From today’s Wall Street Journal Political Diary E-mail…
Whitman Changes Her Product Description
Meg Whitman has followed a relatively simple strategy: attack Democrat Jerry Brown for being ineffective and union-beholden. But some $141 million later, only her own polls have gone down, so now she’s switching to a new, more positive message — albeit perhaps too late.
A 60-second spot, entitled "I’m Ready," retells her life story while subtly distinguishing her from both Mr. Brown and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. "Many of you see this election as an unhappy choice between a long-time politician with no plan for the future and a billionaire with no government experience," she acknowledges in the ad.
In isolation, the ad is fairly unremarkable. But after spending millions clubbing Mr. Brown while hearing back that voters saw Ms. Whitman herself as wooden and consultant-controlled, the switch in tone is striking. In the ad she says: "I’m not a career politician or a Hollywood star. I’m from Silicon Valley, where I created thousands of jobs at eBay. As governor, I’ll do something that’s been missing from California politics for far too long: I’ll treat you like grown-ups, tell it to you straight, and offer a practical plan forward."
The change is certainly overdue, given months of polling showing a clear trend: Mr. Brown’s support has stayed relatively constant under the onslaught of Ms. Whitman’s negative ads, while Ms. Whitman’s own negatives have skyrocketed — now up to 51% in a Field Poll released Thursday. The race has gone from 41% to 41% a month ago to 49%-39% in Mr. Brown’s favor.
Ronald Reagan, a previous GOP governor of California, knew the job of a Republican was to deliver an optimistic vision of growth and opportunity. Ms. Whitman belatedly is beginning to figure it out too.
— Carl J. Kelm