By Walter Moore, Candidate for Mayor of Los Angeles, www.WalterMooreForMayor.com

The City Charter requires the Mayor to “devote [his] entire time to duties related to [his] office,” and prohibits his receiving “any compensation, including honoraria” other than his City salary.  The City’s Code of Ethics likewise requires “a full day’s labor for a full day’s pay.”

Villaraigosa’s collecting the pay, but he’s not providing the labor. 

One of his aides recently told one of my supporters -- a supporter to whom I happen to be married -- that Villaraigosa’s “to do” list includes appointing people to 400 City positions, including positions that don’t involve any expenditure of City funds (e.g. members of Historic Preservation Overlay Zone boards).

If Villaraigosa were here, paying attention, moreover, he might realize that the City simultaneously plans to sell three so-called “surplus” animal shelters, while spending $50 million to build a new shelter.   (Then again, that may be a conscious decision to reward developers.)

Nor has Villaraigosa solved any of the city’s fundamental problems.  Every day seems to bring a new story about children, teenagers and others being shot while minding their own business.

If you want a Mayor who will show up for work, I’m your man.  I know what it means to have a job, because, like you, I live in the real world, and have for quite some time now.  If we’re going to save this City, we have to stop electing career politicians who spend all their time running for the next office.

By the way, I haven’t received a written response yet to my public records request for Villaraigosa’s public calendars, travel expense reports, press releases and photo-op pictures.  Instead, his Deputy Counsel left me a voice-mail saying the materials were “voluminous.”  What does that tell you?  It tells me we need to replace the wanderer.