Simon Could Be Comeback Kid

Human Events ^ | 7/26/02 | John Gizzi

[Jean S]

San Francisco, Calif. (July 19)—California Republican gubernatorial candidate William E. Simon, Jr. delivered the line deadpan: "I have always said that Gray Davis is America’s only coin-operated governor."

Simon’s quip about his Democratic opponent—which came only days after reports that Davis, at $50 million and counting, had accumulated the largest re-election kitty ever raised by an American governor—brought down the house during a luncheon speech before the Republican National Committee (RNC) at the Fairmont Hotel.

A standing ovation followed Simon’s address. Afterward, RNC members swarmed around him to ask for his autograph, take snapshots, and compliment the easy, affable speaking style he has developed.

Despite some criticism of the way his campaign is being run, Republicans both in California and across the nation sense that the 50-year-old Simon has a real chance to repeat in the fall election the sort of come- from-behind victory he scored over former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan in this spring’s Republican primary.

There was much buzzing at the RNC conclave about a just-completed Public Opinion Strategies poll conducted by the Simon campaign that showed the Republican nominee leading Davis 39% to 31%. Although skeptics could try to dismiss this survey as a self-serving product of the Simon camp, it tracked with a report in the San Francisco Chronicle that a poll conducted for California State Assembly Democrats showed Simon leading Davis by 9 percentage points.

And while the venerable Field Poll (which California Republicans have long insisted is skewed toward Democrats) gave Davis a 41% to 34% lead over Simon, the margin was the tightest the survey has shown so far in the race. At one point, Davis was 15 points ahead.

More ominously for Davis, Field showed that 51% of the voters have a negative view of the governor, compared to only 37% who give him good marks for his performance. "The percentage of voters choosing Davis over Simon has been edging down [and Davis’s] numbers are not looking good," Field Poll director Mark Di Camillo told the Chronicle. "That has to be worrisome."

But what is perhaps most interesting about the latest polling numbers is that Simon should be in such a strong political position despite weak fund-raising and continuing turmoil in his campaign organization. In addition, Simon’s strong poll numbers came after he had been pummeled for a month by negative television ads that the Davis campaign reportedly spent $4 million to air.

The attack ads focus on Simon’s service on the board of a failed savings and loan and his initial refusal to release his personal income tax returns.

"I wouldn’t be surprised if Gray Davis doesn’t run a positive commercial for the rest of the campaign," Simon told me shortly after his luncheon speech. "That’s what you do when you have a failed track record. And it’s also a sign that our message of lower taxes and a livable and affordable life is resonating with Californians."

Simon said he believes that given the state’s record high $24-billion deficit, its power crisis, and the widespread media reports of Davis’s heavy-handed fund-raising tactics, "negative advertising is not going to work. People are tired of the old politics. They want to hear how you are going to improve their lives."

Along those lines, Simon underscored the agenda he has long campaigned on: rolling back the huge bureaucracy that Davis has created in Sacramento, cutting income taxes, and creating "empowerment zones"—lowering capital gains taxes in certain areas to allow small entrepreneurs to expand their businesses and create jobs.

Both Simon and campaign operative John Peschong played down reports that the latest campaign finance statements show the Republican candidate has only $5 million left in his coffers, compared to a whopping $35 million on hand by Davis. "Hey," said Peschong, "we’ve raised $11.6 million so far and that’s more than [1998 GOP nominee Dan] Lungren had raised at this point four years ago and, in fact, more than [Republican then-Gov.] Pete Wilson had raised at this point in 1994."

Peschong said he was confident the next reports would show a strong influx of cash into the Simon campaign.

Simon said he believes that Davis’s unusually high negative poll ratings are linked to reports that, in Simon’s words, "he’s the greediest fund-raiser of all—that he spends 12 hours a day asking for money, sometimes even threatening prospective donors, that this is a governor who took $120,000 from Enron."

Regarding reports that his campaign is in disarray and has been through at least three campaign managers and a variety of top staffers since the primary, Simon said that "this is just a cheap shot" from people who dislike his campaign consultant Sal Russo. "Sal got us through the primary in the biggest come-from-behind campaign in state history," said Simon.

He said that political operative Ron Lapsley would now oversee the day-to day operations in the campaign while Peschong, who had been acting campaign manager, would continue to advise him while serving in his primary role as a field operative for the Republican National Committee.

When asked about a controversial statewide initiative on the fall ballot to permit same-day voting-and-registration, Simon said he had "not yet taken a position."

"I support anything that would raise participation," he said. "I’m for 100% participation, but it has to be with 0% fraud."

He also said he did not favor deporting illegal aliens who have taken up residence in California, many of whom, he said, have had productive lives and raised families in the state. But, he added, for future immigrants "some kind of pass and documentation—call it a guest worker or Bracero program—has got to be in place. All the rules have to be up front."

