It Makes a Difference to the Sheep

THE GREAT CALIFORNIA DEBATE. Listened to a part of the debate of major candidates (minus Arnold) to replace Gray Davis in California on the way home to work. You can tell how far outside the beltway I live because the C-SPAN radio disappears into static about ten minutes before I get home. But before then, I heard some of the Golden State’s best and brightest demonstrate that politicians are all the same.

CRUZ BUSTAMANTE has by far the best sounding name in the race and, it happens, the best sounding voice. Deep and melodious, he could give Peter Coyote a run for his money doing voice-overs should his political career falter. He sounded typically political when asked if there were any state services or entitlements he would deny to illegal immigrants. Was asked this question twice and essentially refused to answer it.

PETER UBERROTH sounded like a doddering old man. I did like the moment when he told the self-styled poet that she had received her “fair share” in the past but that the days of free handouts from Sacramento are over—a rare moment of candor.

TOM MCCLINTOCK was the most specific and precise with his answers but, like all the others, was maddeningly vague on just how those billions of wasted fraud dollars can be recouped. Easy to talk about hard to do.

ARIANNA HUFFINGTON: why is she in this race? UPDATE: At least her website has entertaining animations.

PETER CAMEJO (Green): tried to present himself as the Naderite independent outsider. Came off sounding a bit unhinged.

All in all, I don’t know that many potential voters who listened to this farce would come away with more useful information about the candidates. What they might get, though, are impressions, and these are, apparently, what our democracy really works with.