How clueless are the top officials of the California Republican Party?
Even more clueless than you might have imagined.
In a must-read story full of unintentionaly hilariousness, the Sacramento Bee reported on emails between California GOP chief Jim Brulte and other key players in the party.
In the email, they whine about the two strongest statewide candidates their weak party is fielding this fall – Ashley Swearengin, the Fresno mayor running for controller, and Pete Peterson, who is running for California Secretary of State.
In the email chain obtained by the Bee, Brulte and others express anger about Swearengin’s unwillingness to endorse gubernatorial candidate Neel Kashkari over Gov. Jerry Brown Brulte calls this perfectly understandable decision (given Brown’s popularity, Kashkari’s near invisibility, and the fact that Kashkari pulled a campaign stunt that embarrassed Swearengin) “felony stupid.”
Brulte also said it “wasn’t pleasant” when Peterson said – in a statement about as controversial as saying the sky is blue – that Brulte had failed to articulate a vision for the GOP that would connect to voters.
The only stupid felony committed here was by Brulte and other top GOP officials when they put all these views in an email that promptly leaked. In doing so, they hurt themselves, their party, and their two strongest candidates.
Is it any wonder that Swearengin and Peterson want to keep their distance?