Analysis of the first days of Arianna’s campaign
Contender, or spoiler?
Democrats insist Arianna Huffington can’t be the next governor. She says she can beat Schwarzenegger — and Gray Davis, too. If she gets close, watch things get ugly.
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By Tim Grieve
Aug. 16, 2003 | SAN FRANCISCO — Ralph Nader stopped by the recall race this week, and somebody hit him with a pie. If that’s a sign of how Democrats view spoiler candidates — many still blame Nader for making the 2000 presidential election close enough for George W. Bush to steal — then don’t be surprised to see Gray Davis greasing a pan on Oct. 8. California’s governor is sinking fast, and soon he’ll be looking for someone to blame.
Apple or cherry, Arianna?
Conservative turned progressive Arianna Huffington hit the hustings this week in her race to replace Gray Davis, striving to establish liberal credibility with campaign stops in South Central Los Angeles, Oakland and a rough-and-tumble San Francisco neighborhood where Tony Bennett might have lost his wallet but never would have left his heart. Along the way, the Salon columnist (she’s taking a leave to campaign) attempted to make the recall a referendum on national politics, “connecting the dots” between Arnold Schwarzenegger and George W. Bush, between the economic troubles facing California and the economic policies coming out of Washington.
“Arnold Schwarzenegger is a Bush Republican,” Huffington told a small group of supporters at a rally on a San Francisco street corner Wednesday. “It’s laughable for Bush Republicans in this campaign to be attacking Gray Davis for fiscal irresponsibility while turning a blind eye to the orgy of fiscal responsibility going on in Washington.”
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