Don't ask voters to pay for your nonsense.

My good friend Joe Essavi was there to promote his Community College Board election. Good man. I support Joe 100%. I'll even give him some blog time in the next two weeks.

When the Greens called for the appearance of Paul Krekorian and Augusto Bisani, I immediately started to panic, fearing the presence of The Dark Lord. Luckily for me, Michael McCue was teasing the crowd. Krekorian was giving the Green Party his usual show of respect... the middle finger salute. He wasn't there.

Augusto Bisani did a nice job speaking and probably won a few more votes. His mailer to over 20,000 voters goes out this week. Go Augusto!

The forum was moderated by several people, including the talented Paul Hatfield of the Village to Village blog. A moderator named Cary admitted that he had donated to Stephen Box's campaign. Again... why do these forums choose people like this to be moderators? Was Judy Price unavailable? At least she is very open about her bias and her hypocrisy.

Before the forum, CD 4 candidate Stephen Box showed off a new technical toy. He had stickers that looked like bar codes and he showed how people could scan them with their cell phones and be taken right to his campaign website. Pretty cool. Box also announced he had qualified for matching funds! Now that he and Tomas O'Grady have both qualified, CD4 is becoming a very interesting race.

"Touchdown" Tommy La Bonge might have to find something else to talk about on the campaign trail other than obscure City trivia...

LFIA video , part 2

Here is the second part of the video for the debate/forum held at the Autry for the election for City Council, District 4.

A few related comments and timer code....

8:30 La Bonge asks to "bring up the house lights" so he can name drop a guy named "Saul" and seek praise from the audience. He goes on to completely ignore the question posed to him, an old school politician trick. He also directs some pointed comments at Tomas O'Grady. I think O'Gradys hard work on the campaign trail is making him nervous.

14:40 O'Grady "We can pay for the (Park) Ranger, we just need to get rid of these people who are doing nothing". It's a very good line. Very effective contrast to La Bonge.

16:10 Box has a very good riff on "plans" and how they sometimes don't work out. The audience laughs , yet La Bonge just sits there -- emotionless and humorless. These are dangerous qualities for a political figure to have.

20:10 Uh oh...some NIMBY noise out of O'Grady. I don't like hearing that.

22:10 La Bonge uses the phrase "old timers" and immediately regrets it. Lesson learned.

23:10 Note to moderators: Don't wait for the last ten minutes to ask questions.

27:30 La Bonge does some more name-dropping and cheerleading. His trademark.

32:50 In a surprise move, Box thanks La Bonge for his 35 years of service. The applause is the only time La Bonge shows any reaction. Box hints at the fact that it is time for La Bonge to go.

37:00 La Bonge says "This is not a City of ruin...!"

Not so fast, Tom La Bonge!! You and the other Council Members have helped bankrupt this joint. We just won't see the total devastation until after you are gone.

Finally, a good video from Stephen Box!

This is video of the event I blogged about a few days ago. The Los Feliz Improvement Association debate/forum held at the Autry.

A few notes... and the timer code...

4:28 When applauding the people who held the event, Tom La Bonge only gives "one clap". I guess he's cool... like Randy Moss.

9:54 Box delivers the first of many good speeches. He says he found an error and saved the City $7 million dollars? He's already better than Tom La Bonge!

14:00 Tom La Bonge delivers his typical rambling nonsense about the City instead of defending his record. The Observatory was built in 1935... blah, blah, blah .... Yes on "L"? No way in hell!

18:50 Tomas talks about how "America has worked for me". I liked that part. Watch around the 20-21 minute mark as Tom La Bonge gives this creepy, unsmiling stare into the audience. Weird.

23:30 Allison Cohen Ferraro praises Tomas O'Grady before even the first question can be asked.

27:30 One of my favorite lines in the video. Allison asks Stephen if he wants her to repeat the question. Stephen says "no". Brilliant! Stephen doesn't need to be reminded what subject they are talking about. So different from Tom La Bonge at City Hall.

