I saw Steve Poizner in person a week ago and liked what I heard, but I've also heard a lot of things that are troubling. Poizner has closed from 50 points down to only 2 down, so it's a real horse race. Frankly, I'm still conflicted about this race.
Today former Vice President and conservative superstar Dick Cheney offers his endorsement in the race:
I am proud to endorse Meg Whitman to be the next governor of California. Meg has the conservative values, leadership skills and vision to reform state government and usher in an eraWhat's interesting about this endorsment op-ed is Cheney spends more time telling us why we should vote AGAINST Poizner than why we should vote FOR Whitman:
of strong economic growth and prosperity.
There is a lot at stake in this election. What happens in California has a direct bearing on the health of the U.S. economy. America cannot afford to have its largest state teetering on the edge of financial collapse. California needs a proven executive who has the mettle to stand up to the entrenched special interests in Sacramento and cut spending.
Meg is a leader who will not shy away from confronting the public employee unions. She has put pension reform at the center of her agenda. She is a firm believer in the power of tax cuts to strengthen small businesses and create jobs. She knows that welfare must be a temporary hand-up and not a way of life. She is committed to local control of education, and she has a strong and practical approach to securing the border and addressing the problems associated with illegal immigration.
Meg's conservatism is rooted in the optimism that people can achieve great things if government doesn't stand in their way. As I have come to know her better, I have been reminded of another great leader from California. As a young congressman from Wyoming in the 1980s, I was an unabashed foot soldier in the Reagan Revolution. I saw an inspirational leader lift the nation out of the malaise left behind by Jimmy Carter's liberalism. I believe Meg Whitman can do for California what Ronald Reagan did for America.
In 2000, when I first ran on the national ticket with President George W. Bush, Mr. Poizner endorsed Vice President Al Gore. With the election hanging in the balance, he donated $10,000 to the Gore-Lieberman Recount Committee in Florida. In 2004, during the Bush-Cheney reelection campaign, Mr. Poizner, who was then a candidate for the state Assembly, opposed the tax cuts that were the centerpiece of our economic recovery plan.I don't doubt that the Dems are more afraid of Whitman than they are of Poizner. Whitman has hundreds of millions of dollars of her own money she can throw into the race, and her real world experience running eBay plays well against Jerry Brown's life in politics where he never had to make a payroll or create a job. In this economy Whitman's experience is definitely an asset.
He also broke ranks with our party on national security and the "war on terror." Mr. Poizner
opposed the war in Iraq. To amplify his opposition to the national security policies of the Bush administration, he invited Richard Clarke to campaign for him in California.
At the time, Mr. Clarke, a former staff member of the National Security Council, was making the rounds on cable television to market a book that blamed the Bush administration for mismanaging the terrorist threat and enabling the Sept. 11 attacks against our nation. There was a clear purpose behind the Clarke campaign visit. Mr. Poizner was breaking from the Bush-Cheney ticket and our policy goals because he thought it helped his political ambitions.
The intervening years have proven that the resolve of the Bush administration and the courage of our soldiers on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan kept America safe at a perilous time in our nation's history.
While I have doubts about the authenticity of the conservative voice that Mr. Poizner now speaks in, there is no disputing that Meg Whitman is the Republican the Democrats fear the most in this election. The unions and the Democratic donors invested in Attorney General Jerry Brown's success have already started to run misleading ads attacking Meg Whitman. This is a clear admission on their part that Meg is the toughest Republican candidate for governor. The Democrats know that Meg can beat them in November, and, more importantly, they know she will put an end to the failed status quo in Sacramento as governor.
I encourage my fellow Republicans to vote for Meg Whitman. She is a woman of courage, a leader with conviction, a true fiscal conservative and champion of the values we hold dearest.
Poizner is talking a good game these days, but I'm skeptical that either of these candidates are as conservative as they portray themselves. I'm afraid they could both be as liberal as they portray each other.
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2 comments:
Holy Coast's point is well-taken, but I still think Poizner has had more than enough time in politics to look like a strong conservative, but he hasn't done that. As Governor Christie said, some politicians (on both sides of the aisle) have made a habit of making an escape hatch for themselves. I think Poizner is one of them.
I, for one, am willing to give Meg Whitman a chance.
Either Mr Poisner or Ms Whitman would never be as liberal as their opponent, Mr Brown. I would give Ms Whitman an edge due to experience in management.
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