The nation's eyes shifted to California this weekend, with Tuesday's presidential primary now a dead heat. In the Golden State, two polls have have Clinton leading (
Field,
McClatchy), and two polls Obama leading (
Rasmussen,
Zogby).
The surrogates were stumping in the state, including the
Bill and Chelsea Clinton for Hillary, and
Oprah Winfrey, Caroline Kennedy, and Michelle Obama for Obama.
New California endorsements were also rolled out:
March Fong Eu for Hillary and
Maria Shriver for Barack.
Whoa?!?
The Bee's Peter Hecht reports: "California first lady Maria Shriver said she arose Sunday feeling inspired by an Eleanor Roosevelt quote: 'Do something every day that scares you.'
"'Eleanor Roosevelt,' Shriver said, 'This is my one thing for today.'
With that, Shriver, who wasn't even on the program, made a surprise appearance at the close of a raucous UCLA rally for Barack Obama and endorsed the Illinois senator for president in Tuesday's presidential primary."'
I thought if Barack Obama would be a state, he'd be California: 'Diverse, open, smart, independent, bucks tradition, inspiring, dream, leader.'And his personal finances would be a mess...
"Shriver said she wasn't sure Sunday morning if she had the courage to make a stand in the presidential race. But she said she decided to appear at UCLA after a conversation with her oldest daughter, Katherine. She said Katherine told her: 'Mommy, if you think it can help, if you think it can make a difference, then go.'"
Meanwhile, we are still voting on ballot measures Tuesday, and
Field again took the temperature of California's voters. "
A $100 million campaign has four Indian gambling measures riding a wave of voter support, but a separate proposal to alter legislative term limits desperately needs a life jacket, according to a Field Poll released Sunday."With election day looming on Tuesday, the poll shows that support for the Indian gambling measures has risen consistently in recent weeks, while the term limits measure has fallen dramatically.
(We have to take issue with the
headline in the Union-Tribune, which claims "Gaming initiatives soar as term limits falters." After the amount of money spent on the yes side, they can't be happy with 47% the day before the election.)
"
Propositions 94 through 97, which would allow four wealthy Southern California Indian tribes to add up to 17,000 casino slot machines, is leading by 47 percent to 34 percent, with 19 percent of likely voters undecided, the Field Poll found.
"The term limits measure,
Proposition 93, is favored by only 33 percent of voters, while 46 percent are opposed and 21 percent undecided. The numbers represent a steep drop from mid-December, when half the state's voters turned thumbs up.
"
Mark DiCamillo, Field Poll director, said the two disparate trends reflect the impact of hard-hitting television advertising that has warmed voters to Indian gambling and painted the term limits measure as a power grab."
But no matter what happens tomorrow, the winners are
all of the political consultants who got a piece of the tribal compact action. Matier and Ross report: "
The four tribes fighting to keep their compacts have raised an estimated $109 million so far - which may be a ballot-box record.
"It's overkill," said consultant
Garry South, who is working with the campaign to roll back the compacts.
All that money, South said, "is meant to make a point that win or lose, these tribes are not to be messed with."
But
Roger Salazar, who's with the gaming tribes, said the $34 million being spent by South and Co. to defeat the compacts is no pittance.
"It takes extra resources to both deliver your message and counter misinformation," Salazar said.
The Merc News's Steven Harmon writes that
Proposition 93 hasn't been a debate over the value of term limits.
"It's a debate that's been quietly waged for years among academics and political insiders. But it's been strangely absent from the Proposition 93 campaign, even as voters are being asked to consider changing term limits.
"'A debate on term limits would have been very enlightening for the general public, but proponents figured they can't change the public's mind about term limits,' said
Jack Pitney, government professor at Claremont McKenna College. 'And opponents felt they didn't really need to engage the merits of the issue.'
"For good reason. Over the years, two-thirds of the public has consistently backed the concept of limiting the time lawmakers serve in office."
That's funny. We thought it was a referendum on
Fabian Nunez and
Don Perata...
Dan Smith takes a look at
the glut of political mail. "Not all are what they might seem. And while state law in recent years has required more truth-telling disclosure of the sources of political mailings, the arguments made in the mailers don't always tell the full story."
And from our
All Politics is Local Files, AP reports, "A small-town mayor accused of
secretly keeping her neighbors' dog after telling them the pet died has resigned, and a judge is set to decide custody of the Shih Tzu.
"
Grace Saenz-Lopez apologized Friday to Alice residents and said she believed her actions were in the dog's best interest.
"A custody hearing Monday is expected to decide who gets Puddles, who Saenz-Lopez renamed 'Panchito' after taking the dog last summer."
But the dog's new identity crisis could last a lifetime...
