I would appreciate it if someone who reads this blog could explain to me why Arianna Huffington’s opinion is so important that she is a regular commentator on CNN, such as the Larry King show. When I worked in the Reagan Administration, at what I consider to be the height of her capabilities, she held lavious high society parties in Washington, D.C., but some of the attendees had legal problems in their backgrounds, She married a millionaire that took out a great, long-standing incumbent conservative, Bob Lagamarsino, for the glory of just two years of service in the House. Then her husband tried to buy a U.S. Senate seat, hiring just about every conservative activist in the state on the campaign, while harboring a deep personal secret that he did not disclose until he lost the election. The Congressional seal then went to a liberal Democrat. Ralph Reed once told me that Congressman Huffington once asked to give him a hug, and what he reluctantly got was an undesired full frontal body pull. Wouldn’t Arianna know what was going on? Arianna should have been "over" politically when she ran for Governor and was crushed in the vote, rejected by just about everybody in the state. Can’t we be relieved of her vapid observations in the major media? Any thoughts?
February 14th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Jim:
Arianna Huffington is a ditzy megalomaniac in her own right.
To make her look bad, there is no need to discuss anything that her ex-husband may or may not have done while a Member of Congress (what…12 years ago?)
In all fairness, I hope you would not try to tar me with the foibles of my former spouses.
You have enough dirt on her (and me) to make your case without bringing in the activities of irrelevant third parties.
February 15th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Jim: she has an agent.
February 15th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Jim:
I don’t think we can overlook her strong showing in the 2003 Recall election.
After months of heavy TV and newspaper exposure, she received 47,505
votes, which works out to 0.6% of all votes cast.
Why in your own county of Orange, Ms. Huffington attracted the support
of fully 0.3% of the electorate!
You can’t just ignore 0.3%, Mr. Lacy !
And it’s not as though our liberal opponents are bringing up events of 20
to 30 years ago about President Bush, or former Senator George Allen,
so why should we talk about things that happened in 1994?
Besides, every time I hear her voice, it reminds me of Eva Gabor and
“Green Acres”, a milestone of American culture.
February 15th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Dana, you are right, I should have stuck to Arianna. Although I must say Michael Huffington did not help the conservative movement when, for the privilege of serving just one term, he cashiered Bob Lagomarsino, a great Congressman, and this Santa Barbara seat went over to the Democrats. Lago would have held that seat and done a great job for America if he could have served when the Republicans were in the majority.
February 15th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Jim, Jim, Jim:
This is the second time you have accused poor Congressman Huffington of turning his Congressional seat over to the Democrats when he ran for the US Senate and almost beat DiFi in 1994.
The fact is, Congressman Huffington was replaced by the lovely and talented REPUBLICAN Andrea Seastrand, perhaps one of the most conservative Members of Congress from California since statehood.
There may be many legitimate reasons to be angry at Michael Huffington, but turning his seat over to the Democrats is NOT one of them!
February 15th, 2007 at 12:00 am
I was involved in Cal-YAF when Logomarsino was still in Congress. He never supported conservative activists, always aligned himself with Bill Thomas, and his CRP delegates always went for the wrong candidates in Party races. If there was some conservative fire in his belly, it was long gone by the time I got involved. I, for one, saw his retirement as a positive.
February 15th, 2007 at 12:00 am
The Lagomarsino-Huffington feud split the Santa Barbara GOP, with effects that lasted
for years. In the ultra-GOP year of 1994, the admirable Andrea Seastrand barely won a seat that
Lago had held since 1973.
The bad feelings remaining from the 1992 primary contributed greatly to Walter Capps
winning the rematch with Andrea Seastrand in 1996.
February 15th, 2007 at 12:00 am
One once told me that the only opinions that matter are the ones that get media. Of course. From that perspective, then, her opinon does matter — like it or not — since she is able to generate attention (yes, JJ, with the agent). Perhaps the media is the “Stepford Wife” in this relationship with her (much like Michael was the Stepford Husband), but they do love the brassy, the outspoken, and the slightly foreign, especially in a strong woman. Again, like it or not.