37:10 O'Grady slams La Bonge for being a photo-op politician. La Bonge gets pissed off and chews him out. La Bonge turns it into a pep rally for himself. He makes a wise crack about Tomas being wealthy. He also embarrasses Albert Torres and tells a huge room full of people that Albert failed a Civil Service exam. (I'm sure Albert had this extreme public humiliation somewhere on his to-do list in life.)

40:00 Box gives a really great answer on parking.

46:20 La Bonge loses my vote forever with his fawning praise of Karen Bass and Diane Watson. Bass and Watson are vile and repugnant Communist worshippers who have no business serving in elected office.

48:25 Allison praises Tomas O'Grady again. Do I spot a trend here?

52:00 Allison gives Tomas extra time to answer a question. Hmm.

Stay tuned for part 2 of this video on the next blog post.

Augusto Bisani for City Council!

Nice work here by my friend Augusto Bisani.

He addresses the criticisms that he is not a professional politician.

He also covers the obvious fact of him being an immigrant.

I like how he takes a subtle dig at Krekorian, talking about how the politicians "spin" their accomplishments.

I am hoping Augusto wins, but I'm worried about this election.

He is facing Paul Krekorian, The Dark Lord

His naked lust for power puts the entire world in grave danger.

How Rick Perry crushed my dreams

Friday, February 11th 2011 was an important day in my life. After a year of calling for the selection and election of Texas Governor Rick Perry as our next President, I was finally able to meet him at CPAC.

Governor Perrys speech that day was clearly planned out as the highlight of my day, but before it happened I was also happy to get a chance to see Senator John Thune of South Dakota. Thune is also in my top 5 wish list of potential candidates to defeat President Obama in 2012. He did a good job at CPAC, and many of his supporters were encouraging him to run.

Governor Perry gave a speech that was ....well... pure Perry. His homespun Southern drawl. His simple yet powerfully communicated ideas. There was even a long pause in his speech as he stood there -- amazed at how the Federal Government wants to punish Texas for being so successful. His pause turned a normal speech into a kind of high-art performance. Very few can match him. I wish I could find a good video of the CPAC speech, but I haven't found one yet. I'll share it when I do.

The reason I am such a diehard supporter of Governor Perry is his respect for the Tenth Amendment.

Most Americans don't realize that a great deal of things our government tries to pull off are actually illegal.

The Federal Government has seized powers it is not entitled to possess or use. Governor Perry talks about the Tenth Amendment all the time. In fact, I think he is one of the few political figures in America that even brings the subject up for discussion.

I was interviewed by a Canadian journalist at CPAC who wanted to know why I wanted Rick Perry to be our next President. It was difficult for me to put into words something that is just a gut instinct.

I told her that Governor Perry is a tough-talking Texan who once shot a coyote while he was out jogging.

I wish I had the following two photos with me to explain to that reporter how I think voters will react in 2012.

For the next President of the United States, you can have this man...

Or this man...

You decide.

I am strongly of the opinion that voters would choose Governor Rick Perry in large numbers.

After his great speech, I went downstairs to the book signing to try and get a few minutes to talk to the Governor. He was friendly and personable. As a donor to his campaign, I often receive written communications from the Governors Office. I thanked him for his Christmas card and the invitation to his Inauguration. I told him I was sorry I couldn't make it, but that he could make it up to me by inviting me to the White House. He got a chuckle out of that, but then he uttered the phrase that crushed my dreams...

"I don't think that's gonna happen.." , he said.

We exchanged a few more pleasantries and then I was off and he was signing his next book.

I was crushed by his response. But I can still hope he will change his mind.

Those first few votes in Iowa are still a year away.

The Three Socialists

Last night I attended a City Council campaign event held at the Autry National Center near the L.A. Zoo. It was presented by the Los Feliz Improvement Association. The political candidates featured were current City Council Member Tom La Bonge, bicycle activist Stephen Box, and school improvement crusader Tomas O'Grady.

