Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa Watch: Villaraigosa Skips TV Interview – Dispatches Spin Masters

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Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, center, directs high school students during a clean-up project in the Chinatown section of Los Angeles, Tuesday, July 10, 2007, as a kick-off event for a summer youth employment program.

Villaraigosa skips TV interview on personal life

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, hoping to move beyond the controversy over his divorce and relationship with a TV anchorwoman, passed up his monthly appearance today on a local television news show.

Villaraigosa had been scheduled to appear on KABC-TV’s Eyewitness Newsmakers, but told producers he would not answer any personal questions, reporter Adrian Alpert said.

“More than two-thirds of the questions we received were about his relationship,” Alpert said. “As a result, spokesman Gil Duran said the mayor would not be appearing this month.”

Without the mayor, the show concentrated on the political impact on the mayor as well as questions over the journalistic ethics of Telemundo reporter Mirthala Salinas, with whom he has been involved for the past year.
The station did post some of the questions it received from viewers.

The political redemption strategy for the Mayor is CLEAR: stonewall, spin and hope the voters forget.

However, sending a former staffer, Darry Sragow, to spin his continued political viability will not make the questions of unethical and inappropriate behavior disappear.

There has been little MSM coverage of the flap over Mirthala Salinas’ condominium but there is more to this story and undoubtedly there will be other favors for the Mayor’s mistress discovered.

Mayor Villar will have to answer the questions regarding his personal and political relationship with Mirthala Salinas – the question is when?

And will the MSM demand that he answer? Or will this be up to a Los Angeles Grand Jury?