SECESSION DRIVE STUMBLES ANALYST LABELS CAMPAIGN 'A FARCE' AS PROPONENTS TALK OF LAWSUITS, DEALS.

Byline: Harrison Sheppard Staff Writer

With several tactical errors last week, the San Fernando Valley secession campaign seems stalled and having trouble getting a coherent message out to voters, according to political analysts.

In a single week, leaders of the secession movement weighed postponing a secession vote during secret meetings with the same downtown power brokers they often criticize, raised the once-ridiculed possibility of suing if they lose the election and saw a prominent Latino politician decide against running for mayor of the Valley.

For his part, Mayor James Hahn has been on the offensive while refusing to debate secessionists face-to-face. Instead his strategy has been a common one followed by strong incumbents: rely on one-sided speeches and free media exposure to get your message across, without lending that same exposure to the other side by challenging them face-to-face.

``I think the (pro-secession) campaign thus far is a farce,'' said Arnold Steinberg, a Calabasas political consultant who has worked for secessionists in the past, although he was denied their current campaign contract.

``The problem is there is no coherent strategy. If there were a strategy, you wouldn't have these sorts of errors.''

Agreed University of Southern California political analyst Sherry Bebitch Jeffe: ``I can say it appears very clear that the momentum of the secession movement has stalled. And it stumbled badly this week.''

One bad development, in particular, Jeffe said, was when state Sen. Richard Alarcon of Van Nuys announced last week he is not running for mayor of a new Valley city and instead has decided to oppose secession. She noted that leaves in the mayoral race only Assemblyman Keith Richman of Granada Hills, a white Republican male - exactly the sort of stereotype that secessionists are trying to avoid.

But secessionists say the incidents of last week are isolated ones, and not serious blows.

Alarcon, for example, never said he supported secession in the first place, so his announcement was not a defection, argued Richard Katz, chairman of the Valley Independence Committee. Katz also noted that Alarcon, a Democrat, was under pressure from the municipal unions to not run.

And the back-room deals to talk about postponing the secession vote, he said, was just talk, and the end result was to demonstrate that boroughs won't be on the ballot, allowing them to focus on secession.

The talks involved Richard Close, chairman of Valley Voters Organized Toward Empowerment, and David Fleming, a prominent financial backer of secession, with Assemblyman Bob Hertzberg, billionaire Eli Broad and former Mayor Richard Riordan among others. One idea floated during those talks was placing a plan to reorganize the city government into a borough system in exchange for postponing the secession vote. The talks stopped when Hahn rejected the deal outright.

'Lawsuits are for losers'

Then on Thursday, Close said he is thinking about filing a lawsuit if secession loses on Nov. 5 because voters outside the city rejected it although Valley voters approved it. He argued that only Valley voters should be allowed to vote on Valley secession. That statement came after months of secessionists criticizing any lawsuit talk from Hahn and others, and Close himself saying, ``Lawsuits are for losers.''

Close's statement on lawsuits and his participation in the secret talks sparked a backlash among some secession supporters. While they still support the cause, several said they don't agree with the concept of suing, and they don't like the idea of secret talks with downtown power brokers.

``I was surprised as others to hear about the meetings that were going on in the back rooms, regarding the potential delay on the vote,'' Richman said. ``I am strongly supportive of the vote for Valley independence going forward in November.''

The talks, he added were ``the type of practice that has driven Valley residents to move toward independence. It's those type of downtown discussions, behind closed doors, that people no longer want.''

Katz said Close was speaking only for himself on the lawsuit idea.

``That's not us,'' Katz said. ``That's one individual. We've never discussed suing, we've never contemplated suing and would not.''

Katz said he remains confident and noted it is still relatively early in the campaign.

``Every campaign goes through growing pains,'' Katz said. ``There was the time when no one thought Gray Davis would be governor and no one thought Bill Simon would be the (Republican) nominee. All the times people thought George Bush Sr. couldn't be beaten as president, and Bill Clinton then served eight years as president. This is a normal occurrence in campaigns, and it's no different than any campaign.''

Hahn won't debate

At the same time, Hahn's campaign strategy so far has been to hold press conferences, make appearances with set speeches before friendly audiences and visit the Valley several times a week, often to announce endorsements of his anti-secession campaign or to launch a new program benefiting the Valley.

