Is Yahoo Media?

The question is whther Yahoo is considered to be part of the media. If the answer is yes then it raises another question. Has it overstepped its bounds in the race for California Governor? see Schwarzenegger in Trouble

Is the sponsored ad for Westly found on the search for Angelides a campaign rules violation? I don't know the answer to that.

There are rules governing the media and campaign promotions. Yahoo is based in California and one of its founders, Jerry Yang, is a large contributor to Arnold. Thus there is the potential of a conflict of interest.

I've posed to the question to California Secretary of State Bruce McPherson's office.

Schwarzenegger in Trouble

California politics. Where anyone with a million dollars in their pocket can dream of being an elected official. An analysis of voting trends in this state leave me to believe in one conclusion. California voters are an erratic group with schitzophrenic tendencies.

The incumbant is celebrity actor Arnold Schwarzenegger. He is a Republican with family ties with the greatest democratic dynasty of our nation, the Kennedy family. But those ties aren't helping him out any. His popularity is at 41%. His hiring of liberal cabinet members and the Rob Reiner fiasco (see Hugh Hewitt for more on that) are costing him his Republican base.

He will face either Phil Angelides or Steve Westly in November. Angelides is the state treasurer while Westly is the state controller. Both have the credibility to challenge Arnold on the issue of the state's finances.

Both candidates are largely unknown to voters even though they are incumbants. Polls show Angelides is slightly more popular than Westly. However, Westly has $6 million more in reserve in his campaign warchest than his rival. I expect that extra dough to help him in raising his name ID to even the score with Angelides. Whoever wins the Democratic primary could potentially rout the embattled incumbant.

Westly Tops Angelides on Yahoo

In researching this article I did a search on yahoo for Phil Angelides on Yahoo. I found a sponsored link for Steve Westly at the top of the page. Cudos to the Westly team for pulling off that one. Look for this to be a new campaign tool for other campaigns.

Campaign Sites
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Phil Angelides
Steve Westly

Arkansas Race to be a Hot One

Arkansas, the land that Bill Clinton built, is hosting one of the most dynamic gubernatorial races in the country in 2006. Incumbant Mike Huckabee, a Republican, owns a 60% approval rating. Normally that would speak well for a Republican candidate (Huckabee is ineligible for another term).

Asa Hutchison, the man who replaced Tom Ridge as the undersecretary for the Department of Homeland Security, has a true fight on his hands to win the job. Being a former appointee of George W. Bush may be acting as a handicap to the candidate.

On the Democratic ticket there are two. They are Attorney General Mike Beebe, and Bill Halter a former cabinet member of the Clinton Administration. A current elected official versus a member of the Clinton White House smells like a barn burner.

Unfortunately for Halter this primary hasn't ignited like he would have liked. The nuances of elections are playing a major role. Halter has been out of the limelight for a while and his political capital has grown stale. Whereas Beebe is an incumbant for a statewide position and has been before the voters at the polls recently (2002).

Halter also jumped into the race too late. His only hope is for Bill Clinton to make a strong commitment to his campaign.

So most likely Arkansas voters will see Mike Beebe and Asa Hutchison on the ballot for November. Polls show this race would be highly contested with Beebe having the advantage.

Campaign Websites:
Asa Hutchison
Mike Beebe
Bill Halter

Nepotism Killing Alaskan Governor's Re-Election Bid

Frank Murkowski was a popular Senator from Alaska. When he won the governor's race in 2002 he made an audacious move. He appointed his daughter Lisa to replace him in the seat he vacated. The issue is at the forefront of voters minds and can possibly cause both to lose their jobs. His popularity ranges between 25-35%, an all-time low for an Alaskan Governor.

Sarah Palin is challenging Murkowski. As long as she maintains a pulse through the primary she will face the Democratic primary winner in November.

Eric Croft will face Ethan Berkowitz for the Democratic ticket. Berkowitz is the State House minority leader who comes off as an intelligent and charming personality. He is the favored to beat Croft.

