CA: Gov.'s Campaign Is in Debt

LA Times ^ | 2/1/06 | Dan Morain and Robert Salladay

[NormsRevenge]

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is entering his reelection campaign $410,000 in debt, while his Democratic rivals and union foes are armed with more than $50 million.

He also continued supplementing his aides' government salaries by paying them additional sums in campaign money, according to campaign reports filed with the state Tuesday.

--snip--

Although his opponents spent almost $100 million to defeat the initiatives Schwarzenegger championed in the November vote, many of them emerged with hefty bank accounts.

Controller Steve Westly and Treasurer Phil Angelides, who are competing in the Democratic primary to face the Republican governor next November, started the new year with $24 million and $17.1 million respectively, their reports show.

At $59.8 million, the California Teachers Assn. was the biggest spender in 2005, leading the effort ... But the union, .. nevertheless started the new year with $11.6 million.

The California Correctional Peace Officers' Assn., the prison officers' union that also worked to defeat the governor's measures, reported having at least $5.3 million. .. State Council of Service Employees, a union representing many government employees, spent $20.1 million .. and has $675,000 heading into the 2006 election.

Schwarzenegger's reelection campaign account had $147,000 in cash and $557,000 in debt as of Dec. 31. Donors generally cannot give more than $22,300 each to a gubernatorial candidate. Schwarzenegger is allowed to spend unlimited sums of his own money on his campaign.

The governor has a separate fund for promoting and opposing ballot initiatives. After he spent $45 million for that account, it had $503,000 in cash and debt of $278,000.

Marty Wilson, who oversees fund-raising for the governor, ... "I'm confident we'll have the funds necessary," Wilson said.

Angelides and Westly need war chests for the primary fight, while Schwarzenegger probably won't have a June challenger.

[Carry_Okie]

I'm not playing twenty questions for you.

[RS]

"I'm not playing twenty questions for you."

You're certainly not playing single answer either - it appeared in the beginning that you might have some clue as to what you were talking about.