L.A.’s Ties to Clinton May Boost Recovery

Post-riot Los Angeles, civic leaders say, could emerge as a key beneficiary of an aggressive drive to rebuild America’s crumbling urban core that promises to be a hallmark of President-elect Bill Clinton’s Administration.

Local officials hope to parlay Southern California’s political and legislative prominence, its large--if struggling--business base and many personal ties to Clinton into substantial economic and social gains that could speed recovery from last spring’s civil unrest.

Surveyed after Clinton’s election this week, a cross-section of Los Angeles’ political community expressed a mixture of optimism and realism about the President-elect’s urban objectives.

While some said that his campaign emphasis on jobs and education dovetail precisely with the fundamental needs of inner-city residents, others expressed reservations that the nation’s vast budget problems could stall Clinton’s ambitious agenda.

Some longtime Democratic Party hands complained, too, that Clinton’s campaign politics essentially abandoned the urban poor. Except for a brief period after the riots, they said, the campaign was conspicuously lacking any discussion of urban problems.

“He did not run a campaign that embraced the urban poor, and I think it would be a mistake to automatically assume that because Clinton won, inner cities will receive the attention they so richly deserve,” said Assemblyman Curtis Tucker Jr. (D-Inglewood), who was chairman of a special Assembly Committee on the unrest.

Yet in City Hall, many offices are resonating with an almost gleeful anticipation of a new commitment to governmental activism after 12 years of conservative Republican leadership.

Many city officials complain privately that they have not been able to nudge the Bush Administration to cut much of the red tape that has hindered efforts to recover from the riots. Bush on Wednesday vetoed an urban aid package containing provisions that city officials considered vital to the rebuilding effort.

More progress, they believe, will be made with the new Administration.

“It’s a chance to open up a serious dialogue about problems that confront large cities in a way that is creative and that will hopefully yield new solutions,” said Parker Anderson, general manager of the city’s Community Development Department.

A number of key advisers with close ties to Los Angeles are likely to have Clinton’s ear in that dialogue:

* On Friday, Clinton picked Los Angeles attorney Warren Christopher, the former deputy secretary of state who led an investigation last year of the Los Angeles Police Department, to direct his transition effort.

* Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles), a co-chair of Clinton’s national campaign, has been mentioned as a candidate to head the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

In a telephone interview Thursday before leaving for Little Rock, Ark., Waters said she would weigh any such offer against the pluses of having an independent voice as a member of Congress. She said her staff is preparing a “serious critique” of HUD and its programs for Clinton.

* Chicago attorney Tim Wright, a UCLA graduate born in Los Angeles and raised in Compton, was Clinton’s principal domestic policy adviser during the presidential campaign.

In an interview from Clinton’s Little Rock campaign headquarters, Wright said that the severe social cleavages that erupted in rioting in Los Angeles serve as a bellwether for the rest of the nation.

The ways in which Los Angeles mends its rifts are likely to serve as national examples, he added.

“The approaches being suggested by Gov. Clinton are ones that spring directly from the problems facing those communities and involve turning those communities around,” Wright said.

* Also likely to wield influence are such people as Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina, another campaign co-chair, and Los Angeles attorney Mickey Kantor, Clinton’s campaign director.

“There is a real solid political base for his presidency,” said Los Angeles City Councilman Michael Woo. “There are several people from Los Angeles who are expected to be close to him. There are many reasons why it makes sense for his national urban policy to look to L.A. for its implementation.”

Indeed, major features of Clinton’s urban policy are steps that city officials say would help in Los Angeles’ recovery effort. They include:

* A plan to establish as many as 100 community development banks that would provide loans to residents and businesses in the inner city.

* Creation of urban enterprise zones that would offer tax incentives to private businesses willing to invest in urban communities.

* Creation of a City Assistance Flexibility program, allowing cities to use 15% of their federal funds as they see fit.

* Funneling a portion of community development block grants to the rebuilding of roads, bridges, water and sewage treatment plants and other urban infrastructure.

* Strengthening the Community Reinvestment Act to stop the practice of bank redlining in low-income communities.

“I believe he has outlined some plans during his campaign that would begin to address the needs of South-Central Los Angeles and urban America . . . that represent a major beginning in the right direction,” Los Angeles Urban League President John Mack said of Clinton’s proposals.

In the academic community, many urban experts see Los Angeles--with its rich resource base, diverse ethnic mix and status as the site of the worst civil unrest of this century--as an ideal testing ground for many of Clinton’s urban policies. That could be true especially in the areas of new transportation technologies and converting defense resources to civilian uses, these experts say.

Many community leaders say they believe that Clinton was genuinely moved by the conditions and the people he encountered on a visit to Los Angeles the week after the riots.

Clinton toured burned-out blocks of Koreatown and South-Central Los Angeles, visited a food bank and met not only with political leaders, but with representatives of grass-roots community organizations.

“I think he was profoundly struck by the devastation . . . and what he saw out here is part of the equation of how he is going to deal with urban problems,” said Waters, who was Clinton’s host during one meeting with African-American community leaders.

Woo accompanied Clinton on a walking tour along several riot-torn blocks of Vermont Avenue. Clinton, Woo said, was knowledgeable and curious about his surroundings.

“He knew we were walking through an area known as Koreatown but wanted to know why there was such a mixture of (other ethnic groups),” said Woo, a candidate for mayor. “The visit really opened his eyes to the ethnic diversity coexisting in L.A.”

Los Angeles Deputy Mayor Linda Griego was cautious about raising the expectations of Los Angeles’ riot-weary residents too high on account of a new face in the White House. If anything, she said, the unrest and its aftermath should serve as a lesson about the limitations of government and the private sector.

But Griego, like other leaders, said that change offers at least hope.

“We’re discouraged as a city right now. The confidence level is very low,” she said. “I think that things would eventually begin to turn around even had Bush been reelected. But I’m hopeful that with his new ideas, new thinking, that things may go further with Clinton.”

Clinton’s L.A. Allies

A number of prominent Los Angeles residents have advised President-elect Bill Clinton during his campaign for the White House; several are expected to play influential roles in the next Administration. Warren Christopher, 67

Position: Director of Clinton’s transition team.

Background: Former deputy secretary of state; led LAPD investigation. Mickey Kantor, 53

Position: Clinton campaign chairman.

Background: Los Angeles attorney and longtime Democratic Party activist; on transition team. Gloria Molina, 44

Position: Co-chairwoman of Clinton campaign.

Background: Los Angeles County supervisor; expected to have influence on Latino issues. Derek Shearer, 45

Position: Clinton economic policy adviser.

Background: Occidental College professor and director of public policy department. Maxine Waters, 54

Position: Co-chairwoman of Clinton campaign.

Background: First-term congresswoman from Los Angeles following 14 years in Assembly; prospect for HUD secretary. Tim Wright, 37

Position: Domestic policy director.

Background: Chicago attorney with urban economic development expertise; born and raised in Los Angeles area.