When they announced who the moderator for the evening would be, I almost fell out of my seat in disbelief.

Allison Cohen Ferraro of the Los Feliz Ledger!!?? WOW! Are you kidding me?

Joseph Mailander over at the Street Hassle blog would be blowing a gasket if he saw this.

I've already made clear that I am less than impressed with Ms. Ferraro, and what I saw last night only made things worse...in fact it almost killed the evening for everyone.

The Los Feliz Improvement Association needs to take a memo from The Jennerjahn Report:

DO NOT allow someone to moderate your political forum when they are completely in the tank for one of the candidates!

Horror of horrors, it was shades of Judy Price last night!!

While Ms. Ferraro should have conducted herself in a serious, professional manner, she couldn't help herself but to interrupt the forum to fawn, in a fan-girl like manner, over the wonderful Tomas O'Grady and how he had saved her kids schools!! Her rather one-sided support of O'Grady made people in the audience uncomfortable. Her behavior did not go unnoticed.

On to the forum...

The LFIA took written questions from the crowd...which was probably a good idea to prevent grandstanding from questioners - who sometimes are airing a grudge along with their question.

The questions seemed very Los-Feliz-centric and were quite predictable.

In his opening statement, Tom La Bonge went off on a long, boring rant quoting the creation dates of various landmarks, and talking about peoples high schools. In short.. "same old Tom."

Stephen Box was cool and crisp with his answers. Unlike the other candidates, who sometimes kind of wandered around a bit in their answers, Box seemed to know his answers before he started speaking. There were no mis-statements and he seemed very knowledgeable about CD4.

Tomas O'Grady, Ms. Ferraro's favorite candidate, was refreshingly honest for a political campaigner. I really liked his story of how America had "worked" for him and given him all his dreams. However, O'Grady did seem a bit nervous and fidgety and kind of bumbled around in some of his answers. He glanced at his notes a few times on questions that were not that difficult. He seems like a nice guy, but he needs a little more practice when it comes to campaigning for political office. However, O'Grady was responsible for the highlight of the night.

O'Grady told a story...and I wish I could re-tell it better... but it focused on a publicity event where he and Tom La Bonge were planting trees at a school. O'Grady mocked La Bonge and his handlers for telling him to leave a few holes so that La Bonge and his photographers could "get some good shots" of the Councilman planting the trees. He did it a mocking manner that exposed Tom La Bonges Achilles heel...

Tom La Bonge does not like to be made to look like a pompous ass.

In fact, Tom La Bonge kind of lost his temper over the ribbing he took from O'Grady. He grabbed the mic when it was his turn and leaned over and kind of shouted in O'Gradys ear.. "You need to learn to work with the community!!" It was so shocking and out of character for La Bonge that heads were spinning in the audience. (People were asking "Did you just see that?") La Bonge then went off on a long-winded rant about all the areas he had worked in and bragged about the hours he put in as a Council Member. La Bonge had a few fans planted in the audience, and they all applauded his dramatic show. However, the damage was done.

Box and O'Grady should exploit this angle for the next few weeks.

La Bonge lost my respect forever when he talked about "our wonderful Congresswoman Karen Bass!"

Yuck! Puke!

Karen Bass is a monster.

If she wasn't in a District that was 90% Democrat, she couldn't get elected dogcatcher.

Adios Tom La Bonge. You won't be getting my vote.

That leaves me to choose between two other Big-Government Socialists who want to tell me what to eat, what car to drive, and what type of shopping bags I am allowed to use. Wonderful.

WINNER: STEPHEN BOX

Even though I am not that big of a fan of Stephen Box, he was the clear winner last night. He sounded like he had rehearsed his answers. He was smooth and polished, and even often steered his answers around to answering an even bigger un-asked question. That made him look very professional, thoughtful, and it also looked like he had really done his research. He stayed away from the fracas between O'Grady and La Bonge, and made himself look like the most professional and best choice for voters.