But while there have been dozens of community forums held on secession throughout the city, Hahn has rejected every invitation to debate, and has only sent deputies to a few low-key forums in his place.

``Clearly the mayor is scared to debate the issue, because he cannot,'' Close said. ``His goal is to read prepared speeches. I don't think he has the ability to debate one-on-one on the issue.

``Clearly it's a cheap political trick to hunker down in Fort City Hall, and that's the tactic he's taking. Usually people who can't defend themselves refuse to debate.''

In late May, Close challenged Hahn to debate various secessionists 10 times, starting, symbolically, with Independence Day. Hahn's campaign consultant Kam Kuwata turned down the offer harshly, saying he wouldn't commit to any ground rules issued by Close. ``Who the f--- is Richard Close?'' Kuwata said at the time. ``I don't have to listen to him.''

But Kuwata added then that ``there will be a lot of debates .... Jim Hahn will be one of the main people debating this issue.''

That statement was May 28 - about seven weeks ago, but Hahn has still declined to appear at any debates.

Hahn said Friday he sees no need to debate, in particular because secessionists have taken to name-calling and personal attacks.

``I'm going to run my campaign the way I want to run my campaign,'' Hahn said. ``I think they're trying to personalize this. It's been obvious to me from the beginning - the personal attacks on me, trying to bait me.

``I think the other side has been trying to personally attack me, trying to bait me, and trying to make this a campaign about Jim Hahn, when we're campaigning about the future of the city.''

Other prominent secession opponents have participated in many debates, including Councilwoman Cindy Miscikowski - who also has sent a top deputy in the past when she can't make it herself; One Los Angeles co-chairman Larry Levine; Julie Butcher, general manager of Service Employees International Union Local 347; and even Chief Legislative Analyst Ron Deaton, who faced off against Close. Hahn has also turned down invitations from independent groups.

'Earnest effort'

On June 12, the ``Which Way L.A.?'' radio program on KCRW-FM (89.9) hosted a live debate at California State University, Northridge. Despite the Lakers playing in the final game of the NBA championship, about 175 people attended in the audience, and the program was broadcast live over the air. The event featured Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce President Rusty Hammer and Councilwoman Wendy Greuel on the city unity side, against secessionists and former Assembly members Paula Boland and Richard Katz.

Hahn was invited, but declined, according to the show's host, Warren Olney.

``We made an earnest effort to get the mayor to come be on that program,'' Olney said. ``We called him a long time in advance, asking if he would do it, and he declined. We asked for other people from the campaign - surrogates, if you will, for the mayor himself - and they said no.''

Similarly, on July 23, residents who live near Los Angeles International Airport have organized what they hope will be a major forum on the secession issue and invited Hahn to appear, but said they were told by the Mayor's Office he does not want to face secessionists in a head-to-head debate.

``We've been trying ... since January to get him out here,'' said Denny Schneider, a Westchester activist involved in the group sponsoring the debate. ``He doesn't like conflict, apparently, because he would not be very warmly received here.''

Instead, they were told the mayor would be willing to appear at a town hall-style forum featuring only him.

On April 30, the Tarzana Property Owners Association held a forum on secession at the El Caballero Country Club, with about 200 people in attendance. The event was taped for broadcast on Adelphia Cable and moderated by Adelphia's Bill Rosendahl. The association invited Hahn or a deputy to appear, according to association President Helen Itria Norman, but he declined.

``He was going to send a deputy and I waited about three weeks,'' Norman said.

But the Mayor's Office didn't send anyone, and in the meantime she put together a balanced panel and went on without him. The panel included Miscikowski and Levine on one side and Close on the other side, with county Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky appearing to represent the Local Agency Formation Commission.

Norman, who personally opposes secession, said she would like to see the mayor make more face-to-face appearances.

``I wish he would,'' Norman said. ``After all, he is an attorney, and I'm sure he could hold his own against Richard Close, very easily, and point out the pluses of staying one city instead of splitting.''

``I think he should because I think his absence is noted. And I think people really want to hear (him) directly. But evidently his advisers do not apparently want him to do that. I don't think they're right.''