Half the room was wearing denim. Quite a few of the reporters had shorts on, the mayor’s spokesman was wearing flip-flops and even Mike Aguirre wasn’t wearing a tie. But at this afternoon’s press conference on the Mount Soledad Cross, Mayor Jerry Sanders was his usual smart self in a dark suit.
We didn’t give him credit in our last This Just In entry, but Sanders was pretty chuffed about Kennedy’s decision, and he had a few things to say.
“The Supreme Court’s order is a very positive development in our effort to retain the integrity of the Mount Soledad War Memorial,” he said.
However, Sanders offered a few notes of caution: The Supreme Court’s not yet said it’s going to hear the cross case, he said. Nor have they even hinted that they’re on the city’s side in the matter.
“Today, by no stretch of the imagination, is a victory in this case, it is merely an opportunity to retain the integrity of our memorial. Hopefully, the high court will allow us to make our case.”
Despite his modest tones, however, Sanders spent much of the press conference beaming. He’s made the cross a central issue for himself, and he’s pledged to do all he can to save the memorial.