Jon Voight for Congress

I've been doing some thinking about the upcoming special election to replace the retiring Jane Harman.

I've decided to ask the leaders at RPLAC to recruit actor Jon Voight to run in this special election.

There are several reasons for this.

1) Voight, as a celebrity actor, would receive national attention and almost unlimited access to the media.

2) Voight is a much better public speaker than either Janice Hahn or Debra Bowen.

3) Voight became a superstar among Conservative activists for his harsh criticisms of President Barack Obama, including this speech from a fundraising dinner where he labelled Barack Obama a "false prophet". Evangelicals couldn't get enough.

4) Voight could draw political donations from across the country. He could raise millions without spending a penny of his own money. He could then use that money to saturate the airwaves with television and radio ads.

5) There is always the possibility he could get his daughter, Angelina Jolie, to do an ad for him. Can you say media frenzy?

Now, there are reasons for Voight not to run, also. Mattie Fein ran in this District and got beat pretty convincingly.

Mattie was a good candidate. But Voight would be a great candidate.

The numbers are a little daunting, but this is a special election where few voters will travel to the polls.

Voters in California can be influenced by celebrity status.

We are the only state to have two former actors serve as Governor.

Voight could draw the casual voter...the non-interested voter.

He could win.

Now, does anyone have his agents phone number?

I've got a big part for him in a very large production.

The Dick Cheney Incident at CPAC

Today I wanted to go into more detail about something that happened while I was at CPAC.

I was showing a friend, Brittney, a quiet place where she could work on her laptop computer.

I remembered from last year at CPAC that in the hallway behind the main ballroom, if you follow it a long way down the hall, it comes to a dead end in a nice little glass atrium that faces the Omni Shoreham Hotel. It is much more quiet and peaceful there than anywhere else in the convention.

The only problem is, the convention hustles the big name players down that hallway, with security shooing people away, as they get the big name guests to special hospitality suites in the back. Very few people know about this area...but a few do...so there are usually a few hangers-on trying to squeeze in an autograph or a last minute photo opportunity. A little bit before this Cheney event happened, I had seen Former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty being chased down by some autograph hunters.

Suddenly, I saw a group of angry young men coming down the hall. They were saying things like.."He's in there!".. and pointing at one of the hospitality suites. I tend to believe these young guys - they were all under 30 - were anti-war activists and supporters of Congressman Ron Paul.

I tend to call Ron Paul supporters "Paulistas" because of their fervor for everything Ron Paul. They are the type that would be in the streets screaming "VIVA LA REVOLUTION!! " if Paul were elected President.

Anyway, these "Paulistas" saw Dick Cheney and his security staff coming out of the hospitality suite and head for the elevator. In a mad rush, they aggressively went after him, screaming comments like "What happened on 9/11??!!" and "What orders did you give from the bunker??!"...basically, your run-of-the-mill 9/11 Truther type stuff.

There were about 10 Paulistas but only three or four security for Cheney. One of the security staff had to get physical, pushing one exuberant young protester about 15 feet across the room. Far more than was necessary, and that amped up the situation a bit. The shouting intensified as they tried to push their way towards Dick Cheney.

At this point, Cheney was kind of cowering in the corner. He was scared, and I could see it on his face. Dick Cheney is getting old, and he has been ill. He looks like about half the man he used to be. He may have faced protesters before, but this time he wasn't in a bulletproof limo and his guards were outnumbered.

There was an uncomfortable 30 to 45 seconds of conflict, but then the elevator showed up and the security got Cheney into it and physically blockaded the entrance as some of the Paulistas were trying to get in. I remembered that I had my camera in my pocket...a little too late... and tried to get it out, but only managed to snap the above photo as Cheney was rushed into the elevator.

