Godinez Faces Daunting Task in His Quest to Topple Berman

Raul Godinez II likes to compare his campaign to unseat Rep. Howard L. Berman to the battle between David and Goliath. Godinez pictures himself in the role of the undergunned biblical combatant.

“But look who won,” he likes to point out.

It may take divine intervention for Godinez, the mayor of San Fernando, to topple the 16-year congressional veteran, who was once part of the influential “Waxman-Berman” political machine.

Berman (D-Mission Hills), a former assemblyman, has nearly 20 times more campaign funds than Godinez and has close relationships with political power brokers from Sacramento to Washington.

“The bottom line is that Godinez has a horrible, uphill battle and no money to fight it with,” said political consultant Larry Levine, who lives within Berman’s San Fernando Valley-based 26th District.

Godinez, a 36-year-old engineer with the city of Los Angeles who last month was reelected by the San Fernando City Council to a second yearlong term as mayor, is nonetheless optimistic.

Part of his strategy, he said, is to appeal to Latinos, who represent 30% of the voters in the district. He also plans to reach out to Republicans, who represent about 24% of the voters but have no candidate in the race.

He appears to be the candidate who can pose the greatest threat to Berman. Also running are Maria Armoudian, a Green Party candidate, Juan Carlos Ros, a Libertarian, and David L. Cossak, a Natural Law candidate.

If Godinez wins, or at least makes a good showing, his campaign may be a symbol for the growing influence of Latinos in the Valley.

The number of Latino voters in the Valley increased from 7% of the electorate to 9% between 1993 and 1997. About 30,000 Latinos are registered to vote in the Valley, according to officials.

That number is expected to increase thanks to a voter registration drive launched last year by the Southwest Voter Registration and Education Project. The goal is to put 35,000 Valley Latinos on the rolls by November.

In the past five years, Valley voters have elected their first Latino city councilman, Richard Alarcon, and their first Latino assemblyman, Sylmar Democrat Tony Cardenas.

Godinez’s campaign has the support of several local Latino leaders, such as San Fernando City Councilmen Jose Hernandez and Silverio Robledo. He has also been endorsed by the Mexican American Political Assn. and state Sen. Richard G. Polanco (D-Los Angeles).

But Godinez is not assured of winning the Latino vote just because he is Latino.

“People don’t just vote based on the number of vowels in your last name,” said Harry Pachon, president of the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute, a Latino think tank associated with the Claremont Graduate School.

He noted that Berman also has strong support in the Latino community. Berman has been endorsed by the Latino Congressional Caucus, Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa (D-Los Angeles) and county Supervisor Gloria Molina.

Hoping for Crossover Appeal

Because of the blanket primaries, Republican voters can, for the first time, vote for a Democratic candidate, and Mike Madrid, political director for the state’s Republican Party, said Republicans may be willing to support Godinez if he addresses issues that resonate with the party, such as public safety.

Godinez has some Republican endorsements, including former Assemblywoman Paula Boland and Gary Thomas, past president of the United Chambers of the San Fernando Valley.

But other observers predict few Republicans will cross over to support a Democrat.

Even if Godinez loses, his campaign may increase his profile and improve his chances of winning a higher office in the future, said political analyst Sherry Bebitch Jeffe of Claremont Graduate School.

“I think he is building up name recognition and building up turf for the future,” she said.

Berman is not taking Godinez lightly. He has opened a campaign office, headed by his brother, Michael, a longtime campaign consultant. And he has returned from Washington every weekend to campaign in the district.

“I pride myself on being a community congressman,” he said. “All the local community supports me not because of what I do on the Middle East or on Medicare issues, but because of what I’m doing in the community.”

There is already bad blood between Godinez and Berman. Weeks before Godinez announced his candidacy, the two began feuding about an anti-crime mailer Berman sent to constituents, which Godinez thought disparaged his city.

Godinez is now taking the offensive, accusing Berman of having lost touch with the mostly working-class people of the east Valley.

He charges that Berman’s district received just $1.5 million in transportation funds from a $217-billion federal transportation bill, while other representatives in the area secured much more for their districts.

“The irony is that we have the most need,” Godinez said. “We have the most transit-dependent people.”

Berman said the federal transportation bill will bust the balanced-budget deal reached with President Clinton.

“It’s a scandalous pork-barrel bill that will never become law,” Berman said.

Hansen Dam Project Focus of Debate

Godinez has also attacked Berman’s proudest project: the revitalization of the Hansen Dam recreation area--once a hugely popular family spot that became neglected by most everyone aside from transients and gang members--by building a boating and fishing lake and a swimming lake.

Berman, who made restoration of the basin area a campaign promise during a past bid for Congress, sponsored legislation in the ‘80s that expanded the role of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which owns the land, from flood control to include recreation projects.

But cost overruns have increased the price tag of the project from $10 million to more than $14 million. Other snags have forced the city and the Army Corps to reduce the combined size of the lakes from 15 acres to 10 1/2 acres.

Godinez blames Berman for the problems.

“He is not making things happen,” Godinez said. “If the congressman were pushing for this project as a top priority, it would have happened.”

Berman said he can’t be blamed for unforeseen problems such as cost overruns.

He accused Godinez of “wanting to find something wrong in everything.”

Berman, 57, said his campaign will highlight the work he has done in Washington, lobbying for grants to hire more police officers in Los Angeles and the city of San Fernando. He said it will emphasize his efforts to get federal disaster funding to the Valley after the Northridge earthquake.

Berman, who holds a bachelor’s degree and a law degree from UCLA, is known mostly for his foreign policy work and his championing of Israel in the House of Representatives. He is the ranking member on the Ethics Committee and a member of the Judiciary and International Relations Committees.

The Dismantling of the Westside Alliance

For years, Berman and Rep. Henry Waxman headed the so-called Waxman-Berman machine, which wielded heavy influence over Westside politics. In the early 1990s, the machine fell on hard times, as Republicans seized control of redistricting and Berman ally Mel Levine lost a bid for the Senate.

Since then, the two men have largely worked solo.

Berman has close ties to organized labor and earned the praise of environmentalists in 1991 when he helped establish an electric car production center in Burbank.

The congressman said none of these efforts take away from his work on local issues.

“I’m involved in a lot of issues involving international relations, but that does not come at the expense of my services to my constituents,” he said.