Posted on 06/12/2002 9:58:45 AM PDT by Jean S
In a desperate attempt to divert attention from his $23.6 billion deficit, Gray Davis launched a false television ad against Bill Simon this week. The ad accuses Simon of mismanaging a savings and loan in the early 1990s at a cost to taxpayers of some $90 million dollars.
Now, squandering $90 million dollars in taxpayer funds is a good day for Gray Davis. But his charge against Simon isn't even true. Davis manages to package into his 30-second television ad a great deal of deception.
"Bill Simon inherited a fortune, but how has he managed on his own?" says the ad. "When he directed a savings and loan, the thrift made bad loans, went belly-up, and was seized by the federal government. Simon's mismanagement cost depositors millions -- and the bailout for his mistakes cost taxpayers $90 million more. On top of it all, now Simon is suing the government -- asking taxpayers to pay him back his investment. Bill Simon: If he can't run an S&L, how can he run California?"
Lie number one is that Bill Simon directed the S&L. He didn't. Western Federal Savings and Loan belonged to Simon's father. Simon sat on the thrift's board as a monitor for his father, but he didn't "run" it.
Nor does Davis include another key piece of information: the federal government, not William Simon Sr., may have cost taxpayers some $90 million by rashly seizing the savings and loan before he could turn it around. The Sacramento Bee reports that the U.S. Supreme Court "ruled in a precedent-setting decision in 1996 that Congress had changed the rules regarding savings and loan associations in the middle of the game. In March, the U.S. Court of Claims ruled that there had been a specific breach of contract in the Western Federal case."
"The Simons maintained that they could have made a success of the business were it not for the federal law change, and are among a group of creditors suing the federal government for breach of contract on those grounds," reports the Bee.
Davis's ad appears to be a stretch even by standards of modern political advertising. His grasping at straws reveals a deep vein of defensiveness: Unable to explain his own mismanagement -- he inherited a swelling surplus and then proceeded to spend through it like a drunken sailor -- he feels the need to fake up a record of mismanagement for his opponent.
"He's out there every day accusing the governor of gross mismanagement," Davis adviser Garry South pouted defensively to the Los Angeles Times. "We think it was high time that he had to answer for some of his own mismanagement in the private sector."
The thin gruel served up in this week's attack ad isn't likely to appease angry Californians. They see a govenor who has wasted not millions, but billions. While the state's budget cratered, Davis was busy stuffing his pockets with campaign money from companies like Oracle that benefited from unnecessary state business.
These companies were not giving Davis money because of his charming personality. They knew from the start that his administration was for sale. The coin-operated governor, as some now call him, could not have made this plainer had he installed a toll booth at the entrance to his office in the state capitol. The California Teachers Association -- no friend to Simon -- has publicly denounced Davis for his crass request of a million dollars during the middle of a "policy" meeting at the state capitol.
Cheap shots at his opponent will not conceal this corruption. The failure of a savings and loan that Simon didn't even run is of little interest to Californians, who still haven't heard an explanation for the failures of Davis's state government.
George Neumayr is a frequent contributor to the California Political Review.
Makes one remember the Beatles tune... "Can't buy me love."
Makes one remember the Beatles tune... "Can't buy me love."
Two great stingers from the Wasp so early in the morning!
I haven't evun got my big buggy waspish eyes open all the way, yet!!!
I seen Simon throwin the Davis quote back at 'em about educashun impruvment bein priorities 1,2 & 3!!! that any Governor that didn't git it dun shouldn't even run for re-elekshun... So why wuz he raisun alla that campayn cash?
Ka Ching CHING!!!
We have a herd of California Quail that weigh about 20 #'s per bird. They like to land on our tar and gravel roof over our bedroom to jump up and down sing good morning off tune and brag about laying a damn quail egg.
These 20# Kali Kuail then wake up the rest of the 10,000 birds living on our area. Then, they start their gang/turf wars. So about 5:30, I can't take their screeching anymore, and I get up get the coffee going and Free Republic.
The furst thing I hear is teenage Red Tailed Hawks shrieking because the Starling gang and the Red Winged Black bird gang are trying to dog fight each other. I evun saw one of our humming birds in a dog fight with a Tiger Swallow Tail butterfly!
This proves that I live in a very contentious county!!!
Now if I cud jus git the bird gangs above ta leave the hawks alone, maybe the hawks cud git the hord of baby rattlesnakes that the Blue Jay gang are really shrieking at, that keep sending my miniture weenie dog to the hospital for poisonous bites on his overly aggressive nose!!!
I keep sayin he'd make a good goverment dog with said nose!!! He just hasta be a Demonicrat!!!
She, then would go to a special branch in our 100 year old Spanish Oak and proceed to strip it and eat it like she was in a teenager in a fast food restaurant. The birds would be quiet for about an hour.
Two weeks ago, I was showing a fly fisher how to use a new knot out in our driveway. Suddenly the birds started so shriek, I told him to come in under the carport for a great sight. Bam, she got a robin and went to her favorite limb and went through it like a La Machine. Then, she took off. The fly fisher was a little green. Then he smiled and said, "Now we know where you get those unique fly feathers."