I felt bad for the Former Vice President. This was a Conservative conference that you had to pay to attend. It should have been safe ground for him. He was well received last year when he spoke. He was here this year to pay tribute to Donald Rumsfeld... not to deal with this nonsense.

I'm not the biggest fan of Cheney, but I think he tried to do what was right for America when he served as Vice President. However, I do agree with some of the protesters who shouted at him in the main ballroom. They yelled "draft dodger" at the stage. It is true that Cheney received multiple deferments instead of going to serve in Vietnam when he was at an age where most men were expected to do that.

I've never been fond of a "chickenhawk".... a leader who refuses to fight, but is eager to send others into battle.

Unfortunately, Cheney fits the description.

CPAC 2011 - Day 3 / Sunday

The final day of CPAC is traditionally a little less powerful than the others. Some people just can't take three straight days of Conservative politics and choose to head home early.

Also, the early morning sessions on Saturday are not seen as prime time opportunities, being as some of the crowd choose to go out drinking and partying on Friday night. "Hangover Saturday", as it is called at CPAC, often begins with the sessions being lightly attended. However, by the time noon rolls around, they expect most attendees to be awake.

Powerful Conservative commentator Ann Coulter is traditionally one of the biggest draws at CPAC. She proved true to form as she packed the ballroom. The line was hundreds of people long outside the door. People who attend CPAC enjoy listening to her skewer liberals and their ideas.

Ann was a little controversial herself this year as she said that gays should be included in the Republican Party. Some in attendance didn't care for that statement.

She made some funny jokes, including one where she said that she was a "friend of the gays" because they had a lot in the common. They often liked "The same music, the same drinks, and quite often the same men!". That line drew big laughs, even at a Conservative conference.

My favorite part of her presentation was her slam on Mitt Romney during the question and answer session. Coulter was asked about the 2012 candidates, and thought about her answer. She said "If we don't run Chris Christie, Mitt Romney will run and he will lose."

Several Romney fans responded by booing her. Most of the crowd just sat there in shock. It was a surprisingly candid remark, and I liked the honesty of it. (I also think Romney is the wrong candidate due to his flexible stances on multiple issues)

Colonel Allen West closed out the ceremonies with a powerful speech. Two years ago he attended CPAC as a concerned citizen. One year ago he attended CPAC as a Congressional candidate. ( I met Colonel West at CPAC 2010). Saturday was his third trip to CPAC... as a United States Congressman. Florida is lucky to have a man of his quality and character working for them in Washington.

Saturday night I listened in to the radio show "LA Saturday Night" on latalkradio.com . The show is run by Frank Sheftel and David Hernandez.
Even though I think he's making some bad editorial decisions at his famous Mayor Sam blog, guest host Mike Higby continues to impress as a show host, commentator, and interviewer.
The show featured Rudy Martinez, who might be the City of Los Angeles' only hope to defeat a sitting City Council Member. Martinez has poured a lot of his own money into the race, and has Jose Huizar running scared and causing campaign-killing errors.
I didn't want to interrupt the show, because Huizars defeat is more important than any commentary I had to make, but I did get on for about 2 minutes near the end of the show.

Today, Sunday, I chose to run around DC and have fun. I went to the Marquette-Georgetown basketball game. Got a ticket in the first row outside the Verizon Center five minutes before the game started. The Hoya student section was fun to watch. I also went to eat at the famous Ben's Chili Bowl diner ( it's kind of like Pink's here in L.A. ) -- fantastic food. I ate there last year because it was recommended by locals. They didn't steer me wrong.

After that I went for a walk around the Lincoln Memorial and the White House.
I thought about calling 911 and reporting an intruder at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, but I realized that the Secret Service would probably fail to see the humor in my commentary.
So I didn't do it.

I have a flight out of Baltimore in the morning.

Back in L.A. , I'll be attending some City Council forums for the March election.

Stay tuned for an epic post-CPAC blog post:

"How Rick Perry crushed my dreams".

