From the way that Tony Strickland’s campaign for California State Senate is gearing up, you would almost think that that he is listed as "incumbent" on the ballot. But, of course, he is not. The incumbent, Senator Tom McClintock, is retiring next year as term limits prevents him from seeking a third Senate term.
Today the ENTIRE 15-member State Senate Republican Caucus endorsed former Assemblyman Strickland in his bid to succeed McClintock.
[You can see all of the signatures by clicking on the link at the bottom of this blog post.]
"All of our Senators are committed to helping Tony win his election to the State Senator next November," Senate Republican Dick Ackerman told me tonight.
If that wasn’t enough, earlier tonight, the Ventura County Republican Party weighed in with a rare (and overwhelming) pre-primary endorsement for Strickland as well. I caught up with FR friend and Ventura County GOP Chairman Mike Osborn who told me, "We are all excited about this endorsement for Tony Strickland, who will now have the resources of a motivated, energized and 
united County GOP to help him in his campaign. We are 100% committed to making sure the 19th Senate District stays in the Republican column come next November."
If that isn’t momentum, I don’t know what is… Tony the train is storming down the tracks…
May 24th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Considering the Ventura County Central Committee are all Strickland minions, it isn’t surprising that they would bend the rules to back Tony. Now the question is, does the rest of the district think Tony is the one or will they back Jim Dantona? I smell blood in the water.
May 24th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Katie…if you’re going to post something it’s a good rule to post something that makes sense.
So let’s review:….it does follow that there is blood in the water when there is a a united party and a united caucus…it’s just not Tony’s.
May 24th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Joe
Blood in the water refers to the race between Strickland and Dantona. I thought my post was pretty clear but perhaps not.
I know the CRP and various elected officials’ campaigns are poised to run a lot of money through the Ventura County Central Committee to make sure Ventura County stays red. Most of it will be outside the county. I’m sure the DNC is looking at the county as well. Afterall, latest voter registration shows that Republicans have a 2% advantage over the Democrats. The DTS voting block is close to 16%. I’m sure the Dems are salivating.
I hope my post is clear enough now and makes sense to you. If not you can e-mail me directly at KatieTeague@verizon.net
May 24th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Tony is the right man to take over for Senator McClintock.
May 24th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Katie
Your first post was very clear…you were just confused as to whose blood was in the water. Your most recent post was much more cogent and will no doubt serve as the impetus for Tony’s fundraising appeal. Thank you. Sincerely. From the bottom of my heart. Honest.
May 25th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Hey Joe, I didn’t know you were a political consultant – 2008 ought to be very interesting. Let me know if you need any clarification on this post.
May 25th, 2007 at 12:00 am
It would appear that the perjorative “minion” is translated as “those who you do not like or agree with”.
May 25th, 2007 at 12:00 am
My dictionary says a minion is an “obsequious follower or dependent, sycophant or a subordinate of an individual or organization.”
May 25th, 2007 at 12:00 am
This should be an interesting, rough-and-tumble race (to put it euphemistically). Both Tony and Jim have substantial name recognition and can raise significant amounts of money. Both are polarizing figures.
In the end it probably comes down to the fact that Ventura County (especially the east end) remains a fairly conservative Republican stronghold. I don’t expect that to change much prior to the 2010 redistricting, and probably not then.
So the winner of the Republican primary will continue to be the odds-on favorite to win the general election. That’s why Tony’s strategy of effectively clearing the Republican field is so significant, not because he picked up a bunch of endorsements.
Jim came tantalizingly close in last year’s non-partisan Supervisorial race, but still lost to a newcomer in the midst of a heavy Democratic national wave. I suspect that was Jim’s best opportunity and his high-water mark.
Still, politics is full of unexpected events. I trust that Tony will be careful to refrain from sneaking around in the middle of the night and tearing down his opponent’s campaign signs…