The Newsweek article about mayors Tony and Gav comparing the two in terms of post-scandal fallout performance gave the edge to Newsom for his quick mea culpea. According to Newsweek Villaraigosa’s delayed reaction may adversely impact his political future.
I looked at the two men from a different angle. Yes, Villaraigosa wasn’t quite forthcoming when news of his affair surfaced. But Newsom also denied his affair when asked directly by his press secretary Peter Ragone. Then following Newsom’s “confession,” that “everything you have heard and read is true,” he has refused to answer any further questions about the matter and in fact has refused to talk to persistent reporters like Dan Noyes.
Villaraigosa on the other hand has stood among hordes of reporters and responded to every question asked of him. He did not hesitate. He did not retreat. He did not berate reporters. He did this on at least two separate occasions.
Another point in Villaraigosa’s favor from my perspective is his life’s story. He is a highly successful man from a disadvantaged background and a dysfunctional family. His father was a wife abuser who beat Tony’s mother in the child’s presence and later abandoned the family. Despite this as well as a personal illness that paralyzed his lower body, Villaraigosa graduated from UCLA and eventually became a highly successful politician.
Newsom on the other hand is a product of privilege, one of the moneyed class who cannot point to a single similar struggle in his life on his way to the mayor’s office. Newsom’s entire life and career have been stories of advantage.
In a political contest between the two for the governorship, Newsom may well win. But it won’t be because he would make the better governor. The final tale in all political contests is rarely if ever competence.
Leave a Reply