EDITORIAL PROMISES, PROMISES VILLARAIGOSA MUST STOP VOWING TO DO WHAT HE CAN'T DELIVER.

MAYOR Antonio Villaraigosa was elected, in part, because he promised to be all things to all Angelenos. He would be the education mayor, the law and order mayor, the Valley's mayor, the Eastside's mayor, the mayor of labor and of business.

That works well for a campaign, but it's a dangerous position for Villaraigosa to find himself in five months into his first term, when all those promise are starting to put him in difficult positions. That was made clear last week when one promise to the extremist animal advocates to fire the head of the city's Animal Services Department head, Guerdon Stuckey, drew some heat.

The animal group, which takes its demonstrations directly to the homes of politicians and city workers, called on Villaraigosa to make good on his promise immediately. The mayor said no.

``I did make that promise,'' Villaraigosa conceded later. ``But I never said when I would do that.''

Excuses based on technicalities don't earn much political capital, despite their veracity.

Indeed, Villaraigosa is correct to want to give Stuckey a chance to implement a low-kill policy in the city's animal shelters before he cans him. Especially because after the harassment the city's previous animal services director endured - protests at his home, vandalization of his house, threats, etc. - the city might have a hard time replacing him.

This isn't the only case that's brought Villaraigosa grief. When he was running for a City Council seat, he promised voters he wasn't going to run for mayor. Then he did, and said he changed his mind. During the mayoral campaign, Villaraigosa made many promises, including ending city dumping at Sunshine Canyon. He hasn't broken than promise yet, but he sure has bent it.

We're encouraging the mayor to stop giving his word out so freely. It's admirable that he wants to help everyone, but that's not realistic. Politics is, at its core, a balancing act of various interests.

He must only promise what he knows he can deliver, or he will leave a legacy of disappointment and betrayal. In the end, political leaders are not judged on the promises they make, but the ones they break.