It’s great to be back here blogging with you at Calitics!

First off, I’d just like to thank you for all of your support in the past. I really appreciate everything you’ve done — and continue to do.

It’s no secret: I’m in the middle of a tough re-election campaign against my right-wing opponent, Carly Fiorina.

Carly Fiorina is relying on her multimillion dollar personal checkbook to fund her Senate campaign against me. She’s already poured in millions of dollars, and she’s ready to spend millions more. And if that isn’t enough, George W. Bush’s top operative Karl Rove just launched $1 million of attack ads against me in Los Angeles.

But I have a secret weapon, something even more powerful than all of that: You, and the grassroots support of tens of thousands of supporters across California and across the country.

So, on September 1, our campaign is launching a new online effort — “100,000 Strong for Boxer” — our first ever “money bomb,” to demonstrate our campaign’s strong grassroots strength all on just one day.

Beginning today, we’re collecting pledges from friends like you to make September 1 a big success — and I’m asking you to stand up and be counted.

Make your pledge to our “100,000 Strong for Boxer” September 1 money bomb right now!

www.barbaraboxer.com/moneybomb

We’ve set a huge goal of 10,000 individual donations for our September 1 effort — which will also help us break through an amazing mark of 100,000 total grassroots donors to our campaign to-date.

It’s our most ambitious online fundraising push yet — and we can’t do it without you. Our opponents will be watching closely to see if we make it.

You can help us show that 100,000 grassroots Boxer donors are strong enough to combat Fiorina’s big checkbook, all in one day.

Be a part of this historic event by making a pledge to “100,000 Strong for Boxer” right now.

www.barbaraboxer.com/moneybomb

Fiorina and her allies, including the National Republican Senatorial Committee and Karl Rove, have already reserved nearly $9 million in TV time on California’s airwaves — and I’m sure that’s only a down payment.

The voters in California are going to have a clear choice in this election. I’m proud of my record on jobs, health care, the environment, choice, good public schools, and so many other issues we care about.

But I need your help to get our message out, in the wake of the millions upon millions that our opponents will put on TV:

www.barbaraboxer.com/moneybomb

Thank you so much for standing with me, today and every day!

— Barbara

After all, why wouldn’t they? She sends American jobs overseas with regularity.  Year after year, Carly Fiorina sent jobs from HP’s American facilities to new facilities in low wage countries. Oh, and then she was fired for being one of the worst CEO’s in history.

So, now she’s running around the state complaining about the high unemployment rate. And even setting up a website calling Boxer the Failed Senator.

Well, Karl Rove did always say attack at your weekness, and guess what, failure is Carly Fiorina’s persistent weakness. She failed at HP, and then was shoved out the door, and now she wants to bring all that failure with her to DC. And remove what was left of the middle class in California and the nation.

Remind me again why she is qualified for this job?

Carly Fiorina has lots of issues with President Obama.  She’s a Mama Grizzly after all, and they are protecting their … ummm … “nation” from the dangers of health care for all.  You know, the really dangerous stuff.

Dangerous stuff like the possibility of a mosque several blocks down the road from Ground Zero, the site of the World Trade Center. Now, I understand the importance of honoring the tragedy of the events of 9/11, but are we to blame a whole religion for the actions of a few crazy zealots? The twisted and violent death cult that the 9/11 bombers are engaged in is not the religion that is practiced by the millions of American Muslims that are actively engaged in our civic life.  Sam Seder goes ahead and makes a complete mockery of the whole “controversy” in the video to the right.

Real credit should be given to President Obama for his statement on the matter:

As a citizen, and as President, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as everyone else in this country. And that includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in Lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances.

Now, it appears, Carly thinks that the President of the United States shouldn’t get involved in issues of the (ahem) United States.

