The govenror
sits down with the Stockton Record's Hank Shaw to discuss his special election package, and beat up on SEIU.
"The unions come in with their purple shirts and they roam around the building and they just lobby and they just threaten. They come in and just say, 'Hey, you better vote my way and you better pass this bill out; otherwise, we won't support your campaign anymore.' And then all those guys crumple."
Is this part of a new, statewide gubernatorial media campaign, or perhaps just a targeted move to reach readers in the Central Valley?
Sen.
John Kerry made an appearance in Los Angeles yesterday to
voice his opposition to Prop. 75. But he also gave voice to an increasing concern among Democrats: That opposition to the special election may lead to many Democrats staying home.
"Some people are saying to themselves, 'I don't think I should vote; I don't like it,' " said Kerry, the Massachusetts Democrat. "That is exactly the wrong thing to do."
That sentiment was echoed in an email sent to Democrats Thursday. The e-mail warns that "
Arnold Schwarzenegger and his dangerous ballot propositions
are gaining momentum ... Democratic voter turn-out is criticial for beating Arnold's propositions."
Schwarzenegger seems poised to hand a gift to Contra Costa supervisor
Mark DeSaulnier by
removing him from the Air Resources Board.
"In an interview with the Contra Costa Times, Alameda County Supervisor
Scott Haggerty said an administration official called him a week ago and asked him to get letters of support from legislators to be the Bay Area representative on the California Air Resources Board. Democrat Mark DeSaulnier, a Contra Costa County supervisor who has the strong backing of environmentalists, has held that position for the past nine years."
DeSaulnier is also running in a contested primary for state Assembly. Looks like the guv just pinned a badge of honor on him for the primary.
A local watchdog group has filed an
ethics complaint against Sen. Dean Florez "accusing him of violating campaign funding rules and profiting by hiring his wife as his fundraiser," the Fresno Bee reports.
"The complaint filed Wednesday with the Fair Political Practices Commission alleges that Florez, a Shafter Democrat, funneled campaign contributions to his personal wallet by paying his wife, Elsa, more than $145,000 for fundraising and other activities. Florez, it alleges, created the loophole to dodge rules against politicians using campaign funds to pay themselves."
Sounds like a
Richard Pombo special.
From our "
What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" Files, former Dean-iac Rick Jacobs, who has personally taken credit for driving down the govenror's popularity numbers, has started a new drive he's calling the Courage Campaign, to defeat the govenror's initiatives. Jacobs recently sent an e-mail "pledge" for his fellow Democrats to "sign and return" voicing their opposition to the govenror's agenda. Let us now turn our hymnals to page 36:
"I believe in the power of saying YES to big and daring dreams for California. But nothing in the Governor's Special Election agenda moves our larger vision forward. The only choice the Governor has given us is to say NO."
From our "
Don't Cry Over Spilled Wine" Files, a recent fire at a wine stoarge warehouse in Vallejo may have
destroyed more than 500,000 cases or rare vino. But one expert was looking for the silver lining. "People losing their library wines and vintages isn't a good scenario," he said. But "it might put pressure on wineries to sell more of their better earlier vintages. We still have a lot of wine out there even from the premium sector. Somebody's misfortune might benefit someone else who otherwise wouldn't be selling."
