McClintock Key to Democratic Victory in California

Intellectual Conservative.com ^ | 9/2/3 | Bob Chandra

[socal_parrot]

A Democratic plot to boost Tom McClintock’s candidacy at Arnold Schwarzenegger’s expense has recently come to light.

On paper, the recall election should be a cakewalk for California Republicans. A cursory analysis reveals a governor with an approval rating below Richard Nixon at his low point. The only serious Democrat candidate is the state’s uninspiring lieutenant governor, Cruz Bustamante, who unquestioningly followed Governor Davis through his mishaps with the budget and energy crisis. It should be a breeze for Republicans, right? Think again. Democrats are euphoric over Tom McClintock’s intransigence in continuing his long-shot bid for governor. This allows Democrats to divide and conquer their way into office. Democrats are attempting to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat and Tom McClintock is an essential part of their game plan.

For starters, Democrats know McClintock cannot win. They know that he has ran for statewide office twice before and lost both times. McClintock’s problem is not so much that he’s unknown but that Californians know about him and have rejected his candidacy time and again. Knowing this, a Democrat plot to boost McClintock’s candidacy at Schwarzenegger’s expense has already surfaced. According to the Sacramento Bee’s Daniel Weintraub, “Ever since Cruz Bustamante entered the race, it's been assumed that California's Indian tribes were going to pool their money and do independent expenditures on his behalf, expensive ads that get around the $21,000 limit on contributions. Now I am hearing rumblings that the Indians might think about helping Cruz in a more creative way as well. If they spent, say, $4 million on behalf of state Sen. Tom McClintock, the most conservative Republican in the race, they might pump McClintock's numbers up while hurting Arnold and not harming Cruz a bit. Remember, Cruz needs a split GOP vote to win. That would be one way to get it.” The reliably Democratic Indian tribes, loyal to Bustamante, would essentially throw their weight behind McClintock to chip away at the support of Arnold Schwarzenegger, the GOP front-runner. The Democrat strategy with regard to Tom McClintock is: “If you know you can beat ‘em, join ‘em.”

McClintock is unfazed by this conniving scheme and is more than happy to play along. His actions suggest that he’s willing to make allies with loyal Democratic groups under the logic, the enemy of my enemy (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is my friend. On August 28th, McClintock and Bustamante went together before the California Nations Indian Gaming Association to pledge their support. Needless to say, money will follow. Whether McClintock knows it or not, he’s being used by the Left. If Democrat allies can keep McClintock in the game, they can put a cap on Arnold’s support. A recent Los Angeles Times poll shows Bustamante with 35% of the vote and McClintock with 12%. The poll indicates that McClintock will lose decisively but more importantly, his vote will ensure that GOP front-runner Schwarzenegger loses as well.

It doesn’t have to be this way. McClintock could see the light and do what’s best for the party – as Bill Simon did by bowing out of the race. Other than his new Democratic support, the picture continues to grow bleaker for McClintock. The Washington Post and Sacramento Bee are reporting that there will be a record turnout for the recall election. This invalidates the early calculus by McClintock supporters - that in a low turnout election, grassroots could carry the day. Further, the base is growing more familiar with Schwarzenegger’s conservatism – Arnold came out against partial-birth abortion, against gay marriage, and for a constitutional spending cap.

There comes a time when personal ambition must be set aside and self-affirming but false justifications for one’s candidacy need to be reexamined. If McClintock stays in the California Senate, and assuming Arnold wins the governorship, he and Arnold could play the good-cop/bad-cop routine to perfection, mirroring President Bush and Tom Delay’s efforts at the national level. Additionally, McClintock may be well positioned to challenge Barbara Boxer in next year’s US Senate race. However, if McClintock persists with his spoiler campaign and throws the election to Bustamante, it is doubtful he will have any political capital for a future race.

But assuming things stay the way they are, with McClintock’s help, Bustamante and the Democrats may well pull off an upset of a lifetime on Election Day.

[JustAnAmerican]

I stand corrected, however both terms are used, Yellow being the most prevelent of the two. I prefer Red others prefer Yellow. :)

[Cultural Jihad]

The front-runner is not the one who needs to remove himself. Sorry if you can't see that reality. Wishful thinking and pouting do not defeat Democrats.

[pogo101]

Way to uplift the debate, there. Goat pictures. Swell. I guess that's right up there with the Arnold fan's pic of McClintock sawing off the branch, posted earlier today.

Say, it's been 5 minutes since last time; time for you to tell Charles to take his meds.

[Political Junkie Too]

The swing voters are already in Arnold's pocket, and I'm not sure what he could do to lose them.

I'm afraid of what might be done to him.

-PJ

[Reagan Man]

More RINO rot and that's the truth. Carry on.

[Republic If You Can Keep It]

I guess I was wrong

I second the motion.

