Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti isn’t the first politician to use the f-word in public, and I dare say he won’t be the last.
After all, who could forget when Vice President Joe Biden quietly told his boss it was a “big F****** deal” he signed Obamacare into law, or when then-Vice President Dick Cheney told Sen. Patrick Lahey (D-VT) to go “F***” himself on the floor of the US Senate. These were notable examples, of course, but the outburst in Los Angeles was a rather different affair.
Why? Because the mayor of Los Angeles actually prefaced his remarks by saying politicians should never swear in public -- shortly before doing so anyway:
Mayor Eric Garcetti used the F-bomb in declaring it a big day for LA, bringing 19,000 hockey fans to their feet, lighting up the Twitterverse in delight and, oh yeah, leaving some folks scratching their heads, wondering just what the heck the normally soft-spoken elected official was thinking.
Having shed his pinstriped suit of choice for a hockey jersey Monday, Garcetti stepped in front of the TV cameras and a full house at Staples Center, where the Los Angeles Kings had won hockey's Stanley Cup championship just three days before.
"There are two rules in politics," Garcetti told those celebrating the victory. "They say never ever be pictured with a drink in your hand. And never ever swear.
Then he added dramatically: "But this is a big f---ing day. Way to go, guys."
Within minutes, Garcetti's remarks were trending on Twitter and appearing uncensored on YouTube, just as Fox Sports West was apologizing for letting them get on the air.
Ah, well. No doubt it was a big day for Los Angeles and its hockey fans. But perhaps Mayor Garcetti should have chosen his words a bit more carefully.