Riordan Battles Rivals and His Own Candor (penchant for quirky jests/blunt speech unnerves advisors)

Los Angeles Times ^ | 7 February 2002 | Michael Finnegan

[CounterCounterCulture]

The candidate's penchant for quirky jests and blunt speech unnerves his advisors.

"Did I do OK?" he asked an aide after a radio interview that touched on gay marriage. "I didn't screw up too badly?"

"I want to sell books on tape to people who are on the 91 Freeway," Riordan cracked. "I could make a fortune. I'll put Harlequin novels on tape."

A supporter asked Riordan to name the first thing he would do as governor. "After I execute everybody?" Riordan asked.

[fleur-de-lis]

Take your pick:

Davis: "We need to negotiate this deal so as to produce the highest value in terms of reaching out to our voter base, maximizing public relations, and producing campaign contributions".

Riordan: "O.K., we know the right thing to do. Now go out and tell that guy to negotiate the deal based on that or his a$$ is fired"!

[fleur-de-lis]

Take your pick:

Davis: "We need to negotiate this deal so as to produce the highest value in terms of reaching out to our voter base, maximizing public relations, and producing campaign contributions".

Riordan (or other Republican): "O.K., we know the right thing to do. Now go out and tell that guy to negotiate the deal based on that or his a$$ is fired"!

[Thud]

Yeah, Riordan is his own worst enemy. He was a decent mayor but I cringe every time he opens his mouth. Regretably he is the only possible candidate who might beat Gray Davis.

[Gophack]

I've voting for Bill Simon, the real conservative in the race. Simon Ping!!!

[Carry_Okie]

Regretably he is the only possible candidate who might beat Gray Davis.

Not true, Riordan hasn't a prayer. If Riordan wins the primary, Davis will hang him for LADWP overcharging the State for power and it will be brutal. Besides, no conservative worth the name will vote for Riordan. That includes me, my wife, and nearly all my friends.

You have no idea how sick we are of RINOs in California.

[Dan from Michigan]

Davis - "We need to ban some guns"

Riordan - "BAN EM ALL!!!"

Simon - "We have enough gun laws"

[Dan from Michigan]

If I lived in Califorina, I'd vote for Simon in the primary. If Simon wins the primary, I'd back him. If Jones won, I'd hold my nose a little over McCain, but would back him anyway. If Riordan won, I'd vote for Davis.

[Carry_Okie]

Exactly.

[xm177e2]

Riordan smiled, returned (a thumbs-up) gesture and muttered, "Rednecks for Riordan." His spokeswoman Carolina Guevara asked a reporter later: "You're not going to use that 'rednecks-for-Riordan' comment, are you?"

What a dipstick. Nobody makes fun of rednecks and wins the CA GOP nominaton!

[GeronL]

he really is a Rear-End!

[GeronL]

RearEnd needs to be returned to the Junior High School he came from

[GeronL]

Regretably he is the only possible candidate

are you one of his "rednecks"?

what a RearEnd (the candidate)

[hattend]

With Davis, unscripted moments are rare. The governor "probably says nothing which isn't completely and totally calculated," said political scientist Bruce Cain of UC Berkeley. "There's not a hair out of place," Cain said.

The governor is so skilled at staying on message that some suspect "there's no genuine core Gray Davis," he said. Still, Davis runs little risk of his own words harming his campaign.

Who does this sound like?

If I still lived in the state (thank God I left), I would stay home on election day if it comes down to being between Riodan and Davis.

Go Bill Simon, Go!

[RichInOC]

I suspected Riordan's ill ease with public speaking was going to be as big a problem for him as the fact that he's at best a liberal Republican. Even I didn't realize he had this big a talent for shooting his mouth off. As Ed O'Herlihy said to Ronny Cox in "Robocop"...

"Dick...I'm very disappointed."