Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti switched his endorsement in the race for Los Angeles County District Attorney from incumbent Jackie Lacey, the first African American to hold the post, to George Soros-backed challenger George Gascon.
In 2018, as Breitbart News reported at the time, Soros spent heavily on left-wing candidates for district attorney posts around the nation, often backing “progressive” candidates against establishment Democrats. He spent nearly $4 million in total.
The results are evident in a wave of politicized prosecutions — or, in the case of Chicago’s Jussie Smollett hate crime hoax, non-prosecutions. Soros-backed prosecutors have backed the Black Lives Matter movement, selectively enforcing the law.
In Los Angeles, the movement targeted Lacey. As Breitbart News noted: “[Protesters] accuse her of being too tough on crime. In March, Black Lives Matter activists marched to Lacey’s door in the wee hours of the morning — and Lacey’s husband confronted them with a gun and told them to leave. He now faces criminal charges in that incident.”
In August, Gov. Gavin Newsom backed Gascon. As Breitbart News noted:
Gascón is a left-wing prosecutor with a controversial history. He previously served as district attorney in San Francisco, as Politico notes, working with then-Mayor Newsom to roll back policing — but leaving a city synonymous with vagrancy today, and backing Proposition 47, which put more convicted criminals back on the streets:
Newsom’s choice reflects his long history with Gascón: When he was mayor of San Francisco, Newsom tabbed Gascón to be chief of police and then elevated him to San Francisco district attorney to fill the post that Kamala Harris vacated after she became state attorney general. During his tenure as San Francisco’s top cop, Gascón became a leading figure in California’s swing away from tough-on-crime policies, embracing measures like a ballot initiative to reduce drug and theft crimes from felonies to misdemeanors.
Gascón was encouraged to run by the Real Justice PAC, an organization co-founded by radical left-wing Black Lives Matter activist Shaun King, who is publicly refusing to denounce riots in Kenosha.
As the California Globe recently reported, Soros has spent $2.5 million on Gascon’s campaign. He has a left-wing record, including support for prison reform and the end of cash bail. Moreover, the Globe noted:
Under Gascón as San Francisco District Attorney:
- property crimes increased nearly 50%;
- auto thefts in San Francisco jumped to 10% of the statewide average;
- San Francisco had the highest property crime in the state;
- violent crime was 54% higher than the rest of the state and 82% higher than the national average;
- drug addiction soared.
Garcetti originally endorsed Lacey, but has now switched, according to the Los Angeles Times:
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said Sunday he is switching his endorsement in the L.A. County district attorney’s race and supporting George Gascón in his bid to unseat incumbent Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey as the head of the country’s largest prosecutor’s office.
…
In a statement issued Sunday, the mayor said he was proud to back a candidate who could improve public safety “through partnerships with and beyond law enforcement.”
“George Gascón will help our county shift the burden from the criminal justice system and jails toward diversion, intervention and re-entry programs that save money and save lives,” the statement read. “He is a leader who I have known and trusted for nearly twenty years who can meet this moment.”
Garcetti has capitulated to the Black Lives Matter movement, agreeing in June — as riots raged in the city — to cut up to $150 million from the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPS) budget, more than 10% of the total. The money was to be redistributed to “communities of color.”
The mayor is also known as a “moderate” who supported Joe Biden for president in the Democratic Party primary.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). His newest e-book is The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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