Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Dems Try to Rescue Jerry Brown
Politics / People Robert Gammon — Tue, Feb 16, 2010 at 10:22 AM
An independent Democratic group with close ties to the national party plans to spend $20 million this year in an effort to stop GOP billionaire Meg Whitman from buying her way into the governor’s mansion, the Chron reports. But the efforts by the group, which dubs itself, Level the Playing Field 2010, also highlights the weakness of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown, who has run one of the sleepiest statewide campaigns in recent memory. In fact, Brown hasn’t even officially announced his candidacy yet, while Whitman has already flooded the airwaves with campaign ads.
It’s true that Brown won't be able to match the $39 million that Whitman has poured into her own campaign. And it would be foolish for him to spend a lot of cash now trying to counteract her media blitz, which has included buying expensive airtime during the Winter Olympics. But Brown isn’t even doing the basic stuff that doesn’t cost much money, such as holding campaign events, calling press conferences, and meeting with voters.
Instead, the former Oakland mayor’s campaign has been mostly missing in action. So it’s no wonder that well-respected campaign operatives, such as Averell “Ace” Smith, who worked for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, and Chris Lehane, a former Clinton Whitehouse staffer who also worked on Al Gore and John Kerry’s presidential campaigns, have had to come to Brown’s rescue in a state that leans overwhelmingly Democratic.
However, considering the shape of the Democratic Party nationwide, their efforts in California likely would be better directed toward other races around the country, protecting the Democratic majorities in Congress. And so it’s too bad that they’re being forced to spend precious funds helping a candidate who doesn’t seem that interested in running for office.
Comments (2)
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I can't say I care, knowing who Jerry Brown is. Laura Wells, http://www.laurawells.org/, or Deacon Alexander, http://www.newmenu.org/deaconalexander.
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A couple of things to keep in mind...
First, Jerry Brown has serious name recognition state-wide, which is why she has begun such a huge media blitz. Brown could start a campaign in May and still be highly competitive...
Second, I wouldn't downplay the importance of spending a lot of money here in CA to make sure the overwhelmingly Democratic voters do come out to vote. With the census coming up, it is crucial to Californians to have a Democratic governor working with a Democratic legislature when redistricting comes into play. I think to presume the money is best spent elsewhere is premature.
Finally, Brown will play well as a candidate who regularly bucked the establishment, and went to great lengths to separate himself from the comforts and privileges that come with being the governor of one of the world's largest economies. While many might think that having the letters "D" or "R" by their names on the ballot can indicate how a candidate will do, Brown isn't a typical "D", and many Californians remember that.
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