CPAC 2011 - Day 2

It was another exciting day at CPAC as some of the most powerful and popular Conservatives across the country gathered for their annual convention in Washington DC.

Newt Gingrich again overplayed his role as for the second straight year as he entered the ballroom to the stirring music of Survivors "Eye Of The Tiger". (I think this routine is starting to get a little corny). However, he was great at his speechmaking, pointing out that voters, in voting for Barack Obama, had voted in a government that was anti-business, anti-growth, high-regulation and high-bureaucracy. In the end, he asks, "How did you think that was going to work? Classic Newt. Great speaker.

I was really happy to see the great reception given to Senator John Thune of South Dakota. Thune is a solid conservative and one of my top 5 favorites to run for President in 2012.

Thune was greeted with chants of "Run, John, Run" as he started his speech.
He was powerful and convincing without overdoing it.

My entire conference was made by finally getting to see and meet Governor Rick Perry of Texas. Long time readers of The Jennerjahn Report know that I have been a vocal proponent of the Governor becoming President in 2012. My meeting with him was so important to me that I don't want to trivialize it with this quick blog post I'm doing as I head out the door to CPAC - Day 3. I will reserve my Rick Perry blogging to another post after I return to LA.

I also made it into the fancy dinner with Mitch Daniels that evening. Got a free ticket through a connection (Thanks John!)

I see why some are high on Mitch Daniels, but during the dinner I had an interesting conversation about Jeb Bush and his prospects for 2012.

I'm not for or against Jeb Bush, but the dinner guests made some good points last night that lead me to believe that he will be one of the top candidates in 2012.

There is a rumor going around that they will allow Colonel Allen West, the new Congressman from Florida, to be the final speaker tonight. Rumor also has it that Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey was supposed to be the final speaker, but he had scheduling issues and had to drop out.

Me personally, I'm hoping that Sarah Palin has dropped her feud with the CPAC organizers and will be the final speaker. Her daughters were spotted in the area, which leads me to think that she is around.

CPAC 2011 - Day 1

A brief update from the morning session. There are some photos available on my Facebook page. I am able to take pictures and upload them with my cell phone, but having trouble getting my cameras SD card to work in the hotel computer available in the lobby.

Michele Bachmann in the morning leadoff was great. A lot of rah-rah cheerleading for Republican causes. She was loved by the crowd.

I was particularly impressed by Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin.
Not a 100 on the charisma scale, but instead a hard working businessman who felt his country was in danger from Socialism. He's great. Might be our guy for 2012.

Congresswoman Kristi Noem was also powerful. She told a dramatic story about how her family almost lost their ranch when her father was killed in an accident on their farm. Estate taxes almost bankrupted them.

"We didn't know how Washington worked... and we didn't care" she said, drawing cheers.

I already voted in the CPAC Straw Poll for President in 2012.
Again, I voted for Governor Rick Perry of Texas.
But this year, they had a second choice question.
I voted Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin.

Look for updates on my Twitter and Facebook.

Back to the ballroom.

CPAC 2011

I'm headed for the airport in just a few hours to depart for Washington. I'll be participating in CPAC, the largest gathering in the country of Conservative political figures.

Michele Bachmann, the Congresswoman from Minnesota, will be the kickoff speaker on Thursday.

It is a sign of her increased status and visibility in the Party that she is being asked to be the very first speaker.

She did well last year and she will have a much bigger crowd this year.

There is a side issue of some traditional groups boycotting this event because there will be a gay organization at CPAC. I think it is all a bit silly. Although many Conservatives hold traditional religious viewpoints about homosexuality being wrong, I think it is shortsighted to ignore the gays who want to be a part of the discussion.

I don't think a boycott is the right thing to do.

I'm very much against gay marriage, but I think a gay person should have every right to attend this conference.

I'll try to post updates both at this blog and at my Facebook page.

Stephen Box needs an "intervention"

It's time for supporters of Stephen Box to have an "intervention" and stop him from destroying his own campaign for Los Angeles City Council.

