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Riordan interrupted: "We're into dangerous terrority. . . ."
But Nancy Riordan wasn't buying and responded with passion -- the kind that could make her a lightning rod for attacks on Riordan's campaign in the months ahead. "It's correct to have things available to children," she persisted.
"Now you're getting me into trouble," Riordan said. "(Secretary of State Bill) Jones is going to say Riordan's going to let his wife decide whether 3- year-olds should be given contraceptives."
Then he shrugged, and laughed. "Well, there goes my governorship," he said.
The lively debate between Riordan and his wife -- the type of unscripted interchange rarely seen in today's controlled campaigns -- underscores a strength, and a potential pitfall, for the former Los Angeles mayor's campaign.
Nancy Riordan, attractive and politically savvy, is not only vocal on her issues, but also is aligned with a different political party from her husband's.
"Voters do like to see a public official, particularly a man, take advice and counsel from his spouse; that's a positive," said political consultant Chris Lehane, who has been a spokesman for former President Bill Clinton and Al Gore, two politicians with strong, involved political wives.
The downside "is that it raises questions: Who's whispering in his ear?" said Lehane, who has consulted for Riordan's rival, Gray Davis. "Does the candidate have his own views? And what is his core set of beliefs?"
But political commentator Arianna Huffington, a longtime friend of Nancy Riordan's, argued that she brings "tremendous pluses to her husband's campaign because of her credibility."
"She has worked passionately and relentlessly on children's issues. She has her own expertise . . . and she has been there in the trenches," said Huffington of her friend, who co-founded the Children's Action Network and United Friends for Children, and is a philanthropic force behind the family's Riordan Foundation. "Whether her husband is running for office or not, she has established her authority in this arena -- and anyone who knows (her) knows her record."
Nancy Riordan, formerly married to Warner Brothers executive Bob Daly, is excited about her husband's effort and open about her role in the months ahead.
"We always have spent time talking about issues, and how best to address solutions. I expect to be recommending to Dick, (giving) input and advice to help him as he goes forward in the campaign . . . wherever my husband feels I can be most helpful to him," she said. "I'm really here to support his effort .
. . (and) usually, when I put my mind to something, I do it."
But in his effort against the more conservative Jones and businessman Bill Simon in the March GOP gubernatorial primary, Riordan, 71, faces concerns that his wife's background of progressive Democratic politics will shape his views - - or, even more pointedly, overpower them.
"The perception is that she is running the campaign -- or at the very least,
running the candidate," said political analyst Sherry Bebitch Jeffe. Although hard-core conservatives may "have some discomfort" about that, the issue probably matters little to most mainstream voters, she said.
"The irony of it is there are very few differences between Richard Riordan and Nancy Daly (Riordan)," said Bebitch Jeffe. "Except he has an 'R' by his name, and she has a 'D.' "
Nancy Riordan, impeccably dressed in a pink suit decorated with a California pin, recently spoke about her political leanings.
"I'm a Democrat, and I've always been a Democrat," she said.
LIKES SMART FEMALES
She said it doesn't bother her husband, who thrives on spirited exchanges of ideas. As she tells appreciative women's groups, he favors smart females -- and "doesn't like yes-women."
That's one reason Riordan is discussing issues like abortion, health care, child care and education -- and reaching out to women voters, she said.
"My husband has valued those concerns for many many years," she said. "(He's) willing to put himself out there as a very strong, fearless leader with an amazing track record, taking on serious problems and finding solutions.
. . . Right now, in California, we need that."
But Nancy Riordan must answer questions about her past support for Davis, including $61,000 in campaign contributions to the Democratic governor.
"When someone's in a leadership role, I want them to do the very best they can do," she said, explaining her support for Davis.
Nancy Riordan said part of her concerns were on children's issues: "I worked with (Davis) and (Assembly) Speaker (Robert) Hertzberg on legislation that the governor actually signed -- creating Internet passports for education and help for foster children," she said.
But "in order to get heard, to be heard by elected officials, money doesn't hurt," she said. "I give money to leadership in Washington, D.C., -- and I've done it here in California, to people I hope will move the agenda for children. "
DISAPPOINTED IN DAVIS
She argues that Davis has since "let us down." She particularly cites the energy issue, where "he just didn't step up to the plate," she said. "I don't think he expected (the energy crisis). . . . It wasn't anticipated -- though it should have been."
Still, she finds it "mind-boggling" that some Democrats are attacking her for supporting a Republican -- even if he is her husband.
"There's plenty to debate about without resorting to personal, infantile" issues, she said.
Huffington said campaigns have come a long way since 1994 when as wife of then-U.S. Senate candidate Michael Huffington she was charged with being "the power behind the throne."
Today, the political world recognizes "when your husband decides to run for office, you don't suddenly get a lobotomy," Huffington said. "Her husband is incredibly accomplished and running for statewide office, and she will want to have a voice."
Asked whether she can take the heat when she speaks up, Nancy Riordan smiled.
"I'm a grown-up," she said.
Finally! Someone in the media who recognizes that Mr. Riordan is as liberal as any Democrat.
I'm supporting Bill Simon because he's a Republican. He is smart and conservative. He has common sense solution to real problems. And he won't think that it's OK to hand out condoms to 13 year olds!
This "agenda for children" really makes me angry. WHAT agenda for children? Liberals think that as long as they say "for the children" they can get away with anything.
This agenda Riordan and his wife have for children includes abortions without parental consent (or knowledge); contraceptives for 13 year olds (without parental consent); teaching homosexuality in public schools (it's happening all over the state, and has the biggest programs in Riordan's L.A.) and other radical, anti-family initiatives.
Riordan once said that "If it's for the children, I'm for it." I say to you: not everything that is "for the children" is good for children. Just turn on the television and look at the children's programs!
Riordan is too liberal for Republicans, and, frankly, as liberal as the most liberal Democrats. He's too liberal for California, and definitely too liberal for me.
So a woman who doesn't finish her husband's sentences for him, or who doesn't try to piggyback her agenda onto his political campaign, is a "dumb woman"?
I am so sick of women like this. They want it both ways. They want to speak their minds, but don't want to be held accountable, as they would if they were actually running for office. Imagine a woman candidate, of any political persuasion, whose husband kept butting in to her press conferences with his opinions and his disagreements with her. He would come off as a boor and be told to run for office himself or shut up. But a woman can get away with it, because to tell her to pipe down would be "sexist."
This guy sounds like a real whipped pup.
The fact that Clintonoid buttboy Chris Lahane is having wet dreams about these scumbags says it all.
Why am I not surprised by this?