These Bills Aren't Due - (McBride and Simon) Novice candidates flounder in CA and FL ~ John Fund

Neither Democrat Bill McBride in Florida nor Republican Bill Simon in California had ever run for office before. But both managed to overcome long odds to defeat party favorites, former attorney general Janet Reno and ex-mayor Richard Riordan of Los Angeles, in their primaries for governor. Both still have a chance to win Nov. 5, but their campaigns have shown how tough it is to start in politics at the top.

Thank you John Fund, for laying out the "our guy (RINO Riordan) lost: boo, hoo" WHINER position.

For an ALTERNATIVE point of view, THESE guys are all now cautiously predicting a Simon VICTORY) :

George Will - Political earthquake in California? GOP underdog could win governorship
...If, say, 10 days before Nov. 5 headlines proclaim the race tied, Davis probably will become California’s first governor in 60 years to be denied a second term.
This is a tribute to Davis’ remarkable ability to arouse in the electorate a longing to vote for almost anyone else...
...In 1966 another rookie running for governor, Ronald Reagan, revived the Republicans’ successful 1946 slogan “Had enough?”
Simon’s billboards say: “Had enough? Fire Davis.”
And he has at his back the winds of Hurricane Rudy. A friend since Simon’s days as a young prosecutor in New York, Giuliani campaigned for Simon when his support was just 5 percent early in the primary campaign, and recently returned for five events...
...Simon resembles the Anaheim Angels: He can’t be where he is — but he is.
National Review - Simon Can Still Win - Seriously
...So there you have it: three reasons why Bill Simon just might end up surprising us all — (1) he has good ads in a state where TV is crucial; (2) voter turnout may work to his advantage; and (3) his opponent could be more ethically-challenged than imagined.
With the Giants and Angels going at it, it's been the year of the wild card in California. In that vein, maybe Simon turns out to be the unlikeliest of winners.
And to think: He may not need a "rally monkey" to pull it off.
Bob Novak - California Puzzle -- Poll Shows Simon Beating Davis
...The nightly tracking poll taken for the California Teachers Association (CTA), made available to Republicans Friday morning, was startling.
Thursday night's telephone interviews about the race for governor showed beleaguered Republican candidate Bill Simon leading Democratic Gov. Gray Davis 34.2 percent to 33.7 percent...

...If Bush comes in, it will be to help Simon.
This is a test for the president and his political team.
A stunning upset by a terribly flawed campaign would cheer an election night where longtime Republican governorships in Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin probably will end in top-heavy defeats...

But the real damage came after several more long pauses, when Mr. Russert got Mr. McBride to concede that a ballot measure he supports to reduce classroom size would probably cost as much as $15 billion a year, or one-fourth of the state budget.

I think later in the debate, McMumble stated that he'd institute "across the board" cuts to pay for the reduced class size initiative. Why didn't anyone do the stinking math and point out that every single program would have to be slashed 25% to get the $15 billion?

Debates have been the Achilles' heel of both candidates. Mr. Simon got through his only debate with Gov. Gray Davis without landing any major blows or being decked.

In that debate, Davis looked awful and ignored many questions. Simon was well-prepared and looked sharp. Davis wouldn't agree to any primetime debates, and even threatened to walk out of that single, brief, weekday-daytime debate if Peter Camejo, the frontrunner among the 3rd party candidates, were allowed into the building as a guest. Talk about Davis throwing a temper tantrum over another minor nonissue! Davis wants to avoid the real issues, because a referendum on his governance would be a resounding defeat for him.

The debates are Davis' Achilles heel. More debates would have helped Simon share his message with Californians. Everyone still hates Davis, and dislike him the more they see him. Fire Davis!

QUESTION: Governor Davis, many people simply do not like you. Legislators in both parties repeatedly tell us they feel little or no goodwill toward you. Why is that? And how has this chill affected your ability to do your job well?

DAVIS: Well, when I ran for governor in 1998, people said I was too dull and boring to be governor. And I worked hard on that and I was on the Jay Leno show not once, but twice. [He then proceeds to evade the question completely]

QUESTION: Governor, I wasn't asking you about your dullness. I was asking you about your inability to get along with legislators who say they don't want to work with you.

DAVIS: Well, I can't speak for them. [continues to avoid the question while trying to change the subject and run out the allotted time] I would like that people like me, but as long as my wife likes me, I'll live with that.

I'll ping the list.

Memories:

California Power Crisis animations featuring Governor Gray Davis

AND......................

...to see what bad, bad things Davis has done... - CLICK HERE

calgov2002:

calgov2002: for old calgov2002 articles.

calgov2002: for new calgov2002 articles.

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And why doesn't Jeb do a better job of pointing this out in his commercials - as well as the other points made by this article? I'll never understand why Bush family campaign commercials consistently fail to make their most powerful arguments.

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