3 Democrats Seeking to Replace Burton as Senate Leader

Democrats in the state Senate have put out a casting call for someone to go toe-to-toe with “the Terminator.”

Three veteran lawmakers answered: Sens. Martha Escutia of Whittier, Sheila Kuehl of Santa Monica and Don Perata of Oakland.

All three are now in full campaign mode heading into the Aug. 24 vote for the Senate president pro tempore post being vacated by the termed-out John Burton of San Francisco.

The job -- running the state’s upper house -- is considered by many to be the second-most powerful job in state government.

The irascible Burton, who was just named “Legislator of the Year” by the California Journal, earned praise from colleagues for standing up to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in the recent budget talks.

Those vying to take Burton’s place say they too will stand up to the popular Republican governor when necessary and work with him when possible.

“I’m a very, very tough person,” said Escutia, an attorney who heads the Senate Judiciary Committee. “I will be able to cooperate with him as much as possible, but I will not allow my party to be co-opted.”

Kuehl, an attorney who chairs the Natural Resources and Wildlife Committee, also said she would be a tough negotiator and a defender of the Democratic Party principles. She has something in common with the actor-turned-governor. She is an actress-turned-lawmaker. Kuehl had a starring role in the early 1960s TV show “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis.”

Perata, a former schoolteacher, is the Senate majority leader and is believed to have strong support to move up, but Escutia has circulated a letter to colleagues claiming that she has support from 11 senators.

There are 25 Democrats in the Senate, so the contenders need just 13 votes.

Kuehl said she has five so far. “I don’t think anybody has got it sewn up,” she said.

Burton, who will remain the caucus leader through November, said last week that he is not taking sides.

“My theory basically is if the only way to get elected is a big push from me, they’re going to have a hard time leading when I’m gone,” Burton said.

*

City Licensing Is Not in Future for Fortunetellers

If you are looking for a reliable fortuneteller, you’re on your own.

The Los Angeles Police Commission last week nixed a Police Department plan to license commercial soothsayers, citing concerns that it would look like an official stamp of approval.

Police Commissioner Rick Caruso dismissed the idea out of hand.

“If I have a license from the city of Los Angeles, what it tells people is that I’m qualified to read tea leaves, to talk to the dead and to solve your problems,” he said. “Unless I’m mistaken, there’s no basis or validity to what they do -- it’s all a scam.”

Fortunetellers, he warned, could use the city license as a marketing tool. The department receives about 50 complaints a year, and Chief William J. Bratton concedes it is not a top priority.

So, it’s back to the drawing board for the city’s efforts to police fortunetellers.

The psychics must have known. They didn’t show up.

*

LAPD to Put Its Seal of Approval on Flashlight

In the wake of the televised flashlight beating of a Compton man on June 23 by an LAPD officer, Bratton has decided that it wasn’t enough to trade large metal flashlights for smaller ones.

He wants to turn a negative into a positive by finding a manufacturer to design smaller, rubber-coated flashlights for the LAPD and perhaps market them as LAPD-approved flashlights.

“We’re not aware of any one existing flashlight that meets the multiple needs of our patrol officers,” Bratton said. “There’s such a hodgepodge of lights out there. That’s why I made the decision to custom design one.”

Bratton, who has apparently spent some recent evenings testing the power of smaller flashlights from the deck of his Hollywood home, is forming a committee to come up with a design.

No word yet on whether the LAPD will add its seal to other products.

*

Hertzberg Rides on Web Coattails of Political Foes

You’ve heard of politicians riding the coattails of influential figures in their party, but Los Angeles mayoral candidate Bob Hertzberg has figured out a way to ride the coattails of his political foes.

Web surfers who type Jim Hahn’s name in the Google search engine and press enter will find a sponsored link to Hertzberg’s campaign website, www.changela.com.

“Want a better L.A.?” the changing, paid link said on one recent day. “Bob Hertzberg for mayor, to change L.A.”

The second website listed is the mayor’s official site, www.lacity.org/mayor, and the third is his very out-of-date campaign site, www.jimhahn.org, which touts him as mayor-elect and sports a three-year-old Times article on how he spent his first day in office.

Using the same search engine, type in Richard Alarcon, Bernard C. Parks or Antonio Villaraigosa, the names of three other major candidates, and the same Hertzberg ad and link pops up. Alarcon’s website is www.alarconforla.com; Parks’ is www.bernardparks.com. Villaraigosa just announced his candidacy this week.

“It’s just another cheap, dirty trick,” said Ace Smith, a political strategist for Villaraigosa.

Hertzberg political consultant John Shallman defends the strategic Internet buys. “If those guys had been out there and thought of it first, they probably would have done it themselves,” he said. “It’s smart and it’s aggressive.”

*

Points Taken

* John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou, the in-your-ear hosts of the popular “John and Ken Show” on KFI-AM (640), have been railing for months against Washington, D.C., lawmakers who they claim have done little to address illegal immigration. On Tuesday, Kobylt and Chiampou were surprised when Rep. Mary Bono (R-Palm Springs) agreed to appear on the show for two hours to discuss the issue and take calls from listeners. When Kobylt angrily charged that no area lawmakers are willing to express real passion over the issue, Bono flung a wadded up tissue at Kobylt. How is that for passion, she joked. Lucky for Kobylt that Bono didn’t toss her microphone.

* The Los Angeles City Council adjourned last week in memory of Dan Knapp, who was general manager of the Animal Regulation Department until he was fired by Mayor James K. Hahn in 2001. Knapp died at his home in Columbus, Ohio. He once sued the city, claiming Hahn and his deputies caused him stress-related health problems.

*

You Can Quote Me

“As a state, we are pretty clueless about our future prospects, and this lack of knowledge breeds pessimism.”

Mark Baldassare of the Public Policy Institute of California after releasing a survey last week that found 59% of Californians believe the state’s population growth during the next two decades will be a bad thing for them and their families.

*

Contributing this week were Times staff writers Hugo Martin, Jordan Rau and Richard Winton.