He continues to release more pure nonsense, like this video, as campaign material.

The video says that "Stephen Box gets it"...

Ummm... I don't think so.

He is not going to "out nice" Tom La Bonge!!

La Bonge has been kissing ass and shamelessly sucking up to everyone in CD 4 for a decade!!

That angle has been covered already.

Friends don't let friends campaign like this.

Somebody needs to stop it.

Huizar struggling, Trujillo fired

Every other blog in town has been talking about it, so I figure I might as well throw in my two cents.

Mike Trujillo got fired from the Jose Huizar campaign for dropping a nasty little email on fellow campaign staffers. The email included some very negative imagery and sending it to 28 people was a poor decision by Trujillo.

My spin on this is that I don't think it was a smart thing to do, but everyone makes mistakes.

I think Huizar over-reacted, but that is because his campaign is struggling.

If he were really up by 44 points (as he claimed in his now-infamous silly email ), then he wouldn't be worried about the Trujillo gaffe at all. He could sit back and laugh if he were up by 44 points.

But he isn't.

Huizar is coming dangerously close to losing this election, what with the idiotic "enemies list" story making headlines, and now this.

Huizar responds by screaming that "Rudy Martinez had a police badge!!"....

That isn't getting him anywhere with voters.

They care about constituent services and having communication with their Councilman.

Huizar has done a poor job of it -- by pilfering the CLARTS money to pay excessive salaries to questionably talented staff members.

Huizar is still ahead. Incumbency is powerful.

But Martinez has him on the ropes and is raining body blows on him.

Huizar is praying that Election Day will get here before things get any worse.

Super Bowl Champions

A stressful game for me, but my hometown team got it done.

Now I have to buy a whole bunch of new merchandise.

Shhh!! ....It's Super Bowl Sunday!!

I don't want to talk about anything else.

No politics today, even though it is President Reagans 100th Birthday.

Game Day. That is it.

500 posts at The Jennerjahn Report

500?!! Wow.

And this is from a guy who initially didn't want to be a blogger.

When I started The Jennerjahn Report in April of 2009, just after my defeat in the Los Angeles Mayoral election, I never predicted I would still be doing this in 2011. I had a few things I wanted to say to the media about their lack of fair coverage in that election. I'm still a little pissed off about it. Most media sources wouldn't even print our names until two weeks before the election. I remember walking into the LA Times office downtown the day I qualified for the ballot. I asked to be interviewed. They said that they "didn't have anyone around who could do that".

Classic. But that shows how low the LA Times has sunk. They are virtually worthless now.

Free ads on Craigslist are wiping out their business model.

There are several people in this City who wish I had never become a blogger.

Richard Alarcon, Paul Krekorian, and Antonio Villaraigosa, to name a few.

There are probably others.

Judy Price and Lisa Sarkin will never forget me as long as they live.

That is a fact.

I think I have raised my profile in case I run for public office again in the near future.

I think it is almost a certainty that I will make another run at some point.

If I win elected office, I'll give up blogging. I'll be too busy.

In honor of hitting 500 blog posts, I proudly present my Top 10 List.

Top 10 blog posts on The Jennerjahn Report

May 2009

Shameless Pandering, CD 5 Candidates at War, & Marys Big Payday

I enjoyed describing the sad end of the political career of Jack Weiss. But this post also brought the blogging vengeance of our local furry nut, Mary Cummins.

July 2009

The First Rule of Carpetbagging

An unintentional slip-up by Chris Essel provides rich comedy material

Sept 2009

Chris Essel self-destructs at SOHA

Great forum. Fun to watch

Oct 2009

Krekorians Tantrum: A True Diva Moment

Fun to expose Krekorian as a hot-headed egomaniac. Photo is a classic.

Jan 2010

Richard Alarcon : The Fredo Corleone of City Politics

Future inmate Richard Alarcon. Mario Puzo would love this.

