Some people have accused City Attorney Mike Aguirre of playing mayor. He's making decisions he shouldn't be involved in, politicizing the office, while slacking off on his duties to offer timely legal advice to the city's other elected representatives. Mr. Aguirre, on the other hand, refers to himself as the people's representative, and his role as serving more as a check and balance to political power brokers than as filling the role of dispassionate counselor.
It makes sense (to me, at least) that the checks and balances in local government go hand in hand with the city attorney's job description, including accountability to the public good, and especially since this is an elected position.
Mike Aguirre has been doing a great job in that he understands which legal issues will most likely impact the public welfare. & I'll vote for him, but I hear the opposing argument that Aguirre has acted in ways too divisive and political to be effective anymore.
If I honestly believed that, Judge Jan Goldsmith seems like the next best candidate. He has a history of civic involvement as the former mayor of poway, has served as an intermediary in real-world legal disputes as a Superior Court judge, and he knows San Diego as a local law school graduate. The other candidates each have some sort of baggage (including Amy Lepine because of her pending lawsuit against the city and Mike Aguirre.)
Again, this primary race really boils down to two candidates, easing the voter's job to pave the way to November's runoff race.