This part of his message may not please conservatives in the state, but, on balance, despite his organizational and fund-raising problems, Republicans here are pleased that Simon remains within striking distance of a come-from-behind victory that would make him the first candidate in 60 years to unseat a California governor with only one term in office.

[eureka!]

GoSimonGo...

[Consort]

He's on CNN right now.

[CPT Clay]

The voters want competence. Simon has Gray prooved he dosen't!!!

[afraidfortherepublic]

The ONLY reason I would ever want to live in my native State again would be to vote for this man. He's a breath of fresh air. Just remember that you could never find anyone who claimed that they had voted for Governor Reagan in northern CA, but he always won by a landslide. (And Orange Co. didn't elect him all by themselves.)

[Richard Kimball]

Do these polling numbers include the dead vote? They're the Dems most reliable constituency.

[Freakazoid]

Just visited his website. Bumped his coffers a C-note.

Grayout's got to lose!

[NEWwoman]

bump

[goldstategop]

I don't agree with what he said about illegal immigration, but illegal immigration IS a federal matter. Simon doesn't want to give GrayDown the opportunity to portray him as being anti-Hispanic. Anyhow after a month of bad news Simon still looks strong. About the only thing GrayDown can do is stay negative to November since he can't run on his track record. That's the good news. Bill Simon like Ronald Reagan could indeed be the Comeback Kid this fall.

[NEWwoman]

the Comeback Kid

This phrase brings a terrible flashback. Remember in 1992 when Bill Clinton was the Comeback Kid? He was an "excellent campaigner", but evil.

Like Ronald Reagan, I believe Bill Simon is trully a good, decent man. I would say "a breath of fresh air" - but Jimmy Carter used that in his campaign.

[goldstategop]

True.All the same, let's not have the Rats have a monopoly on comebacks from being written off for dead.

[NormsRevenge]

Thanks for the post.

The East Oakland Simon stop was on KRON TV news at 4 PM.

It initially showed a clip of a half dozen or so union protesters, and then had a brief soundbite from a local resident that said "he don't belong here" or such, "he's rich and we ain't".

This was followed by a brief show of the GOP State Party Secretary's gas station that is a hybrid public and private financed station and is doing well in the neighborhood. A nice shot of Simon was shown with what I presume were staff and supporters behind him as he talked about improving the quality and opportunities for "distressed" (my word) neighborhoods.

All in All, you can hear the media using words to slight him, but even they can not deny he has some ideas that could help different folks across this state. There will be some feedback from area residents on the 6 PM newscast.
DUMP DAVI$ & the Den of Socialists

GO SIMON

[NEWwoman]

Good point! I just thought of how many good words have been corrupted. Not only "Comeback kid", but remember when "gay" simply meant you were happy? "AIDS" was a product used by dieters? "Rainbow" was what Noah saw when he left the ark? "Liberal" really meant someone was generous with their own money?... Could start another thread on this.
Go, Simon!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Thanks for the ping!

Lets remove the manure from Sacramento!

calgov2002:

calgov2002: for old calgov2002 articles. 

calgov2002: for new calgov2002 articles.  ther

Other Bump Lists at: Free Republic Bump List Register

[boris]

He's toast. The illegal-immigrant vote will finish him.

[John Jorsett]

The ONLY reason I would ever want to live in my native State again would be to vote for this man.

Heck, register absentee with a non-existent in-state address (nobody will check) and vote anyway. Register a hundred times in a hundred names. This state has the most lax anti-fraud measures there are. I hear that in some districts the Democrats are predicting 130% voter turnout.

[pragmatic]

I didn't realize his campaign had gone anywhere it had to comeback from...

[Gophack]

Bump!

[cartoonistx]

I sent the Simon campaign this TV ad suggestion: Bill sitting on the edge of his desk, looking straight into the camera,
"Governor Davis has spent millions out of his enormous campaign war chest to air shameless and near slanderous lies about me personally. You at home may have seen some of these political ads on this very station. The Governor is hoping that if he spends enough money on dirty tricks, filthy lies, and deceitful statements that he can fool you into overlooking the very real problems that he and his democrat friends in Sacramento have created for our great state....problems they can't seem to be able to solve without causing taxpaying citizens great pain."
"The Governor thinks that spending all his money in this typically slimey political way is winning him votes. I for one want to encourage him to please continue his campaign of mud. Let's all ask the Governor to please spend all of his resources in this foolish manner. After all....why should his campaign spending be any different from the way he spent the budget?"

[Kobyashi1942]

He's toast. The illegal-immigrant vote will finish him.

Agreed. It is so ironic that these Republicans refuse to denounce illegal immigration all the while these illegal aliens go to the voting booth (illegally) and vote for anyone with a "D" next to their name.

You don't have the guts to denounce the illeal aliens? You don't deserve to be Governor. It is that simple.