Congressman David Dreier’s 26th Congressional District covers significant parts of two counties. The eastern portion includes the San Bernardino County cities of Rancho Cucamonga, Upland and Montclair. Moving west, the 26th covers a large swath of Los Angeles County in the San Gabriel Valley before dipping south to include San Marino. Registration figures for CD 26 stand at 46 percent Republican and 35 percent Democrat.
Dreier (pictured above) survived a scare in 2004 when popular Los Angeles talk radio hosts John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou of KFI relentlessly blasted Dreier for allegedly being soft on illegal immigration. Despite the two-pronged attack David Drier faced — on his right from the John and Ken show, and on his left from Democrat challenger Cynthia Matthews — Dreier won with 53 percent of the vote. In 2002, Dreier had beaten his Democrat opponent with 63 percent of the vote.
In December, I wrote a piece on Dreier’s probable 2006 Democrat opponent, wealthy magazine distribution magnate Russ Warner. A quick glance at Warner’s campaign website reveals the neophyte’s political savvy. While many Democrat candidates play to the party’s base on social issues such as abortion, tax hikes on the rich, and a scaling back of U.S. involvement in Iraq, Warner mentions none of those things. Instead, he stakes out moderate positions ranging from reducing government spending to supporting the military to deficit reduction. Warner even states, "the heart of America can be found in its middle class," while calling for tax breaks for small businesses. On paper, it certainly appears Russ Warner is doing everything he can to distance himself from the Bush-hating, far-left wing of the Democrat Party (considering that Bush carried the 26th District in 2004 by a substantial 17-point margin).
Well, maybe Warner’s not that savvy after all, according to San Bernardino County Republican Party Executive Director Adam Aleman, whose operatives Saturday observed Warner campaigning and soliciting volunteers and campaign donations in Los Angeles County — except he wasn’t in Glendora, San Dimas, Claremont, or La Verne. He was working with the Dems’ leftist base at a political rally in Hollywood at an event sponsored by KTLK, a station affiliate of the left-wing Air America broadcast network.
Considering the unfamiliarity most Hollywood liberals have with the Inland Empire, it will be interesting to see if Warner’s mission to Hollywood for campaign support pays dividends. In fact, film critic Mark Ramsay once noted, "In Hollywood, they think if you drive too far out on the 10 (I-10 freeway), you’ll encounter either Riverside or Shanghai, but not necessarily in that order." With Riverside actually being on Highway 60, perhaps Ramsay’s quote serves to illustrate the deep wall of separation between Hollywood and constituencies east of the 101 freeway.
So on Saturday, Dreier’s would-be replacement shared a stage with former Dem presidential candidate Wesley Clark, several long-shot Democrat congressional candidates, and uber-liberal 
talk radio host Stephanie Miller (pictured right), who emceed the "Take Back the House" rally. Using traditional liberal themes of abortion rights and an end to the U.S. "occupation" of Iraq, Miller encouraged the assembled activists to volunteer their time, donate their money and work hard to ensure a Democrat takeover of the House of Representatives by working for candidates like Russ Warner.
Although Warner was on stage and "ready for his close-up," he wasn’t allowed to speak. He didn’t even get a courtesy shout-out to the audience. Only Francine Busby, the Washington, D.C., Democrat Party establishment candidate running for the Cunningham seat in San Diego County, was given a speaking part. Busby thanked Warner for chartering the "Russ Bus," a vehicle that will be transporting liberal activists from the Inland Empire and L.A. to San Diego to provide muscle to the Busby campaign in the days leading up to the April 11 Special Election.
So what do you think? Does the road to Congress in the 26th District actually run through Hollywood? Let me know by using the "Comments" link below.
February 6th, 2006 at 12:00 am
The shrill voices on the Left don’t matter here in the Inland Empire–not yet. The Inland Empire is changing. People from the Westside are having to move out here because they are priced out of the housing market in the Westside. They might not want to move out there but they are forced to by economics. I think that’s what Drier’s Democrat opponent may be sensing. Just a thought.
February 6th, 2006 at 12:00 am
Whatever people think about this Warner dude, David Dreier deserves to be retired in the GOP primary. I hope Sonny Sardo is up to the job. I think Dreier may get lucky though because John March was going to run against him, but he has taken himself out of contention for this cycle. He would have kicked Dreier’s butt.
February 6th, 2006 at 12:00 am
Hmmm. I found that this was an interesting post, but I hardly see how appearing at a rally in Hollywood means that Russ Warner has somehow taken a left-hand turn in his politics. As you noted, he didn’t even speak, so we can pretty much assume his policy positions haven’t strayed. And, who was the keynote speaker? Wesley Clark–a moderate who is a perfect match for his district. My interpretation of the event is that by attending the rally and sharing the stage with many people, Russ Warner wasn’t turning left to affiliate with the Stephanie Miller Liberals, but stayed right in the middle to affiliate with the Wesley Clark Moderates.
But, the main point is that Russ Warner is a man who actually lives in and therefore would represent the district. Last time I checked David Dreier is a Washington Beltway guy who is pretty much the definition of a party insider.
February 11th, 2006 at 12:00 am
I read your article and it made me want to find out more about this dude Russ Warner. I Googled his website. He is everything that you said that he is, “… he stakes out moderate positions ranging from reducing government spending to supporting the military to deficit reduction. Warner even states, “the heart of America can be found in its middle class,” while calling for tax breaks for small businesses.”
These positions sound pretty good to me and do not sound like a bleeding heart liberal. This guy sounds like he’s from the district and has a sense of what is going on. I am soooooo tired of the Washington Beltway Cronies and their inability to identify with the folks that they represent.