Riordan Endorses Bush and Feinstein in a ‘Split Ticket’

Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan, the popular chief executive of the nation’s second-largest city, split his ticket Thursday by endorsing Texas Gov. George W. Bush for president and incumbent Democrat Dianne Feinstein for the U.S. Senate.

In one sense, Riordan’s endorsements were predictable: Feinstein and her husband, San Francisco financier Richard C. Blum, are the mayor’s longtime friends, supporters and allies. Riordan and Feinstein have endorsed one another before, and have worked together on a wide range of projects for California and Los Angeles.

At the same time, Riordan and Bush both are Republicans; they have known each other for years and sources close to the mayor have long predicted that he would back the governor after this year’s Democratic National Convention had come and gone from Los Angeles.

But Riordan is an unconventional political figure, and his endorsements never are a given. Among other things, Riordan’s close relationship with the Clinton White House has helped him deliver on some of his most important promises, including the buildup of the Los Angeles Police Department, the city’s rapid recovery from the Northridge earthquake and the decision to bring the Democratic convention here this year.

The combination of Riordan’s personal affection for Clinton and the mutually beneficial political alliance between the two caused some observers to wonder whether Riordan might withhold his endorsement in this presidential campaign.

That view was bolstered by Riordan’s willingness to defy his party’s leaders. He opposed then-Gov. Pete Wilson, for instance, in the campaign over Proposition 187, the state initiative that sought to deny illegal immigrants many public benefits. Wilson enthusiastically supported that initiative, while Riordan called it divisive and came out against it.

The mayor said Thursday that he is backing Bush because he has concluded that the governor brings the best understanding to education issues, an area of passionate concern for Riordan.

“My main interest in life is the education of poor children,” Riordan said in an interview. “Bush understands what’s needed in education.”

Riordan, who took pains to say he was not criticizing Vice President Al Gore, nevertheless said he believes Bush’s record in Texas demonstrates that he would be the better education president and added that he believes Bush is a unifying political figure.

“We need a president who is not divisive,” said Riordan, who won reelection in 1997 with the support of almost every demographic group in Los Angeles. “We’re soul mates in a lot of ways.”

Bush’s California campaign welcomed the endorsement.

“I am proud to have Mayor Riordan’s friendship, support and endorsement,” Bush said in a statement. “As a leader in Los Angeles’ education community, he is a tremendous advocate for my campaign and for my agenda to reform the American educational system so that no student is left behind.”

Still, most analysts believe Gore already is solidly ahead in California, which probably reduces the importance of Riordan’s endorsement.

Joe Cerrell, a longtime political consultant and a Gore supporter, called the effect of Riordan’s move “negligible at best” and compared the mayor’s act with “signing on as the social director of the Titanic.”

Cerrell also fiercely criticized Riordan for turning his back on Gore despite the Clinton administration’s support for Los Angeles and the mayor.

Arnie Steinberg, a Republican political strategist who has worked with Riordan in the past, disagreed, saying the real effect of Riordan’s endorsement will depend on how the Bush campaign uses it.

Ads trumpeting the endorsement of “the independent, thoughtful mayor of a big city” could help reinforce Bush’s efforts to reach centrist, undecided voters, Steinberg said. “Mayor Riordan is both well-known and held in high regard in at least 40% of the state,” he added, referring to the Greater Los Angeles media market, which stretches from Santa Barbara to southern Orange County.

Gerry Parsky, chairman of the Bush-Cheney California campaign, said the Bush team would begin featuring Riordan’s endorsement in its new ads. The campaign intends to spend $1 million a week advertising in the Los Angeles area between now and the election, he said.

Parsky added that Riordan’s willingness to break with the Republican Party on occasion--including his endorsement of Feinstein--actually strengthens his value as a Bush supporter.

“He’s not afraid to speak his mind,” Parksy said. “That he was willing to do this despite his close ties to the Clinton administration is particularly heartening to us.”