When we came back from shopping yesterday, there were crow feathers all over our driveway. No crow bones just feathers. I think the crow and falcon had a turf air war. Looks like the crow came out second best.
Re your dog and rattle snakes. Our neighbor's older black lab became blind from bites and very lame and had to be put to sleep a couple of years ago.
25 mill is a pretty cheap man, but look at that toupe. At least he could use a little hair dye.
Davis looks really unhealthy.
He looks like a poster boy for: End Stage Aids, Bulemia, and terminal Albinoism!
Remember how Alan Cranston looked worse than a two year old dead cadaver towards his end. Davis makes Cranston look vibrant and alive in comparison.
E-Gad! Oscar Meyer Weiner got bit twice last year and once again this year on his proboscis, but he's survived quite nicely.
Now this year our dope growin neighbor moved out and rented his run-down place to someone who decided to mow down the adjacent pasture. Well... we've had to make a "snake fence" for poor Oscar out of hardware cloth because we've killed 12 baby rattlers right around our front and back doors.
One day Mrs. Wasp saw this Red Tailed Hawk fly up into one of our heritage oaks with what looked like a rope of red licorace in his beak. We finally figured out that he had already skinned a snake before he flew up there.
Now, lest anyone think you and I are cheesing up this thread with idle chat... there's a relevant issue here!!!
It's all about borders, culture clashes and environmental terrorism that our dead-beat Governor lacks the will to do anything about.
If our supposed environmental managing governor "Dead Beat Davis" and his wildlife protecting (to stop all real estate and infrastructure improvements) cronies were even interested in "putting people first," they would have past another law forcing all dope growers to keep their dang rattlesnakes on their own property instead of letting them emmigrate freely to the Waspman's property and thereby spreading unbridled torment and terror and much veteranarian expense!!!
He should not be re-elected for allowing terrorists to slither across our borders!!! Hay hay, Ho Ho, he and his gang have got to go!!!
Cool! Lots of black ant flies! They worked the best for me in high Sierra lakes (10,000 feet and up) with a torpedo bobber, spinning reel, and fly leader. With that setup I could get a fly 150' out on a lake with trees behind me. I ate well that way and it didn't take very long. After 15 to 25 miles of high-altitude cross-country trekking with a 60# pack, I wasn't interested in catch and release!
Ya gots it all rong! The "toupe" is becuz his little hair DIE!!! (now he's pertectin alla the littul wild hares... big harry deal!)
2 start cheap-shot attack ads in early June, proves he ain't gotta hair on any of his 4 cheeks!!! (and boy is he ever cheeky!)
Re catch and eat trout in mountain lakes. 99.9999999999% of trout in high altitude lakes in Kali are planter trout. They are no different than a steer, hog or chicken. They are there to catch and to eat. They really taste good at the end of a long day or next morning for breakfast or a lunch break. Catch them, kill them, cook them and enjoy them.
My friend that dropped yesterday evening loves to back pack into these lakes. He bought one of my 4 piece fly rods to take on his trips. I helped him fine tune some of the flies, leaders and new knot that is so simple, it makes you angry that you didn't know about it before.
He was telling me that he couldn't wait to leave his back pack spinning rod and just using his fly rod. I advised him to take both due to brush and the wind that can whip around in the evening on those lakes. If he didn't take the spinning rod, he might do with the trout protein that he depends on.
That's a fact. I have an old convertable Eagle Claw backpacking rod that breaks down to 16" and stows in the pack. I don't even bother packing in the fly reel any more. There's just not enough room for anything but a roll-cast in most places. How far are you going to reach on a lake with that? Who's going to carry waders? Who wants to freeze to death standing in the water for a half hour just to get dinner? Torpedo bobber and spinning reel on a lake full of skeeters at sunset. Great solution. Good food. Best fish I ever ate was a 14" golden on Devil's Island Lake (12,000 feet).
Oh, and BTW, Davis is a crook (gotta stay on topic you know).
chanting 'Dump Gray - Vote Green'. Get it in front of cameras. Like the "John 3:16" guy, just plant the idea, often.I'll do a large file bumber sticker suitable for printing and link it from my profile page. If someone can do a better job at it, please do.
Then, I would put them on my full size OJ Simpson Bronco's rear bumper under Marks's big Red Dump Davis on the tailgate. Enviral whackos see a huge SUV with your sticker under Mark's will probably go into convulsions from the mixed messages.
"...The thin gruel served up in this week's attack ad isn't likely to appease angry Californians. They see a govenor who has wasted not millions, but billions. While the state's budget cratered, Davis was busy stuffing his pockets with campaign money from companies like Oracle that benefited from unnecessary state business.These companies were not giving Davis money because of his charming personality.
They knew from the start that his administration was for sale.The coin-operated governor, as some now call him, could not have made this plainer had he installed a toll booth at the entrance to his office..."
California Governor Gray Davis
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