GUEST EDITORIAL - The job of Los Angeles City Attorney is among the best of its kind in the nation. The occupant of the post is in the spotlight and wields a lot of power. An effective City Attorney can do a great deal of good.
So, does the current officeholder, Carmen Trutanich, want to keep one of the best jobs in L.A. for four more years? He probably knows, but the rest of the city doesn’t. He could tell us, but he won’t. He could take steps that serve the citizenry, but instead he’s focusing on his own agenda.
This is not only bothersome from a political standpoint, it’s also a smack in the face to the voters who elected Trutanich three years ago. This was someone, after all, who came in touting himself as something different. He wasn’t, he told voters time and again, a career politician.
It is time for Trutanich to publicly declare whether he’ll run again for City Attorney in 2013, or if he will choose to step down in order to pursue the job of L.A. County District Attorney. That race is in November.
Trutanich has been waffling for a long time now. Last April he formed an exploratory bid for the D.A.’s race. By July, his campaign had raised more than $500,000. However, he was not officially a candidate, and when asked about the race he wouldn’t commit. When queried in October about which election he’d enter, he responded, “I don’t know.” He seemed to indicate he’d make a decision soon, but here we are three months later with no public statement.
The general belief is that Trutanich is ready to kick the city to the curb, that he wants the even more powerful D.A.’s job that is opening up because three-term incumbent Steve Cooley is stepping down. Several prominent prosecutors have already launched campaigns for the post.
We expect that Trutanich has not publicly announced because he knows the minute he declares, he’ll be the target of negative campaigning from the other candidates. He’s right — those contenders will have smaller war chests and will attack. If he announces after Los Angeles Downtown News goes to press this week (and he might), they’ll bash him for waiting so long.
If Trutanich was not in elected office, this would not be a big deal — the public isn’t impacted by whether a private sector individual runs. However, by waffling over his future, Trutanich automatically injects a level of instability into the department he heads. People get nervous and distracted when they don’t know who their boss is going to be. Not to mention that any good candidate that could handle the City Attorney job needs to be ginning up for the arduous election demands. This makes it almost irresponsible that Trutanich is not declaring.
Declining to state his intentions is not leadership. This is what we expect from career politicians eager to ensure that they have a high-paying civic job.
We’re not saying that Nuch is obligated to, or even should remain as City Attorney. We don’t expect him to keep the job for eight years if something better is available. Politicians climb the ladder. We get it.
The problem is that his behavior impacts many other people. His indecision is bad for the city attorney’s office. His indecision is bad for the residents of Los Angeles.
Which way Nuch? Which way?
(This Downtown News editorial was posted first at ladowntownnews.com on Friday, Jan 27.) -cw
Tags: Carmen Trutanich, City Attorney, District Attorney, Election
CityWatch
Vol 10 Issue 9
Pub: Jan 31, 2012