In Jerry's own words...

"I didn't have a plan."

The first time he was governor, Jerry Brown (by his own admission) didn't have a plan - but he did have a party. Here he gets his groove on with then-pop star Linda Ronstadt...

Former two-time California governor (and current Democratic gubernatorial candidate) Jerry Brown on "the differences between what he said to get elected and the realities of what happened when he was in office: 'You say you're going to lower taxes, you're going to put people to work, you're gonna improve the schools, you're going to stop crime... crime is up, schools are worse, taxes are higher.'"

He didn't have a plan, but he did lie.

(h/t: breitbart.tv - the clip is from CNN, circa 1992.)

Jerry flop

Last night's third and final California gubernatorial debate between Meg Whitman (R) and Jerry Brown (D) had its highs and lows -- for both candidates.

The 800-lb. gorilla that everyone knew would be in the room did rear its head: Brown's campaign calling Whitman a "whore." (See last week's Bliss Index post...) Veteran television journalist Tom Brokaw, the debate's moderator, put the question to Brown about the slur.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Whitman answered a related question on the matter during a post-debate news conference. "Meg Whitman said she was 'stunned' by Jerry Brown's nonchalance when asked about someone close to Brown being caught on tape using the word 'whore.' 'The first thing I need to say is I was stunned by Gov. Brown's insensitivity to what that word means to women,' she said. 'Boy, all Californians, and especially women, know exactly what's going on here. When you use that term about women, that's highly insensitive.' Whitman's comments came in a brief question-and-answer session with reporters after the debate."

Below is a clip featuring that segment of the debate. Watch and decide...

This was not Brown's finest hour...

Which party does he belong to?

Oh, that's right...Democratic.

West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin (right) has a problem (left)...(photo: Charleston Gazette)

West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin (D), who looked like a cinch to capture the U.S. Senate seat that used to be part of the living fossil that was Robert Byrd, is now in for the political fight of his life.

While he is overwhelmingly beloved as governor, President Barack Obama seems to be moving toward a nearly impossible-to-believe single-digit approval ratings among West Virginia voters. And therein lies the problem.

West Virginians want Joe to stay with them. They feel like he's doing a fine job as the state's chief executive. "If Joe goes to Washington and gets sucked into the Obama mess, he and the state could be screwed," his constituents seem to be saying.

GOP challenger John Raese has managed to come on strong, shaking off a double-digit deficit to move to a lead in the polls which now have him beyond the margin of error.

You've got to hand it to Manchin: he's no quitter. During the last week, he's filed suit against the Obama Administration's EPA for its efforts to quash certain coal mining techniques (which really irks the coal mining-dependent state's citizens). And to top it off, Manchin goes over the top with the ad (below), which is designed to further distance him from the leader of his own party.

Another omen of things to come this November 2.

Bonus: In one campaign ad, the candidate shoots down Cap and Trade, ObamaCare, the EPA - and he does it with a rifle (and the NRA's endorsement). Can you imagine what would have happened if a Republican did all that?

Late add: John Batchelor also blogs on the West Virginia coal mine canary...

Jerry Brown takes another hit...with women

On the heels of California gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown (D) and/or the Brown campaign calling his opponent, Meg Whitman, a "whore" comes this clip - below - from the archives.

Reported on by Politico, "The comment about mammograms came during an episode of 'Firing Line' in October 1995, when Brown was a guest on the William F. Buckley Jr. show. He sat alongside feminist and commentator Susan Estrich during a discussion about government regulations that dealt with the death of the Clinton administration health reform proposal. Estrich discussed the component of the plan that had dealt with mammograms.

'Can we get off of mammograms?' Brown interjected. 'I mean, first of all, if you read the Lancet Magazine in July, there's no statistical evidence that mammograms help anyone at any age. 'So it's July 1995, Lancet Magazine. Okay? It's there. Now I don't want to argue that case,' he added, as Estrich started to object. 'I just want to throw it out there.'

Former Delaware Gov. Pete du Pont interrupted, 'But you ought to have the option — if you think they're going to help you, if you think they're going to help you, you ought to have the option of having one.'

Brown replied, 'Ten thousand women, three women will be saved for one year.'

The abstract from the Lancet Magazine article Brown mentioned discussed a study questioning the efficacy of mammograms, mostly in the context of a push for public funding."

As Politico points out, this "comes as Whitman is making an aggressive play for the female vote, who some of her supporters see as turned off by the 'whore' flap."

