Editorial: What happens after Councilman Kevin de León’s apology tour?
Editorial: What happens after Councilman Kevin de León’s apology tour?
Kevin de León may be getting back to his home office in El Centro next week for a meeting of the Hispanic Caucus Advisory Board. He doesn’t have to travel much, and he should be able to get back to his work on City Hall fairly quickly because he has a lot of work to do.
The last several months have been an ordeal for the Mexican-American councilman from East L.A. He was first embarrassed by the scandal he created when he failed to immediately apologize to Councilman Paul Krekorian after the two Council members disagreed on whether to place the $50 million rail tunnel project on a ballot measure.
Days later, he was exposed as still in the middle of a secret deal to turn over control of the tunnel project to the city’s general fund for half a billion dollars. He also was caught taking a bribe from an illegal campaign contributor in exchange for a promise he would not seek re-election.
But when he learned the city wanted his resignation, De León quickly capitulated and agreed to resign so the tunnel project could resume. The next day, the city’s lawyers threatened to sue him for any political wrongdoing in connection with the deal. This week, after spending hours answering questions under oath in a deposition and more than a thousand e-mails, he finally acknowledged his failure to immediately apologize was a mistake and pledged to pay Krekorian $50,000 to clear up the misunderstanding.
In the process, De León has tried to portray himself as victimized by the deal to buy him out of his contract, saying he had never authorized the use of City Hall money for personal favors. He also is now claiming that the tunnel agreement was only a political payoff.
But his defense is not the most damaging accusation he has put forward. Instead, it’s his claim that his entire career is built on a false premise: that he can lead the City of Los Angeles like a real leader when he
