Replies

I think what Simon needs to do now is turn this Photo incident to his advantage. Here's what I would do.

Call a press conference to say he is going to apologize to Governor Davis and get all the newsies to line up for live evening coverage.

When the time comes he should say:

"I apologize for the mistake that was made with regard to the photo. I am not familiar with the governors office, and given the governors reputation, I had no reason to question the photo or the testimony of those that gave it to me. It was wrong for me to have made this accusation in this instance and wrong for those who gave me the photo to try and use me in this way. It is right to apologize when you have made a mistake and take responsibility for it. I apologize to the Governor for this one and take full responsibility.

"I would now like to know if the Governor will apologize to me for all of the slanderous remarks he has made towards me, my family, and my family's business. He has lied in his attack ads, and continued to do so even after the courts made it known we had done no wrong, and were, in fact, the injured party.

"I would like to know if the Governor will apologize to the state of California for his mishandling of the energy crisis and taking the state from a 10 billion dollar budget surplus to a 30 billion dollar deficit.

"I would like to know if the Governor will apologize to the people of the San Francisco Bay Area for allowing Dioxin to be dumped in their bay in exchange for campaign contributions."

"I would like to know if the Governor will apologize to all of the special interest groups he extorted money from in exchange for legislation.

"I would like to know if the Governor is willing to admit that he has ever done anything wrong and take responsiblity for it.

"If voters take anything away from this incident, they should at least recognize which of their two choices for governor is willing to admit mistakes and take responsibility for them. Which of us they can trust. Which of us will act responsibly as governor."

If he does this, I think he can turn this whole thing around. Voters are willing to forgive politicians who admit they're human (Bill Clinton proved that). People want honest politicians and are willing to forgive much if they think they have one. I think Simon can use this to prove that he is one and Davis is not. This could be a golden opportunity... if Simon plays it right.