So two major hits against the Brown campaign within one week, both touching on issues likely to resonate with women voters. It might do Jerry Brown well to remember that larger percentages of women vote in most California elections.

P.S. A bit of advice/perspective from Mrs. Bliss Index: "Apparently, Jerry has never had a woman in his life who has suffered from or died as a result of breast cancer."

SNL gets Gloria...

In all her Gloria...

Last night during its opening skit, "Saturday Night Live" lampooned the ambulance-chasing, attention-craving political operative Gloria Allred.

It says a lot about the awareness of California's gubernatorial race - outside the state's borders - and the (correct) perception of Allred...everywhere.

To paraphrase a famous quote, "If Jerry Brown and Gloria Allred have lost "SNL," then they've lost the middle."

(The clip begins after a brief/random commercial message...)

What did Jerry know and when did he know it?

Radio bonus (late addition): About 15 minutes into this podcast from the John Batchelor Show, we discuss Friday's revelations...

The pensioner...

Earlier today, the Orange County Register (a newspaper I actually "threw" back in the early '70s as a substitute paperboy) broke a story that could have significant impact on California's gubernatorial race between current state Attorney General/former two-term Gov. Jerry Brown (D) and former eBay CEO Meg Whitman (R).

California, which is drowning in debt (some say as much as $600 billion-plus when all unfunded liabilities are counted) is coming apart at the seams. One of the largest aspects of those liabilities is the ever-growing mountain of obligations to state employee pensions.

The public's awareness of (the magnitude of) these liabilities has increased in part due to politicians like Whitman drawing back the curtain on the greed and graft in Sacramento, and the perks connected to public employee unions. And media outlets like the Los Angeles Times, the Bee newspapers and Wall Street Journal have done their duty in reporting scandals like the city of Bell's pension scandal (and now property tax mess) and the city of Vernon's culture of corruption.

As public resentment has grown and become more vociferous, the opportunity to capitalize on citizens' collective anger has not been lost on politicians. Notably, Brown - never one to pass up a good photo opp or media dog-and-pony show - has come out in recent weeks as standing foursquare against the problem. As the public's awareness of the Bell scandal and the burdensome pension schemes has increased, so has Brown's campaigning (on it) - despite the fact that he as former governor helped enable the system now destroying the Golden State.

Until today...

Thanks to the OC Register's Sacramento correspondent, Brian Joseph, California voters now know that Brown not only feels their pain when it comes to these pensions but he also has enjoyed cashing pension checks. Brown as a lifelong public employee, has collected a pension. This isn't hard to imagine since he's been Secretary of State as well as Governor (and now Attorney General).

According to Joseph, writing in the paper's Watchdog blog, "Campaign spokesman Sterling Clifford did tell the Watchdog that Brown started receiving an annual pension of about $20,000 when he turned 60 in 1998 and pocketed it every year until he assumed the attorney general’s office, when it was suspended. That means Brown’s received a pension on top of his $115,000 salary as Oakland mayor [prior to serving as AG]."

One of the questions surrounding all this has to do with time. Brown's pension (and, by the way, it appears he was double-dipping) appears to be significant: about $110,580 annually, which is what someone who has been a member of the select Legislators’ Retirement System (LRS) receives if they've been part of the system for a period between 25-29 years. The problem is that Brown, after he has completed his latest term as AG, will have only served a total of 16 years (which is only $73,720 annually). Quite a difference and until we all started hearing about this today, Brown didn't seem to be doing much - and certainly not doing much - about the crucial 9-year discrepancy (a discrepancy that could be worth hundreds and hundreds of extra dollars).

The other question connected to this problem for Brown is that the LRS is somewhat of a secret. Only a few select state employees are eligible and the system, which voters typically think they dismantled with Proposition 140 back in 1990, still pays out...handsomely. (Read the story for more information.)

Currently, Whitman's campaign hasn't said or done much to capitalize on the problem for Brown. (Team Whitman, however, has taken Brown to task for the pensions his subordinates have raked in...)

Brown vs. Whitman...

Brown's team, however, doesn't seem to get how bad these latest revelations could be for "Governor Moonbeam," who has made a career out of appearing frugal.

In an email to Joseph, Brown spokesman Clifford wrote, "He concluded his brief email with this reminder: “And of course if you are worried about paying out Jerry’s pension, the best thing to do is elect him Governor so he doesn’t collect it.”

In these tough economic times, much due to the incompetence, willful negligence and criminality of public officials, that's probably not a message that will resonate with a large number of voters.