July 2010

The reclusive Zuma Dogg

Everyone wanted to know where he went. I found out.

Aug 2010

Paul Koretz: The Cat Whisperer

Koretz will own this nickname for the rest of his life.

Aug 2010

The Sword of David

I like Netanyahu. Wish we had more people like him.

Aug 2010

Why Meg Whitman won't get my vote

This one might have made me a pariah in the GOP, but this blog post got tons of hits and cross posts. I think a lot of other people felt the same way.

Sept 2010

My night with Meg Whitman

"I ain't payin' no thousand bucks to meet no Meg Whitman!"

CD 12 Race Analysis

I said I would get to it the other day...and here it is.

I was finally able to watch the video I put up the other day of the CD 12 forum.

A hat tip to Michael N. Cohen for running around and doing such a good job of taping these events.

Let's go through the candidates...and the order that I have come up with is their likelihood of victory in this election in March.

Mitch Englander

This election is basically Englanders to win or lose. He was Greig Smith's Chief of Staff and has worked with many organizations in the district. In fact, he has so much of a lead, I would call him a "semi-incumbent".

Englander also has massive funds to pay for mailers and advertising. The others face an uphill struggle against Mitch.

Kelly Lord

A neighborhood council President, Lord has some backing from the folks at "Clean Sweep".

He seems polished and might be able to give Englander a run. But he will need more funding.

Brad Smith

Among the challengers in the video, I was impressed with Brad Smith. When he said that this election "is not a coronation" it was a pretty powerful slap at Englander. If Smith was smart, he would play up the fact that he has the same surname as the Council Member at the moment. He should have all his campaign materials just say "Smith for Council". Could help him a lot.

Armineh Chelebian

Armineh is a nice lady and I've met her personally. She has run for office several other times without being successful. I think she will eventually win elected office, but I think maybe she needs to start smaller, with a LAUSD or Community College Board election.

Dinesh "Danny" Lakhanpal

I sat near Danny Lakanpahl at a forum for the Clean Sweep people. Voters repeatedly said they couldn't understand him. I don't think he is a good public speaker and I don't give him much of a chance in this election.

Navraj "Singh" Singh

Mr. Singh is well known in Valley politics, having run for office before. He might be a good Republican, but unfortunately he is a Sikh who is running for office in a country that is primarily Christian.

I don't think voters are ready for that right now.

Al Gore stops Global Warming!

Thank God former Vice President Al Gore has now stopped The Global Warming.

But as a personal request from me...

"Hey Al, can you take it down just a notch?"

(I'm worried about my flight to Washington for CPAC. I don't want to miss that)

Here is a tribute to Mr. Al Gore

I said I would get to the CD 12 analysis today, but I'm having a difficult time watching the video on my computer. Too many freezes and glitches.

I'll get to it soon.

CD 12 forum, courtesy of Michael N. Cohen

Neighborhood Councils, CD 12, Candidate Forum, Jan 31. 2011, Part 1 from Michael N. Cohen on Vimeo.

Here is part 2 of the above video.

Check back tomorrow for my analysis of the candidates and the race.

Neighborhood Councils, CD12 Forum, Jan 31, 2011, Part 2 from Michael N. Cohen on Vimeo.

This is what a President looks like (and sounds like!)

This video shows President Ronald Reagan addressing the nation on December 23, 1981.

I find it remarkable for many reasons.

1) Reagans humbleness and humility. His gratefulness towards Americans for allowing him to serve as President.

2) Reagan is a committed Christian, and in this video he is completely unafraid to talk about Jesus as "The Prince of Peace".

3) Reagans strength of conviction and his moral clarity. He laid down the law to the Soviets, without fear of reprisal, because he knew he was right.

4) Reagan uses words like "terror" and "oppression" without reserve or apology.

5) "Make no mistake, their crime will cost them dearly..." are some of the strongest words ever spoken by an American President.

This speech is what every American President should look like and sound like.

He won the Cold War without a shot being fired.