GOP Senate Race Goes Nuclear
Well that cleared everything up.
Marty Wilson, a top aide to GOP Senate hopeful Carly Fiorina, denied he ever called Tom Campbell an anti-Semite, but he had no problem suggesting that the rival Senate candidate hobnobs with terrorists.
“Tom Campbell has a record that is decidedly anti-Israel and has some very questionable associations,” Wilson told reporters on a conference call Thursday. “The voters of California will decide whether he’s sympathetic to terrorism.”
Of course Team Fiorina will be doing all it can to help voters make that decision as the GOP Senate race goes nuclear.
The hastily called phone conference came after Bruce McPherson, former California secretary of state, told the Los Angeles Times that Wilson had urged him in a call not to support Campbell because “he’s an anti-Semite.”
What if the Open Primary were used for the Governor’s Race in June?
What if Proposition 14 was already the law and all candidates in the June primary could receive the votes of any voter? At Datamar Surveys we decided to ask that question in relation to the governor’s race.
We asked 794 high propensity voters which gubernatorial candidate they would vote for in the June primary and offered the three major candidates, telling the respondents they could vote for anyone they chose.
The results: Meg Whitman 29.1%; Jerry Brown 25.1%; Steve Poizner 20.5%. Undecided was right in the mix at 25.4%.
There are a large number of Democrats and Liberals who are expressing a choice for Steve Poizner. We attribute this to two factors. First, Jerry Brown thus far appears to have employed a wait-and-see strategy and is content to let Meg Whitman and Steve Poizner battle for the Republican nomination. Second, we believe that Democrats and Liberals are expressing a sentiment not for any candidate in particular but against Meg Whitman.
Is ‘None of the Above’ the Smart Choice in the Governor’s Race?
If you think California governing system is badly broken, how should you vote in the governor’s race?
The likely nominees of each party, Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman, haven’t even bothered to offer an answer. (And for the record, Steve Poizner, despite being more specific about his policies than his rivals, has dodged this big question too).
Neither has spoken at any length about the state’s deep structural and constitutional problems, much less committed to addressing them.
At best, a vote for either Brown or Whitman is a wild guess. At worst, a vote for either is a waste of time. Without a mandate for broader change, the next governor, whether it’s Brown or Whitman, will be lucky to muddle through four years with more of the budget gimmicks and debt we’ve used for too long in California.
Is there a better option?
Well, leaving the ballot blank might be the better option.
Campbell Opens Gap with Rivals in Poll
Tom Campbell has opened up a lead over Carly Fiorina and Chuck DeVore in the U.S. Senate race according to the M4Strategies poll for the Small Business Action Committee.
In a survey of 427 high-propensity Republican voters conducted last week, Campbell received 32% of the vote to Fiorina’s 18.5% and DeVore’s 11%.
Campbell jumped from the gubernatorial race to the senate race only two months ago, but has held the top spot in every poll since his entry into the race with the gap widening over time.
Of course, unlike the governor’s campaign, there have been no widespread campaign ads or independent expenditure campaigns launched either for or against any of the candidates. Once the ads start, these poll numbers can change quickly.
Are Legislators in California Friendly to Small Business?
From time to time, small business owners must wonder about those whom they have elected to serve in the Capitol. Do our legislators understand the effect their actions have on small businesses around the state? Are they able to put themselves in the shoes of small business owners when voting on legislation that increases taxes, creates new regulations or adds mandates? Most small business owners would be honest and say that not enough legislators have those thoughts when voting.
On a regular basis, NFIB/California tracks the voting records of each member of the state
Assembly and Senate. The Voting Record provides a critically important evaluation of a
legislator’s attitude toward small business. The NFIB/California Voting Record is
developed by selecting key bills proposed by the legislature that affect small businesses.
The votes on those bills are then recorded and a percentage is determined for each
member of the Assembly and Senate.