We will let this ad, produced by one of incumbent Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley’s Republican primary opponents for Attorney General speak for itself—and simply comment that the ad highlights Cooley’s obstacles to securing the Republican nomination from unreasonable right-wing voters in the face of sensible Cooley policies (like his opposition to the 3-strikes law).
CONTROVERSY SURROUNDS REPUBLICAN COOLEY AS HE SEEKS TO BE CALIFORNIA’S TOP PROSECUTOR
With no household name Democrat declared in the race to fill incumbent Jerry Brown’s shoes as California’s out-going top prosecutor, the hopes of California Republican’s have been reportedly buoyed by the recent entry of third term Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley into the race for State Attorney General.But those thinking that Cooley might trounce the ultimate Democratic nominee from the current field of six “no name” candidates for AG should think again.
Among the Democrats, Kamala Harris, 45, outpaced her opponents to collect $2.2 million last year, some it from such Los Angeles household names as Steven Spielberg and David Geffen—but Harris—who is San Francisco’s incumbent District attorney—has no chance of being elected attorney general due to her categorical opposition to the death penalty, including in a recent San Francisco case involving the cold blooded murder of a police officer---not to mention an otherwise dismal prosecutorial record in San Francisco.
But several obstacles lie in the path of liberal Republican Cooley’s swearing in as California Attorney General in 2011.
First, Cooley, who is on the left to middle side of the spectrum for a Republican prosecutor—how else could he be elected three times as district attorney in Democrat leaning Los Angeles County—must survive a Republican primary midterm election dominated by the statewide Republican faithful expected to turn out for the primary election in the greatest numbers. Can Cooley appeal to the party faithful in traditional republican strongholds like Orange County and the Central Valley while retaining his moderate cross-over appeal that assured his reelection in Hollywood? That remains to be seen.
Second, Cooley has been plagued of late with internal office dissension—leading Cooley’s deputy district attorney who oversees criminal filings for most of Los Angeles to say:
“"There is a lot of apparent acrimony between the administration and the union””, and leading another veteran prosecutor to describe the infighting in the District Attorney’s Office as a “snake’s nest”.It is perhaps the former issue—Cooley’s current legal troubles regarding union allegations of retaliation and demotions of employee’s supporting unionization of the office—that provide the most likely obstacle to Cooley’s success in a general election for California Attorney General.
(Source: Los Angeles Daily News.)
For example, Cooley is accused of shifting pro-union attorneys to postings a much longer commute from their homes, trimming benefits, demotions, and bad job performance reviews—all as political pay-back.
And, according to Los Angeles news sources, U.S. District Court Judge Otis D. Wright II is leaning toward a findings that Cooley committed the above charged misconduct. (Source: Los Angeles Daily News.)
"Is it just coincidence that we have experienced deputies suddenly finding themselves in Pomona or at Los Padrinos (Juvenile Hall)?" [Judge] Wright asked. "Is it just a co-inkydink?"
Should liberal Steven Cooley make it past a field of two other Republican’s in the primary election, that (among others) is question that California voters must answer on election day.
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UPDATE—from the Recorder’s Legal Pad Blog:
http://legalpad.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/02/aghopeful-cooley-to-challenge-la-pot-dispensaries-.html
A.G.-Hopeful Cooley to Challenge L.A. Pot Dispensaries
[Cynthia Foster]
L.A. County District Attorney Steve Cooley, who recently announced his intent to run for California attorney general, may be trying to gain some political capital among conservative voters by waging war against medical marijuana dispensaries.
Cooley's office announced today that it is charging noted dispensary owner Jeff Joseph, of popular Organica in Venice, with 24 felonies related to the unlawful sale of marijuana. Cooley "warned that state law does not allow dispensaries to sell medical marijuana," according to LAT.
Joseph's case, which was intensely investigated by police and federal agents, has the potential to test whether state law permits dispensaries to sell marijuana.
A court commissioner set Joseph's bail at $520,000, which his sister and mother tearfully announced he does not have. Joseph's attorney, Eric Shevin, says that the charges are political and that Joseph was targeted due to his pot club's notoriety. Cooley's office denies these claims and says that other dispensary owners are facing charges as well.
EXTREME WEATHER STORIES
Someday we will tell you about our trip to a strip-mined out armpit near the upper Great Lakes called Houghton Michigan during a 100 year snow storm at 25 below zero, clad in an unlined overcoat, a suit, and Gucci shoes. Three identical and utterly depressing motels in town that smell vaguely of the chemicals used to clean up after the last guy blew his brains out there (a real temptation, believe me). Three bar and grills (in reality pizza joints serving hard liquor), pick one, doesn’t matter which one, the plan being to get as drunk as possible and then (try to) sleep through the night, but you have to move your car from the main drag by 11:00 pm for the snow plow and the motel room water smells of chlorine when you drink it and on your skin after you shower in it, and the next morning the stinking lobby does not even have a coffee machine let alone a coffee shop, and we are loudly crunching 8 foot of hard snow pack with our loafers down the main drag walking the three blocks to the law firm hosting the deposition thinking man, this town really is at the bottom of the barrel, then listening to some baby lawyer from a 2,000 NYC law firm go on and on in excruciating detail about how our food distributor client allegedly damaged Nabisco by selling stale Gummy Bears, and us, not caring any more, for the first time in our life walking out of a depo, announcing to the baby lawyer that he could stay all week and ask questions about stale Gummy Bears, but we are not missing the last fricking flight out of this town at 3:30 PM so good bye, we fly back to Detroit, get on a plane back to SF and count ourselves lucky because plenty of others got so depressed in that toilet of a motel between 3:00 and 4:00 in the morning that they (no doubt) hung themselves from the curtain rod and wound up part of the snow pack behind the motel ….
LEONARD COHEN SHRUGS OFF LOSS OF ESTATE TO FORMER MGR WITH GRAMMY AWARD, SOLD OUT VENUES
Regular readers of this blog are well aware that the singer, songwriter, and 60’s icon Leonard Cohen suffered a financial blow in his 70’s that would have relegated most of us to the fetal position—if not a lifetime of food stamps: the loss of his entire $6 million retirement nest-egg to his former manager, against whom the music legend has a completely uncollectible $7.9 million judgment.But unlike the rest of us, let alone the pool of former music greats who now languish in obscurity, Cohen deftly landed on his feet with a multi-year, international, wildly successful and critically acclaimed world tour—coming back more popular than ever, more financially secure than ever.
What could be a more fitting emblem of the comeback story of the decade that the lifetime achievement award presented to Leonard Cohen at the Grammy Awards last Sunday, next to Cohen’s (posthumous) co-award recipient Michael Jackson?
Congratulations Leonard Cohen, you are awesome!
Read more: Michael Jackson, Leonard Cohen win special Grammys
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Related: MTV Newsroom Leonard Cohen, John Cale Rule 'Hallelujah' Poll Results
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