Former San Diego City Council Member Ralph Inzunza, convicted with a colleague on felony charges stemming from a strip-club influence-buying scheme, has a new job. The San Diego Union-Tribune reports he:

"...has been hired by the San Diego-Imperial Counties Labor Council to teach computer, math and language skills to low-income job seekers. Inzunza began his job the first week of August, about two weeks after he and ex-Councilman Michael Zucchet were convicted of federal corruption charges and resigned from the council.

"We have a job and he can do the job very well," said Secretary-Treasurer Jerry Butkiewicz. "It seemed like a perfect fit."...Inzunza was the perfect candidate for the recently vacated position, Butkiewicz said, because he is bilingual, he has bachelor's and master's degrees in social services, and he has been an employer and knows what employers are looking for during interviews.

The Labor Council is extremely influential at City Hall. It's an umbrella group for the region's 110 unions representing 100,000 workers in the two counties. The council, among other things, provides job training to minorities and Spanish speakers and lobbies politicians on labor issues. The council is funded by a combination of member dues, grants, donations and fundraisers, Butkiewicz said. Inzunza won't be participating in politics, Butkiewicz said, nor does he want to.

Of course, his teaching gig may still be short-circuited by a prison term as Ruben Navarrette predicts.

The Union-Tribune again:

The councilmen were convicted of multiple counts of extortion, wire fraud and wire fraud conspiracy in connection with a plot to accept money from a strip club owner in exchange for efforts to repeal the ban on touching between strippers and club patrons.

Butkiewicz denied the job is pay back for a supportive politician who backed unions. "I think people understand the word loyalty in the labor movement. I think Ralph was a big supporter of working class people.

Translation: we'll be helping to bankroll his next run for elective office, in a few years, and calling in a few chits of our own. But tactfully.

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Posted by Matt Rosenberg at August 16, 2005 12:53 PM