Democratic Los Angeles mayoral candidate Rick Caruso objected to being described as a “white man” during a debate on Tuesday evening.
Caruso, a former Republican running as a moderate Democrat, is facing off with Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA), a far-left black woman, for incumbent Mayor Eric Garcetti’s position.
“The next mayor of Los Angeles will be either an African-American woman or a white man,” asserted Telemundo anchor Dunia Elvir after referencing a racial scandal concerning now-resigned Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez.
“I’m Italian,” Caruso told Elvir, seemingly trying to raise his political currency. “That’s Latin, thank you.”
“An Italian American,” the moderator responded.
Later in the debate, the celebrity-backed candidate emphasized that all communities must work together to create a better city.
“I connect with the Latino community but quite frankly my job as mayor is to connect with every community — the Latino community, the black community, the Asian community, right? The Jewish community,” Caruso said, The Daily Caller reported.
“If one group rises, we all rise. We do this together in unison and we don’t separate, we don’t divide. But we all say to ourselves we can do this and we can have a better city.”
“The next mayor of Los Angeles will be either an African-American woman or a white man.”
Rick Caruso: “…I’m Italian. That’s Latin, thank you.” pic.twitter.com/PMSImugONP
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) October 12, 2022
Caruso, who is socially liberal, has become a favorite of some wealthy celebrities in Los Angeles. Celebs from Kim Kardashian to Gwyneth Paltrow have plugged the candidate on their social media accounts.
The Democrat is running on a message of cleaning up crime and attacking the city’s homeless problem.
“Los Angeles is in a crisis: Homeless, crime and corruption are uncontrolled. This is a moment for someone like Rick to come in and clean up City Hall,” Caruso Senior Adviser Peter Ragone told Axios back in May.
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