;-D

[section9]

Perhaps the circulation would have taken longer without Issa's help, in which case the election wouldn't be October 7th, but I saw many more volunteers gathering signatures than paid petitioners.

That may be true. But the larger story is what Issa did after he spent a million dollars to help make possible a race he was destined not to enter. He stepped down for the good of his party.

That takes guts.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[NYC Republican]

Anybody who has been watching Hannity and Colmes knows that this was the plan. Colmes has been hyping McClintock since day one. LOL

So have Willie Brown, and even Bustamante himself. McClintock should do the right thing and drop out. Not now... Wait until a week before the election, read the tea leaves, and if he's still far behind, drop out, and forget about his inflated ego.

[snooker]

Yep, haven't figured out winning is everything.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Liberal newbie trolls agree, RINO Ah-nold Bustaschwarzenkennedy is their man. Get lost, troll. This is a REPUBLICAN forum.

[heleny]

Maybe Arnold and McClintock can work something out like maybe offering McClintock the position of Lieutenant Governor if he remains far behind in the polls around 2 weeks from the recall election?

There's no provision for that, since the Lieutenant Governor is elected separately. Bustamante remains LtGov if he loses, whether Davis is recalled or not.

[A Broken Glass Republican]

I've never heard of a Red Dog Democrat?? I'm afraid I'm going to have to insist on proof.

I've heard of a Blue Dog Democrat, but not a Red Dog Democrat.


And still...The "Ill-informed" joke is on you.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Sheep.

[PhiKapMom]

I have decided I am in good company with the rest of the RINO's on here and with George Schultz, Ann Coulter, Sean Hannity, Michael Medved, Newt, David Drier and a host of others.

Nice to know that those of us who have worked our whole lives to elect Republican candidates walking precincts, making phone calls, sitting in fair booths by the hour, passing out stickers at football games, labeling mailouts, and the rest that goes with being a grassroots supporter are the ones being called Republican in Name Only by the McClintock folks on here.

Good thing us RINOs stayed Republican because we don't threat to not vote if our candidate doesn't get the nomination because there would be no Republicans to speak of in office.

Used to think that name calling was a DemocRAT tactic -- I have learned being on here that a lot of the religious right and ultra conservatives sling as much mud as any DemocRAT. Wonder if they used to be DemocRATs before the DemocRATs went way left?

Don't like dirty politics, don't like dirty tricks, and don't like people that use them to win elections.

[jmstein7]

And when Bustamante wins? Then what? Let's say what you believ will happen doesn't pan out? More Bush sniping in '04 from California that he can't afford.

What will you do if Bustamante wins?

[Amerigomag]

From now on I am calling myself a "True" Republican because I believe that winning elections is the only way to advance a more conservative agenda.

The question you may be forced to ask yourself is: Who better advances the conservative agenda, Davis or Bustamante. From my vantage point the lessor of the two evils is Davis.

Davis, if he survives will be a reformed politcal whore but Bustamante remains an ideologue and a cultural seperatist running on a quazi-socilist platform.

Time will tell but what will you do if accurate, trusted polls show Bustamante ahead of Schwarzenegger on October 5th? What will you do?

[TheAngryClam]

Just keep in mind that for some people, politics isn't just a football game where we're trying to score more "R"s.

REPUBLICAN Governor Guinn of Nevada recently forced through a gigantic tax increase, going so far as getting the state Supreme Court to invalidate a 2/3rd requirement for tax hikes.

REPUBLICAN Governor Pete Wilson of California passed the largest tax increase in the state's history.

REPUBLICAN Mayor Bloomberg of New York, well, he's really a Democrat, but now he's got that magic "R" after his name, so he's got to be just great, huh?

REPUBLICAN(?) Arnold Schwarzenegger said he was infuriated and humiliated by the Clinton impeachment.

REPUBLICAN Lincoln Chaffee voted against the use of military force in Iraq.

REPUBLICAN Arlen Specter voted against the Clinton impeachment, but tried to weasel with his "Scottish Law" trash.

These are just a few examples.

Forgive me if I don't break out the body paint and draw a big elephant on my chest, and then go get the giant foam "We're #1" hand.

[A CA Guy]

McClintock is going to be viewed as a Democrats friend after this race if he refuses to back Arnold and get out.

His political future is going to be dead and you might see him have to become a Democrat to ever be elected again.

[heleny]

Republicans have lost seats every year since.

The GOP gained seats in both houses last November.

[A Broken Glass Republican]

The best scenerio I've seen is...

McClintock pulls-out...Handing the victory to Arnold. Bust-a-move is out in 2004? 2006? via term-limits. McClintock wins the Lt. Gov. and then moves onto the big house after Arnold.

Of ocurse even THIS wouldn't be good enough for many of the McClintock supporting RINOs.