[Billy_bob_bob]

It's obvious to me that Greyout Davis knows that he is in real hot water with the voters, so he is trying to come up with some diversionary issue to get people talking about anything other that the awful mess he's made of things.

The best way for Simon to deal with this issue to is not deal with it, to dismiss it with the back of his hand while saying "Bah!" This is an issue that cannot be dealt with in a profitable way for Simon, and Davis knows this. Simon needs to avoid "taking the bait", and should instead focus on reminding the voters about the great job Davis has done over the last four years.

[irishjuggler]

This is an issue that cannot be dealt with in a profitable way for Simon, and Davis knows this. Simon needs to avoid "taking the bait",

You could be right. Davis is so cynical that literally all of his "positions" are merely tactics to achieve maximum political gain. Davis might indeed by trying to get Simon to jump on this, so Davis could then paint him as a mean, racist, minority-bashing Republican. On the other hand, maybe that's a risk Simon should take. Simon shouldn't necessarily speak on this issue directly, but why not use this in his advertising later in the year? "In a time of budget crisis, Governor Davis advocates giving taxpayers' money to Jesse Jackson for slavery reparations." It wouldn't be a PC approach, but there's about a 100% chance it would drive up Davis' negatives.