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Poll Places Bustamante In Lead to Succeed Davis
Schwarzenegger Tops the Other Calif. Hopefuls By William Booth Washington Post Staff Writer Saturday, August 16, 2003 LOS ANGELES, Aug. 15 -- Before the first television ads have aired, the race to succeed California Gov. Gray Davis (D) if he is recalled came down to just two men, Republican action star Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic Lt. Gov. Cruz M. Bustamante, according to a nonpartisan statewide poll to be released Saturday. And in other news, California and Louisiana both announced that they would secede from the Union. Given that this was a balance of wacko extremes, neither the Bush Admin nor Congress even noticed. But, according to "sources close to the sources", the Demobrats lost their (free) lunch upon hearing the news. The California Field Poll found 25 percent of registered voters opted for Bustamante followed by 22 percent for Schwarzenegger. Time to move. The other candidates trailed in single digits: State Sen. Tom McClintock took 9 percent; businessman Bill Simon won 8 percent; former baseball commissioner Peter Ueberroth received 5 percent; all three are Republicans. Independent and columnist Arianna Huffington got 4 percent, and Green Party candidate Peter Camejo received 2 percent. Ralph Nader opined that he would have been able to keep CA on the straight and narrow. Asked if he would join the race, he is reported to have said, "Only if they beg me." The poll also found Davis in deeper trouble. The beleaguered governor earned the dubious distinction of being the most unpopular governor in the 56-year history of the Field Poll, which put his approval rating at 22 percent, the lowest ever for Davis. The survey also showed support for the recall of Davis leaping, with 58 percent of registered voters supporting his ouster, compared with 51 percent last month. So, there you have it: solid proof that at least 22 percent of Californians are totally phreakinâ insane. But you prolly already knew that... The seeming surge for Bustamante despite the avalanche of publicity surrounding Schwarzenegger surprised many. Latino feel-good Donk candidate Bustamante said he had expected to be favored all along. Then his sombrero fell down over his eyes and nose, knocking his lips off. Luis Vizcaino, a Bustamante spokesman, said, "Weâre obviously pleased with these numbers. Weâre humbled by these numbers, but we realize we have a lot of work ahead of us." "Yes." (giggle) "Weâre pleased." (giggle) Bill Carrick, a top Democratic strategist, said given all the media attention devoted to Schwarzenegger, he thought the film star would still be out front, adding that perhaps Schwarzeneggerâs reluctance to state his views and his choices of advisers are sending mixed messages to voters. "After the initial entertainment of his announcement thereâs been a lot of concern whether he is a serious candidate and where he stands on the issues," Carrick said. "But Iâm not casting aspersions on his veracity - Iâm just wondering if heâs for real and tells the truth to the voters. We always do, of course." Mr Carrick had more to say, but was unintelligible as his lips had mysteriously fallen off. The Schwarzenegger campaign played down the survey. "Itâs the only poll in America this week that shows Cruz Bustamante ahead," spokesman Rob Stutzman said. "Every other poll confirms that Schwarzenegger is leading. Weâre confident in Arnoldâs position at the head of the field." Polls taken last weekend showed Schwarzenegger leading the field and Bustamanate (sic) a distant second. And Read the rest... Posted by: .com 2003-08-16 |
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