EDITORIAL FRIENDS OF HAHN WHY DOES THE FIREFIGHTERS UNION LOVE THE MAYOR?

LOS Angeles Mayor James Hahn isn't a very popular man these days.

By sacking former Police Chief Bernard C. Parks, he lost his once-deep support in the African-American community.

By ruthlessly quashing the secession movement, he alienated voters in the San Fernando Valley.

The City Council defied him openly on almost every issue: Hiring more cops, ending political campaign corruption, jacking up water rates.

Even top members of his staff have been jumping ship.

Yet, for some reason, Hahn's still the man of the hour among the United Firefighters of Los Angeles City, which recently endorsed his re-election bid - a year early.

That's quite an endorsement, seeing that they don't even know who Hahn's opponents will be yet. Apparently the union thinks that it's impossible to do the job any better than Hahn's already doing it.

Maybe it has something to do with money. In January, Hahn made sure the firefighters got a three-year contract that included a 9 percent pay raise, even though the city faces a $300 million budget deficit.

Not that there's any connection between the sweetheart deal and the endorsement, of course. That would be pay-to-play politics, and everyone knows Hahn would never do such a thing.

Just ask his friends.