Former, and likely future, gubernatorial candidate Steve Westly is said to be gearing up for another campaign for governor. He’s got the money, but can he beat low poll numbers, a crowded race and an unpleasant incident in which he seems to have played down an associates’ domestic abuse? David Siders at the Sacramento Bee:
“Three years before the election, Westly, 59, is starting from behind. In a Field Poll last month, just 22 percent of registered voters said they were inclined to vote for Westly, a lower level of support not only than Newsom and Villaraigosa, but also three other potential Democratic candidates and one Republican, San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer.
“In addition to Newsom and Villaraigosa, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, state Treasurer John Chiang and billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer all polled ahead of Westly. With Gov. Jerry Brown terming out, the race is expected to draw a crowded field….
“Westly, who was once expected to announce his candidacy this summer or fall, suffered an early setback in September, when The Wall Street Journal reported he had tried to help minimize the impact of a domestic violence case against a business associate in 2013.”
Antonio Villaraigosa, one of Westly’s presumed opponents in the 2018 guv’s race threw his support behind sweeping changes to the education establishment recommended in a report called “Black Minds Matter.” Patrick McGreevy, Los Angeles Times:
“Calling the achievement gap facing minority students in schools ‘the civil rights issue of our time,’ former Los Angeles mayor and potential gubernatorial candidate Antonio Villaraigosa endorsed sweeping changes to California schools at a Capitol rally Thursday.”
Meanwhile, the current governor is taking heat on his request to have a report on his family’s property generated by the state’s Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources. Chris Megerian, Los Angeles Times:
“Gov. Jerry Brown was only interested in ‘the history and geology of his family ranch’ in Colusa County when he asked state officials about the potential for mining and oil drilling on the property, a spokesman for the governor said Thursday.
“The spokesman, Gareth Lacy, said Brown ‘has the same right as anyone to obtain public records’ and provided examples of research done for others.”
LA Times columnist George Skelton piles on, calling Brown “cranky” and highlighting the governor’s newest worry: a ballot proposal that could bury the twin tunnels and sidetrack California’s Bullet Train:
“[Wealthy food processor Dean Cortopassi] has spent $4 million of his own money to qualify what he calls the "no blank checks" initiative for the 2016 ballot.
“It's not a referendum on the tunnels, exactly, but could collapse them.
“A little civics refresher here: There are two basic types of state bonds. The most common is a general obligation bond, which is paid off through the state general fund with tax money. These bonds must be approved by voters. They're not involved in the initiative.
“The second type is a revenue bond. It is financed with revenue from a project: vehicle tolls or water rates. Voters don't get a say on these projects because they're paid for by user fees.
“Cortopassi's proposal would require any revenue bond project exceeding $2 billion to win voter approval. About the only current projects that would be affected are the twin tunnels and possibly the $68-billion bullet train.”
And, it’s not just wealthy Delta farmers pushing ballot props in 2018. Dan Walters notes that moderate Dems in the legislature have thwarted many liberal bills, forcing unions and other groups to the initiative process. From the Sacramento Bee:
“The 2016 ballot is still a work in progress, but it’s evident that several high-profile measures will be sponsored by unions and other liberal groups that have been frustrated in a Democrat-dominated Capitol.
“Foremost are tax measures – extending temporary tax increases that voters approved in 2012 and raising cigarette taxes and possibly property taxes, for example.
“The ballot will also likely have at least one measure to increase the minimum wage, and at least one to legalize recreational marijuana use.”
One group that tutored some of those moderate Dems is the Leadership California Institute, a nonprofit that helps prepare candidates for elective office. Their recent candidate forum in Sacramento offered guidance in many areas, including the importance of I.E.s. Laurel Rosenhall, CALmatters:
‘“If you simply take the time and the courtesy to have a conversation with us, and figure out where we agree and where we don’t agree, you might avoid a multimillion dollar I.E. (campaign) against you,’ Carlos Marquez, political director of the California Charter Schools Association, said to the roomful of candidates.”
And, in Washington, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) looks to stabilize his career after his bid for Speaker foundered amidst an embarrassing gaffe and rumors of an affair. John Bresnahan, Politico:
“In an interview with POLITICO this week, McCarthy asserted that his decision to drop his speaker campaign actually strengthened his position within the conference, a view his allies share. He said the move allowed Republicans, already reeling from John Boehner’s resignation, to avoid an ugly fight between mainstream members and hard-liners, and to coalesce around Ryan.
"’If you go back and look at my decision not to run [for speaker], I think we'll look at history and say that's the time we were able to come back together,’ McCarthy said in his first floor office in the Capitol. ‘We had to face the challenges of where we are and where we're gonna go. And it gave us that moment.’"
And, the part you’ve all been waiting for: who had the #WorstWeekinCA?
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti made a late play for this week’s award, sending out an email announcing his endorsement of Hillary Clinton Thursday - then retracting the endorsement after it was pointed out that the note had come from an official city email – then later re-endorsing Clinton from a campaign account. Oopsie.
But, honestly, that doesn’t even touch San Francisco Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi’s bad week. We’re pretty sure that everyone knew that the embattled sheriff wasn’t going to win reelection after a term that started out with a domestic abuse charge and ended with a murder by a man Mirkarimi’s office had just released. That said, even we expected him to get more than a third of the vote, proving that when San Francisco kicks you to the curb, it kicks hard.