This is an open letter to all the Democratic leaders of California, starting with senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, as well as the rest of the political establishment:
You foisted Phil Angelides on us with your endorsements of him over Steve Westly, the candidate who was obviously better suited to take on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Now it is time for you to pony up, get out there and campaign for Angelides and turn this thing around.
Otherwise, it looks like Schwarzenegger is going to sail into a second term:
Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has expanded his lead to eight points over Democratic Treasurer Phil Angelides, who is still struggling to shore up support and confidence among those in his own party, according to the latest Field Poll.
The poll, taken July 10-23, shows Schwarzenegger leading Angelides 45 to 37 percent among likely voters in California, with 3 percent favoring other candidates and 15 percent still undecided.
For the first time since February 2005, more voters approve of Schwarzenegger’s job performance than disapprove — and for the first time in nearly two years, more California voters believe the state is heading in the right direction than think it is on the wrong track, the poll showed.
Mark DiCamillo, director of the Field Poll, says the numbers reflect Angelides’ continued struggle to recover from the effects of brutal mudslinging in the June Democratic primary against state Controller Steve Westly. The treasurer now faces a tough — but not impossible — task in the coming weeks if he is to stop Schwarzenegger’s upward trend among voters, he said.
“What’s surprising is the weakness of his support among Democrats, and the lack of confidence Democrats have that Angelides will win,” DiCamillo said of the treasurer.