Two days after President Obama waded into the controversy over plans to build a mosque near ground zero in New York City, Republican Senate candidate Carly Fiorina said it was an “intensely personal and local issue,” adding that she didn’t think “it’s helpful when the president of the United States weighs in.” (LA Times)

Of course, the Mayor of New York City applauded the President’s comments, but you know, those aren’t the locals that Fiorina likes. The ones that agree with the Big Mama Grizzly herself.  Apparently it is ok when Big Grizz Palin chimes in to bring the issue to the nation’s attention by attacking it:

“Peace-seeking Muslims, pls understand. Ground Zero mosque  is UNNECESSARY provocation; it stabs hearts. Pls reject it in the interest of healing,” the former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential candidate tweeted on Sunday. (ABC)

Note that Palin’s comments were made back in July, and she’s been keeping it up, especially since the President made his comments last week.  So, in summary, the comments of a half-term Alaska governor, completely appropriate.  The President of the United States speaking out with the support of the Mayor of New York? “unhelpful.”

But, truth be told, this is the former CEO who made the current sexually harassing, employee morale devestating CEO of HP Mark Hurd look like a darn right treat.  But, you know, it’s not easy to climb to the hop of the heap of worst CEOs.  So, what can you expect really.  Certainly somebody with this kind of track record is somebody who should be speaking out on what is “helpful” in other jurisdictions.

Do you remember the bizarre and somewhat offensive Carly Blimp Commercial?  Well, it appears that the Failorina campaign is attempting to push that further with their “grassroots” protesters at the site of various Boxer events. From MediaBistro’s FishBowlLA blog:

What does it mean when all six of your protest signs are in the same handwriting with the same slogans in different cities on allegedly different days? It means as a movement you are so on the same page even your penmanship testifies to it. Carly Fiorina’s Twitter  account is proudly boasting about all these protests around California. “Protesters are gathering in Sacramento asking, ‘where are the jobs?!?!'”  (FishBowlLA)

Click on over to FishBowlLA for more photos of the same dude holding the same signs. These “grassroots” folks have really got the message consistency down!

Yesterday, Carly Fiorina was in the business of praising Sen. Feinstein. Then only hours later, she got all up into the business of trashing one of her main policy prerogatives, the assault weapons ban.  Oh, and she went further, pretty much pretending that she was still in the Republican primary.  

Republican Senate candidate Carly Fiorina said Tuesday that she opposes a ban on assault weapons and supports a U.S. Supreme Court decision this week affirming a constitutional right to bear arms.

In a 45-minute question-and-answer session with reporters here, the former Hewlett-Packard CEO also repeated her backing of Arizona’s controversial immigration law and said she would support efforts to repeal the federal health care reform measure. But the fundamental issue in the race against three-term Sen. Barbara Boxer, Fiorina contended, will be whom voters trust more on the economy, and she said the contrast between the two could not be more stark. (SJ Merc)

Wow, I certainly hope for her sake that getting a bunch of Latino votes wasn’t a part of her electoral strategy, because this repeated outpouring of support for Arizona’s law won’t win her that support.  While Carly might criticize Whitman for appearing on Hannity the day after the primary, at least eMeg has the smarts to quit it with the anti-immigrant talk.  Perhaps Carly thinks it will bring in some money from the anti-immigrant crowd, but will it really be enough money to make up for the loss of the votes she’s going to get from that part of the interview?

At any rate, back to the assault weapons ban, Carly might want to take a look at who wrote that legislation. And who has been its strongest supporter throughout the last 20 years. Yup, that would be Dianne Feinstein. The very same senator that she was so effusive about yesterday.

It’s funny how facts can unmask a candidate.

Sen. Feinstein isn’t always our favorite around here, but she hardly resembles Carly Fiorina. Yet, in comments today, Fiorina tried to snuggle up to Feinstein:

And she also continued a tradition of past Boxer opponents – she talked about how great senior Sen. Dianne Feinstein is and attempted to drive a wedge between the two. By the way, Feinstein is Boxer’s campaign chairman.

