Today's Fresh Meat

January 16, 2008 @ 10:00 AM

Former President Bill Clinton received an enthusiastic reception at UC Davis last night as he made the case that wife Hillary Clinton has the grit, werewithall and tenacity to be a great Commander-in-Chief, the Sacramento Bee reports. But while students were fired up about hearing the former president, some who were interviewed afterwards said they remained undecided.

With the February 5 election just a couple of weeks away, the ad wars are already in full swing, with a particularly aggressive opposition to the four Indian gaming compacts up for authorization, the Bee reports. The ads currently running feature a number of Indian tribe members who would not benefit from the compacts, the argument being that only the elite gain from these deals. But in a painful budget year, can be afford to forgo this much-needed revenue?

It speaks to Rico Oller's extreme right-wing views that the Club for Growth is getting ready to bankroll his campaign to replace disgraced Congressman John Doolittle. The Bee also reports that Oller will likely be opposed by the Humane Society over his poor animal rights record. Oller's response? "It's no surprise that liberal groups are unhappy about me running. They don't like me. I don't like them."

When Gov. Schwarzenegger talks about the need to curtail autopilot spending, he doesn't have clean hands, writes Peter Schrag in today's Bee. It was Arnold who wrote that $500 million a year after-school program initiative; he also cut the car tax without finding a new source of revenue. The big problem, Schrag writes, is that politicians like Arnold have told people they can have their fiscal cake and eat it too, but that just isn't so.

All the while, the Governor maintains a steady 60 percent approval rating, though 58 percent believe the state is heading in the wrong direction, the Los Angeles Times reports. As the public begins to learn about Arnold's budget, his numbers are sure to go down further.

In what appears to be somewhere near business as usual, the Orange County Board of Supervisors accepted the outgoing sheriff's handpicked successor, Jake Anderson, who is active in the county Republican Party, the Los Angeles Times reports. The sheriff is supposed to be chosen by the voters and this manuver clearly gives Anderson a leg-up, which was obviously the point.

Former State Senator Jackie Speier, newly announced candidate for Congress following Tom Lantos' retirement, could face a challenge from "Survivor" winner Yul Kwon, who has not held elected office but did work as an analyst for Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, the San Francisco Examiner reports. Kwon faces a steep climb, although his name recognition is pretty good. Also, being a former Lieberman staffer doesn't really win one a lot of friends in the Democratic Party.

Given current trends in the presidential race, the San Francisco Bay Area could be a major decider between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, write Matier and Ross in today's San Francisco Chronicle. Both campaigns are active throughout the state, but this could well be the main battleground.

You wouldn't expect conservative Republican Ward Connerly, the man behind California's law banning race in admissions, to think favorably of the much more liberal Barack Obama, but Connerly sees Obama's ascension as proof that America is further along racially than we thought, writes Marcos Breton in today's Bee. Obama's unique style also separates him from other black politicians, allowing him to potentially transcend racial and political divides.

Following his much-needed win in Michigan yesterday, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is headed for Nevada to compete this Saturday, but it remains to be seen how hard he intends to compete in the Golden State, the LA Times reports. Romney is sure to remain a factor in the race, but whether he assumes front-runner status all depends on the smaller states on the horizon.

That's all for today!