Jaime Regalado quoted in the Los Angeles Daily News

García's attempt to oust LAUSD's Brewer: gaffe or gutsy?

Rick Orlov
Staff Writer - Los Angeles Daily News
December 6, 2008

To anyone who knows her, it is no surprise that Mónica García is in the middle of a political firestorm.

As president of the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education, García has emerged as the force behind efforts to remove Superintendent David L. Brewer III in the middle of his four-year contract.

Supporters say García is a fierce advocate for the Latino community and the disenfranchised, who has never shied away from a fight. But critics say her political ambitions have made it difficult for her to act independently of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, a longtime ally.
The Mayor's Office said he had nothing to do with last week's failed attempt to oust Brewer, when Garcí a could not bring together all seven board members to vote on his contract. But some school district watchers say the mayor, who is widely thought to favor hiring a new superintendent, has considerable influence with the current board.

"Had the mayor not been in favor of wanting Brewer to retire, then the board majority, starting with Mónica García, would likely not have moved to oust the superintendent," said Jaime Regalado, executive director of the Edmund G. "Pat" Brown Institute of Public Affairs at California State University, Los Angeles. ...

A lot of times, these endorsements are strategic, but hers are heartfelt and can only help her in the future," Regalado said.

Born and raised in East Los Angeles, Garcia attended Ramona Convent in Alhambra and went on to Berkeley, where she received bachelor of arts degrees in Chicano studies and political science.

Later, she earned a master's in social work from the University of Southern California.
Outside East Los Angeles and its climate of Chicano activism, García said she became aware of privilege, class and culture while a Berkeley student.

At a speech earlier this year to the Studio City Chamber of Commerce, she was quoted as joking that it was at Berkeley that she realized, "I was a person of color, which I had no idea. (I was) shocked that my life was so much in peril" growing up as a Latina in a working-class family in the barrio.

Those experiences, say her advocates, resonate in her work, including the recent attempt to remove Brewer.

Noting that the Daily News and the Los Angeles Times have editorialized for the removal of Brewer, Casillas said García's move should be welcomed by the press. But the timing, many have said off the record, was poor.

With the district facing the most severe fiscal crisis in recent history, the bond committee's Folsom said Brewer is a leader among education officials in fighting budget cuts in Sacramento. To remove him now will only take district attention away from the impending budget crisis.
"I have not seen true leadership from García on the budget and this is a huge diversion from where the board's focus should be," Folsom said. "Real leaders lead from the middle and build consensus. That hasn't happened here."

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Jaime Regalado quoted in the Los Angeles Daily News

Life as Sacramento lawmaker has gotten a lot tougher

Rick Orlov
Staff Writer - Los Angeles Daily News
December 5, 2008

A message to the 36 freshman lawmakers who were sworn in this week at the state Capitol: Don't get too comfortable.

Once the euphoria of being elected to state office and moving into Sacramento wears off, reality will set in: a terrible economy, a massive budget deficit and new rules to redraw district boundaries and make elections more competitive, even for incumbents.

"What I would tell the freshmen is, 'Hold your breath; you're in for a pretty steep ride,'" said Jaime Regalado, director of the Pat Brown Institute at California State University, Los Angeles.

"They will have this exhilarating feeling coming in, but then they will all be deflated by the reality of what they're facing."

So far, anyway, the area's November winners of new-to-them legislative roles appear undaunted.

They include Assemblyman Steve Knight, R-Palmdale; Sen. Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills; Assemblyman Bob Blumenfield, D-Van Nuys; Sen. Carol Liu, D-La Cañada Flintridge; and Sen. Tony Strickland, R-Westlake Village.

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Jaime Regalado quoted in the Los Angeles Daily News

Voters may face ballot confusion

Rick Orlov
Staff Writer - Los Angeles Daily News
October 26, 2008

For Michael Spitzer-Rubenstein, it's the campaign of Sen. Barack Obama that is driving him to the polls.

"This is my first election and I couldn't be more excited," said Spitzer-Rubenstein, 18, who also made calls for the Obama campaign in Los Angeles.

But, other than a couple of other items, he said he was unsure how to vote on all the ballot propositions.

"I know about (Proposition) 8, but a lot of the other ones are pretty confusing," he said. "There's no way anyone can really know about some of the issues that are on the ballot."

It's a dilemma facing all voters, a record number of whom have registered for the Nov. 4 election. When they get inside that voting booth, the nearly 30 races, measures and propositions could lead to information overload.

Enthusiasm over Obama's historic candidacy has swollen voter registration rolls, where in Los Angeles County, more than 4.1 million people are registered. Of them, 451,000 are new voters, half of them ages 18 to 25.

Democrats already held a 51 percent to 25 percent edge over Republicans in Los Angeles, with an additional 20 percent registered as independents. Among new voters, however, 56percent are signing up as Democrats, county elections officials said.

Political analysts expect a dropoff in interest as voters, especially the new ones, make their way down the ballot.

"As a rule, there is always a drop-off regardless of the election," said Republican strategist Allan Hoffenblum. "What happens is people get excited about voting for president and then they get their ballot and they see elections for state senators or assemblymen or the ballot propositions and judges. They don't know any of these people, so they just pass and go to issues they are familiar with."

Bob Stern of the Los Angeles-based Center for Governmental Studies agreed, saying it is even more difficult for new voters, who often don't even receive campaign mailings because they haven't voted before.

Among the best known statewide ballot measures is Proposition 8, which would ban gay marriage.

"I imagine there will be some people turning out just for that - on both sides," Stern said.

Jaime Regalado of the Edmund G. "Pat" Brown Institute of Public Affairs at California State University, Los Angeles, said it is always a danger that voters pass on certain items.

"At the same time, you get concerned about people voting when they don't know anything about the people or the issue," he said. "With new voters, both parties hope they just vote a straight Democratic or Republican ticket."

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