Well, this is never a good sign for a campaign. Tom
Campbell has pulled all of his television advertising off the air in the final days of the campaign as he tries to catch
his Senate primary rival Carly Fiorina.
Maeve Reston reprts, "Capitulating to his dwindling
campaign treasury, Republican Senate
candidate Tom Campbell pulled his television advertising
Tuesday and in
the closing days of the primary race will rely on Internet
appeals and
telephone calls to make his case to GOP voters.
The move creates an enormous hurdle for the former
congressman at a time
when his chief rival, Carly Fiorina, has loaned several
million dollars
to her campaign and, on the strength of a generous
round of TV ads, has
shot ahead in what was once a close contest to replace
Democratic Sen.
Barbara Boxer.
"Larry Gerston, a professor of political science at
San Jose State,
called Campbell's decision to yank his ads "as close
as you get to the
white flag of surrender."
Before the budget battles begin, lawmakers and Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger exchanged quips at the 28th annual California Roast in Sacramento. This year's victim was Senate leader Darrell Steinberg
(D-Sacramento). John Howard sat through the event -- and only blushed a couple of times.
"On stage were Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, his chief of staff Susan Kennedy,
Lt. Gov. Abel
Maldonado, Senate GOP Leader Dennis Hollingsworth Assembly
Speaker John Perez
and master of ceremonies Sheila Kuehl, a former state
senator. Kennedy, Perez
and Kuehl are gay, and many of the put-downs were aimed their way.
"The tart-tongued Kuehl
introduced Schwarzenegger by reciting a litany of his
failed ballot initiatives,
and the governor responded with his fond memories of
former Senate Leader John
Burton. “John and I dated a lot of women, just like Sheila and
Susan.” He noted
that Perez, who is hefty, “is so big even his bathtub has stretch
marks.”
"It went downhill from
there."
Jerry Brown entered the gubernatorial conversation
with a new Web ad that seeks to place the Democratic standard-bearer above the political fray.
"The California Nurses Assn. will begin advertising
Wednesday on
Spanish-language radio stations about the billionaire's position
on
immigration, a coalition of unions plans to launch
anti-Whitman TV ads
next week and presumptive Democratic nominee Atty.
Gen. Jerry Brown
unveiled his first online spot on Tuesday.
"Although none of the efforts is well-funded so far, they are part of a
strategy to throw Whitman off balance. The Democrats'
goal is to force
the former EBay chief to remain on the defensive in
the GOP primary,
despite her expansive lead over rival Steve Poizner.
Democrats also hope
to shape moderates' perceptions of Whitman before
she has time to
recover from a bruising primary that forced her to
court conservatives.
"Any ads against Whitman right now are two-fers for the Democrats," said
Larry Gerston, political science professor at San
Jose State."
Steve Lopez has his own take on the sea of political ads.
"If you have children of an impressionable age, and
you haven't already
taken this precaution, I'm advising that you immediately take your
television outside and smash it with a sledgehammer
before the next
political ad is aired.
"Children should not see this stuff. It's toxic, it
will arrest
development and is guaranteed to corrupt all sense
of civility. Adults
shouldn't see them either, but after years of exposure,
we're already
damaged for life.
"The basic formula in running for governor of California
— and to
establish yourself as a trustworthy leader — is to misrepresent who you
are, to accuse your opponents of torturing toddlers
and small pets, and
to address voters as if they were no smarter than soft-boiled eggs."
Torey Van Oot looks at the messaging in the Lite Guv's race in the final days.
"Lieutenant governor hopefuls Janice Hahn and Gavin
Newsom are bringing their SoCal vs. NorCal battle for
the Democratic nomination for the post to the airwaves.
"Los Angeles City Councilwoman Janice Hahn's ad features
a familiar face for Angelenos -- her late father Kenneth Hahn.
Newsom's 30-second spot touts his environmental record as mayor
of San Francisco, saying he has used "equal parts innovation
and inspiration to help create one of the greenest
cities on earth."
And finally, congratulations to Paul Hegyi, chief of
staff to Van Tran, who made an
incredible two-day run at the World Series of Poker.
Capitol Weekly reports, "Assembly staffer Paul Hegyi's
pocket 7s didn't quite hold up against
his oppoent's Ace-King, sending Hegyi home from the $1,000 no-limit hold
'em tournament in 32nd place. The field began with 4,345 players.
"Hegyi's amazing run was good for a payout of $15,642.
"Hegyi, chief of staff to Assemblyman Van Tran, R-Orange, fell victim
to a bit of bad luck in his final
hand. With only about 10 big blinds left, Hegyi moved all-in with his
pocket pair, only to be called by an Ace-King. Hegyi said his opponent
wound up hitting a straight
on the final card, known in hold 'em as the river,
sending Hegyi home after two grueling days of poker."
Paul, you've done your Thursday poker game proud...