“I think Dianne Feinstein has accomplished a great deal on behalf of the people of California and I admire and respect her for that,” Fiorina said. She called Feinstein “a pragmatic voice on issues that matter to the people of California.”

In comparing California’s two senators, Fiorina said “if you look at her voting record verses Barbara Boxer’s you’ll see that they disagree on virtually everything.”

When it was suggested to Fiorina that the two actually voted the same most of the time – Boxer says it’s 90 percent – Fiorina backed down a bit.

“Well virtually everything is an overstatement,” she said. (OC Register)

Well, facts are annoying, aren’t they?  At any rate, Sen Feinstein put out a statement in full support of Sen. Boxer today after the comments:

Senator Boxer and I have worked together for 18 years, as partners, in Washington — and there is no daylight between us on the issues that matter most to Californians. We have worked together to create jobs and keep them in California.  We have strongly defended a woman’s right to choose.  We believe that urgent action is necessary to halt climate change and create clean energy jobs, and we support permanently protecting California’s coast from offshore oil drilling.  In a time of serious terrorist threats to the homeland, we believe it is important to keep guns out of the hands of people whose names are on the terrorist watch list.  And we both worked to get more water transfers in the Central Valley so that farmers could plant, hire and harvest this year.  Let there be no doubt that I believe California needs Barbara Boxer in the Senate, now more than ever.

Have you ever wondered about those intense sessions with Carly Fiorina and her team right before she goes on TV? Do you think she’s brushing up on the issues of the day? Mulling over tax proposals or possible changes to the health care system?  

Well, you would be wrong.

Caught on an open mic, we learn that Carly likes to discuss the close relationship between Sean Hannity and Meg Whitman, Cheeseburgers, and, most importantly, Barbara Boxer’s hair.

God, what was that hair? Soooo yesterday.

That was her actual quote.  “Soooo” yesterday.  Check out the clip to the right, and watch five minutes up close and personal with the failed HP CEO.

Hat tip to Muley63.

I was proud to attend the event held for Senator Barbara Boxer at the San Bernardino County Central Committee on Memorial Day. The mood was festive and lively as Senator Boxer laid into her opponents and defended her record on offshore drilling moratorium, the stimulus package (which is seen by the expansion and rework of the 215 FWY), and health care reform legislation. She is really trying to build a grassworks network here in the Inland Empire and I am glad that someone of such import has FINALLY paid attention to the Inland Empire aka the bastard step-child of the Democratic Party. However, we do need a new microphone system for the SBCCC because the one provided kept cutting off and was sometimes caught in an ear screeching feedback loop. Afterwards, Sen. Boxer attended the VA Hospital in Loma Linda to chat with veterans there and pay them the respect and honor they deserve for their service.  For full disclosure, I am running for the Central Committee of San Bernardino County and if elected I will raise funds to purchase a new mic system!  

While Democrats have freaked out about Jerry Brown’s chances against Meg Whitman, there hasn’t been such concern about Senator Barbara Boxer’s re-election.  And while she should prevail in November, who wins the GOP primary in June could make a difference.  Perception in politics can become reality – and if Tom Campbell wins the nomination, there will be “news analysis” in papers across the state that Republicans “learned their lesson” by picking a “moderate.”  Some will remind readers that what “saved” Boxer in 1992 was Campbell losing the GOP primary, so she faced a right-wing conservative in November.  Campbell’s “maverick” stance on gay marriage, Israel and marijuana (the latter will be on the November ballot) may confuse voters into thinking he is to the left of Boxer.  But on the vast majority of issues, Campbell is as conservative as the Party of No in Washington – progressives cannot let the media define the race in terms favorable to him.

I’m going to start off by stating the obvious when it comes to Barbara Boxer’s chances.

If Carly Fiorina wins the primary, it’s over.  Fiorina has made such a fool of herself with online ads about blimps and demon sheep that her candidacy has quickly become the butt of jokes on late-night comedy.  Apparently, her consultants fail to understand that there is such a thing as bad press.  At this point, for Democrats to attack Fiorina is counter-productive – it could just make her lose in June.

