Heard of Phil?

Following up on his revelation that Brentwood has fallen hard for Arnold (contributing almost twice as much to his campaign in hard money), Steve Lopez finds that Angelides is seriously lacking in star power and draw. The lede joke says it all, though: "I'm out here on the stump with Phil Angelides. You've heard of him, right?" Also revealing: the campaign booked him to visit a small college class, you know, less than 3 weeks before the election. Full column in the Los Angeles Times

Desperation sets in

The Angelides campaign is trying to ratchet up years-old character complaints against Schwarzenegger in order to regain some electoral traction. Without the benefit of any new disclosures, however, this seems unlikely to go anywhere. Background Sacramento Bee story, Sacramento Bee story on Angelides' negative comments on talk radio (bonus quotation: You're not going to get me to make out with anyone)

"Angelides Under a Bus"

The LA Times critiques Democratic leaders such as Fabian Nunez and Don Perata for their tepid support for Phil Angelides, and their photo-op moments with Schwarzenegger. The Times also argues that this behavior is threatening down-ticket Democrats in increasingly competitive races. Of course, the irony here is that down-ticket Democrats in question are themselves moving away from Angelides as fast as possible, publicly rejecting some of his messages. And then, of course, one should keep in mind that the Times itself did functionally the same thing by endorsing Arnold and then endorsing Lockyer, Brown, and Garamendi. (Yes, they endorsed Republican Steve Poizner, but Cruz Bustamante's precense in the race makes that a special case) Full story
Capitol Weekly follows up on this theme by exploring whether or not Schwarzenegger has coattails

"Arnold Schwarzenegger is a leader that s right for California, right now"

San Gabriel Valley Tribune editorial

"One bipartisan leader"

The Sacramento Bee joined the LA Times in endorsing Schwarzenegger's re-election. Although the Bee pronounces itself sympathetic to Angelides' ideals and his forthrightness on future budget difficulties, it deams his inability to reach the public directly or build supporting coalitions a fatal weakness in a state with many diverging interests. Full editorial

Arnold's appeal to drive downticket Republican wins?

The Governor's dominance Angelides and his popularity seem to be helping downticket Republicans by driving down Democratic turnout. The failure of the Mountjoy senate campaign also deprives Democrats of one reason to vote. Not to mention the fact that the state's gerrymander eliminates any compelling need to vote in federal elections. Full story

"Arnold Schwarzenegger has been a solid, pragmatic governor who has steered a moderate course for California. He deserves a sequel."

LA Times endorses Arnold for re-election

Silly Ads

This morning's radio programming had two conflicting and therefore amusing ads following each other by a few minutes.
The first, sponsored by the California Teachers' Association (CTA) and others, propped up Proposition 1D from the bond package, describing all of the wonderful benefits it would bring (highlights: reduced class sizes, getting rid of absbestos, safer playgrounds).
Soon comes another ad, sponsored by "California's Workers" (who could that be?) slamming the Governor for lacking any strategy for improving education, amongst other things. Like, say, Proposition 1D?

Debate Summarized

Dan Weintraub offers his summary of Saturday's debate. Key truism: Political debates, like the campaigns they highlight, have become largely irrelevant to the voting public.

Debate fails to change dynamic

From the media coverage, it seems that while Saturday night's debate between the Governor and challenger Angelides had a few rhetorical sparks, nothing emerged to change the underlying dynamic. Which I should hope you are all familiar with by now . . .

LA Times coverage

SGV Tribune coverage

Unsurprising Poll Results: Arnold Up By 17%

According to the LA Times' polling data, the governor has now surged ahead to a 50%-33% lead. Full story

Unions Throw $25 Million Down Drain

Trying to create their special election glory, many of California's unions are teaming up once again to create a unified campaign against the Governor's re-election. Given how the Angelides campaign is floundering, its difficult to see how this could be anything more than burning $25 million in the public square. The special election campaign was better funded, had great press visibility, and had some potent issues. That won't be the case this time around. Full story

The Comeback Governor

Lou Cannon talks about the Governor's recent comeback in the LA Times.