Opinion: Former L.A. mayor, Republican Richard Riordan backs Barack Obama

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With many of the predictable big name endorsements already made or, well, predictable, both presidential campaigns have started raiding each other’s camps for new supporters.

The Barack Obama campaign has just announced that former L.A. Mayor Richard Riordan is endorsing their guy as ‘the kind of leader we need to get us through these tough economic times.’ Riordan is a longtime Republican in, shall we say, the maverick mold.

As the Ticket reported earlier today, Lynn Forester de Rothschild, a large, no, make that major political and financial supporter of Hillary Clinton, announced her support for John McCain; earlier this year she had said, ‘Frankly, I don’t like [Obama]. I feel like he is an elitist.’ De Rothschild has been a member of the Democratic National Convention Platform Committee.

Campaigns often stash these endorsements for the best release timing and countering De Rothschild’s unexpected step with another cross-party sign-up makes strategic sense, if you’re keeping score, as these campaigns do pathologically.

In a news release, the Democrat’s campaign quoted Riordan as saying, ‘Obama is clearly the best candidate.’ Riordan is scheduled to appear at the opening of Obama offices in Santa Monica this evening.

-- Andrew Malcolm