While the state of Alaska is predominately Republican, I predict Berkowitz will beat Palin in a close race come November. His charisma and experience in the state house will carry him.

Inside Alabama

Bob Riley is the incumbant running against the former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore who was removed from his post for insisting the 10 commandments be displayed in front of the state courthouse.

While a majority of the state's residents back Moore's stance on the display he remains a longshot in beating Riley. Barring a scandal Riley will beat Moore.

The situation looks the same for the Democratic primary. Lt. Gov Lucy Baxley is winning the battle against former governor Dan Siegelman. Siegelman is struggling in his race because he is under federal indictment for racketeering charges. His trial is set for one month before the primary.

Odds are it will be Riley vs Baxley come November. Rasmussen polls the race at 53% to 37% in favor of Riley. I don't see any reason to disagree with those numbers.

Campaign Websites:
Bob Riley
Roy Moore
Lucy Baxley
Dan Siegelman

A Nation in Review - Gubernatorial Races

Now that we are in March, most candidates who intend to run have filed their candidacy. Over the course of the next week or so this site will examine all the primaries for governor (where applicable) and give an idea of how those races are shaping up.

DeLay Baffles the Mind

There are questions about Tom DeLay's ethics and his connections with lobbyists. So common thought is keep your nose clean, stay away from those types and you might have a chance at re-election.

Last night two friends and former colleagues, Bill Paxon and Susan Molinari, hosted a fundraiser for DeLay. The problem is these people are now lobbyists. While I understand the pressure from Tom to not hurt his friends' feelings by not having the fundraiser, he still should have declined. On the same token, if they were his true friends they would have realized the position they were putting him in and not offered to host the gala.

This gives voters in Texas new doubt as to whether Tom DeLay is a reformed man. Its making it easier for Campbell to pull off a win in this primary.

For more on this race.

Hillary Angry at Critics

"When you run as a Democrat, and in particular, when you run as a Democratic woman, whether you're running at the local, state or national level, it's likely you're going to draw some unfriendly fire, People will be attacking you instead of your ideas, they may impugn your patriotism, they may even say you're angry." - Hillary Clinton at a fundraiser by black and Hispanic women supporters.

Candidates should never allow stale criticism of themselves to gain new life by attacking those critics. Attack them while the story is fresh but never allow it to gain new life.I expect that this will cause a whole new uproar on her "angry" demeanor.

Repetition of issues, whether factual or not, can cause voters to think about that issue when they go to the polls. Comments like this will undoubtably contribut in keeping Hillary Clinton from the White House.

Why Democrats Want Immediate Vote on Port Deal

Democrats have called for an immediate vote on the UAE port deal. This call for a vote is not about national security. Its about November.

Republican members of Congress have been preaching to their constituents that they want a deeper look into the deal and prefer not to make rash decisions. By going against the White House on this they have regained the satisfaction of Americans on the national security issue.

Democrats know that this will deal be defeated in a vote. But they need the issue to go away now. The longer this plays out the more it goes into favor with Republicans.

Oberweis Makes Boneheaded Campaign Move

The Chicago Tribune reports "Republican governor candidate Jim Oberweis is launching two TV ads that use made-up newspaper headlines to attack front-runner Judy Baar Topinka's integrity."
"The words are displayed as if they appeared on the front pages of the Tribune, the Chicago Sun-Times, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the State Journal-Register of Springfield."

Campaign manager Joe Wiegand said the "text is excerpted" from articles from those publications. A Tribune review of the stories in question couldn't find the exact words presented in the ads.

This is wrong in so many levels from a campaign side. Oberweis is attacking the integrity of his opponent using questionable tactics. This is backfiring on him. Instead of hurting Topinka's integrity it is smearing his own.

In the end only one basic rule of campaigns was broken. Don't make things up, don't lie.