Bobby Shriver Was Failure as a Santa Monica City Council Member

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Page 9

IN MY OPINION (Column)

Bobby Shriver Was Failure as a Santa Monica City Council Member

By GLEAM DAVIS

(The writer is an attorney for AT&T. Her undergraduate degree is from USC and her law degree is from Harvard. She writes about the race for Los Angeles County supervisor for the Third District as a member of the Santa Monica City Council.)

Bobby Shriver and his supporters are touting his experience on the Santa Monica City Council as a reason to vote for him for county supervisor. For more than three years [2009-2012], I served on the City Council with Bobby Shriver and I am supporting Sheila Kuehl. Let me tell you why:

Bobby decided to run for city council because he was angry that the city’s enforcement of its hedge ordinance would require him to trim the hedge around his home. Before the hedge issue came up, he never had shown any interest in local politics or local issues.

Bobby was sufficiently upset about the hedge issue that he decided to run for City Council. He spent hundreds of thousands of dollars of his own money on his campaign. No one in our small city had ever seen that kind of personal wealth spent on a city council race.

Bobby ran on a platform of collaboration and respect for residents. Once Bobby was elected, it became clear that this was just campaign rhetoric.

After he was elected, Bobby was difficult to reach. When he was willing to speak with residents, he often seemed impatient and distracted. On the dais, he was rude to his colleagues, city employees and members of the public. He frequently interrupted members of the public and other councilmembers when they were speaking. Bobby didn’t work well with others so he did not get very much done.

Soon after he was elected, Bobby’s lack of interest in local politics resurfaced. Except for a very few issues, Bobby seemed unprepared for meetings and unconcerned about the matters on the council’s agenda.

The City Council only meets twice a month, but Shriver completely missed 46 meetings—one out of every five meetings. He was late, some times as much as two hours late, to 102 meetings. In fact, Shriver was present and on-time for only 39 percent of the council’s meetings. And he often left meetings early before the public comment portion of the meeting.

I want a county supervisor who listens to the public, treats everyone with respect, and can collaborate with her colleagues. I want a county supervisor who shows up on time and is ready to work. I want a county supervisor who stays as late as necessary to make sure all voices are heard. That’s why I am supporting Sheila Kuehl.