The Wreck of the Business Tax

A district, by the way, into which he only moved in February 1998. But there are other doubts regarding his past.

Cetina’s county voting record, for instance, withholds his political affiliation until he registered as a Democrat last February. Doesn’t he think the voters should know whether he was a Green, or Peace and Freedom, or Republican? The political-affiliation history of anyone running for public office ought to be public information. Cetina admits that before 1990 he was a Republican. And since?

He seems to be a bandwagon kind of guy: I was informally told that SEIU Local 660, the county employees’ union, gave its endorsement only after Cetina agreed to promote the moribund proposal to rebuild County-USC to a full 750-bed, instead of the supervisors’ planned 600-bed capacity.

Now a Los Angeles City Council member has as much say in this decision as does the order person at Pizza Hut. And seeking more public inpatient capacity for a community whose increasing health need is for clinical care seems to me idiotic policy.

However minds may differ about the Big County buildout, though, it would be insane for any resident of eastern El Sereno to support Cetina, since he also backs the completion of the 710 freeway. This project will displace hundreds, if not thousands, of El Sereno residents. Although it promises to bolster business in downtown Alhambra — whose council and mayor accordingly support Cetina — it’ll make a shambles of much of the 14th District. As well as a goodly slice of South Pasadena — Cetina’s recent abode.

This time, Cetina may have leaped on the wrong bandwagon. Labor and Alhambra business support it. But the 710 project — for which hundreds of El Sereno homes have already been condemned — has never been popular in the 14th. As Kathy Molina (probably the leading woman candidate in the race) puts it, "I’m tired of seeing my community raped by bought politicians." She’s not the only one.

Cetina’s major debit, however, didn’t show up Friday. This was outgoing Councilman Richard Alatorre, a key Cetina backer. So what we have here is an attractive political innocent, suddenly a major joiner, who is abetted by the least innocent, and most discredited, person on the entire City Council. Enough dead weight, one could think, to sink the most buoyant balloon.