As for Chuck DeVore, he’s just another right-wing Teabagger who might be electable in states like Alabama – but not California.  He would suffer the fate of Bruce Herschensohn.

Meanwhile, Campbell is getting away with being a “sane” and “moderate” Republican – one of those who is “fiscally conservative” and “socially liberal.”  California Republicans may be a right-wing bunch, but their party has finally come to its senses and opened their primary to “decline-to-state” voters – a practice Democrats have done for years.  With both Democratic primaries for Governor and Senate a foregone conclusion, independent voters are likely to pick a GOP ballot in June – and therefore, Campbell could win.

But look at where Campbell stands on the issues, and it’s clear that he would be another voice in the chorus of Republican obstructionists on Capitol Hill – should he beat Boxer.

Campbell would have voted against the federal stimulus.  He told the Chronicle’s Andy Ross he opposed its child tax credits for the working poor, extended unemployment insurance, food stamps and Medicaid help. “They may be good, compassionate things, but nobody is going to hire on that basis,” he said.  Would he have supported Senator Jim Bunning’s reckless filibuster of unemployment payments?

Like most Republicans, Tom Campbell wants to repeal the universal health care bill.  On his website, he warns about a “creeping public option” that he calls an inevitable consequence of the legislation (if only!), and urges us not to “destroy the system of private health care and health insurance” that has apparently worked so well.

Campbell’s platform on immigration are identical to the most right-wing Republicans.  He supports building a wall, and criticizes moderate Republicans who won’t crack down on employers who hire undocumented workers.  In a YouTube video on his website, he brags to have been an advocate for the harsh elements of Proposition 187 long before Pete Wilson did.  For a state like California that has moved so far, voters need to know where he stands on this.

Climate change?  In his position paper on the environment, Campbell starts by attacking the 2007 Climate Change Report by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.  “There is still a lot to be learned about the subject of climate change, especially as it relates to its rate and possible solutions,” he writes.  He strongly opposes “cap-and-trade.”  Boxer is a leader on global warming and chairs the Environment Committee – so the difference is stark.

In her speech at the California Democratic Convention this weekend, Boxer criticized Campbell for having been Schwarzenegger’s chief economic adviser.  It’s clear that her campaign is hoping to tie Campbell to Arnold’s spectacular failure as Governor – where there is a ton of ammunition.  But a critical question for voters in this election will be how the next Senator votes on issues in Washington – and what issues are likely to dominate next year.

We can mention Campbell’s pro-choice stance, that he opposed Proposition 8 (but did not support the federal lawsuit challenging it), or that he’s likely to endorse the marijuana initiative on the November ballot.  Boxer will have her own set of problems if she faces Campbell, because she has never officially come out in support of marriage equality – and in fact has opposed the November initiative to de-criminalize marijuana.

But those are all peripheral issues that should not be relevant in the U.S. Senate race.  An emboldened Republican Congress would want to repeal health care reform – Campbell is wrong on that issue.  When Republicans try to block further unemployment assistance in this brutal recession, Campbell will be right there with them.  As President Obama and the Congress push for comprehensive immigration reform and a climate change bill, we can expect Senator Tom Campbell to amplify the “Party of No” message in Washington.

Is Campbell more moderate than Carly Fiorina – or Chuck DeVore?  Of course, but only because they are so far to the right that the media can’t even pretend they are moderates.  It reminds me of what playwright Tony Kushner told Mother Jones Magazine back in July 1995: “What used to be called liberal is now called radical, what used to be called radical is now called insane, what used to be called reactionary is now called moderate, and what used to be called insane is now called solid conservative thinking.”

Paul Hogarth is the Managing Editor of Beyond Chron, San Francisco’s Alternative Online Daily, where this piece was first published.