Shifting Sands of Politics Claim Another Victim

Sam Paz is too much of a gentleman to diss the President of the United States. It’s not his style.

When I called the civil rights lawyer the other day, asking how he felt about the White House deciding not to fight for his nomination to a federal judgeship in L.A., Paz was typically low-key and unwilling to blame anyone.

“Certainly, I’m disappointed, but that’s all,” he said.

He wouldn’t say it, but a lot of other folks have: They think Sam Paz got screwed out of his judgeship because the President turned tail and ran when faced with the possibility of fighting for a deserving nominee in a Senate now ruled by Republicans.

The President’s wimpy decision has outraged a lot of local Chicanos who worked hard for his election two years ago.

*

Last year, it seemed that Paz, 51, a former president of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, was a sure bet. Sponsored by Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer, Paz was supported by an impressive array of lawyers, judges and Chicano professionals who believed his confirmation would help make the federal judiciary look more like America, as President Clinton promised.

Paz, who specialized in police abuse cases and won one of the largest jury awards in the country, had some extras going for him. None of the judges who presided over his cases or any of the lawyers on the other side of his court fights opposed his nomination. In fact, many praised him.

Also, the American Bar Assn. put Paz through its exhaustive screening process and pronounced him qualified for the bench.

The only opposition came from several local law enforcement groups, which complained that Paz was making his living off police officers. One police group called him an enemy of law enforcement. An East Coast newspaper, the Washington Star, editorialized against him.

With the Republican takeover of Congress, Paz was still willing to fight for his nomination, thinking that the Senate might confirm him--despite GOP reservations about his civil rights credentials--just as the Democrats had done for conservative nominees of Republican presidents.

Needless to say, Clinton’s decision to fold his cards on Paz has disgusted many here in L.A.

“What Clinton did to Sam is unforgivable,” said one Monterey Park attorney, who asked that his name not be used after I read back his quotes--and noted that he used the word spineless several times in referring to the President.

“I shouldn’t say that about a man I supported, but that’s how I feel,” the lawyer said.

“I think it’s a disgrace,” said Cruz Reynoso, a law professor at UCLA and a former California Supreme Court justice. “Sam Paz is one of the most respected lawyers in Southern California. The President is getting some terrible political advice, and it puzzles me because there’s some good political people in the White House.”

Even with the Republicans in control of the Senate, many think Paz should have been given the chance to fight for his confirmation.

“Sam was worthy,” said Antonia Hernandez, president and general counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund.

Despite their anger, the dozen or so lawyers and Chicano activists I touched base with weren’t about to write off President Clinton. They believe he is still sympathetic to many issues of concern to Latinos in the Southwest.

“I support the President because I think he cares about the underprivileged,” said one Chicano businessman. “But I’m not an FOB (Friend of Bill). I know Sam Paz and I think he got screwed.”

The anger no doubt deepened with the news Saturday, reported in The Times, that the President intends to nominate George H. King, an Asian who is a federal magistrate in L.A., in place of Paz.

*

While others argue about politics and what it did to Paz, he’s getting ready to resume his law practice, which he shut down last year in anticipation of confirmation.

That’s just what the cops who opposed Paz deserve: Putting him back in the courtroom litigating cases alleging police abuse.

In a letter to Boxer, thanking her for support, Paz wrote:

“It saddens me to think that I and those other judicial nominees who have acted competently within our profession as advocates can be prevented from serving on the federal bench. Would not each and every Republican senator want to be represented by a competent civil rights attorney should they or their family be the victim of unjust police conduct?”

Right on, Sam.