CAMPAIGN TALK : A Weekly Window On The California Elections

Strange bread-fellows: At his $500-a-plate Century Plaza fund-raiser last week, Democratic state attorney general candidate Arlo Smith broke bread with some interesting dining mates. Smith, who supported the sweeping Proposition 115 anti-crime initiative approved by voters in June, was introduced by Robert D. Raven. Raven, a former president of the American Bar Assn., is the Raven of Raven vs. Deukmejian, a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Proposition 115. Also speaking was rock star Stephen Stills, whose sidekick, David Crosby, has had several scrapes with the law. “As I was walking in here,” joked Stills, “I ran into somebody who . . . had this look on his face that seemed to say, ‘What in the wide world of sports do you know about being attorney general?’ What came to my mind was that anybody who has had David Crosby for a partner . . . knows something about going to court.”

Those tricksters: The state Republican party’s unrelenting publicity machine went into overdrive this week, belittling at every turn the fact that Democratic candidate for governor Dianne Feinstein wrote words on her palm before her debate with Pete Wilson. The party even commandeered animated cartoon character Bart Simpson, a proud underachiever, to make their point. “Way too obvious, dude,” was the Republicans’ verdict, rendered in Bart-speak. Party officials did not seek permission to use the character. Said the character’s creator, Matt Groening: “This doesn’t surprise me. The Republicans think they own everything anyway. I guess they think they own Bart Simpson too.

To the victor . . . : Both the state Democratic and Republican parties have named their get-out-the-vote committees “Victory 90.” Republicans said their name is a sequel to Victory 88 while the Democratic Party switched to the more confident moniker for the committee that championed losing presidential nominee Michael Dukakis. Both sides said nobody has confused the two committees yet, but they pondered the question: If two contribution checks are made out to Victory 90, who gets the money?

RATING THE ISSUES

According to a recent Times Poll, men and women weigh the issues differently when deciding who will be California’s next governor. Listed below are the results of the poll in which 1,892 registered voters were asked how they planned to vote and which issues are important in deciding how they are going to vote for governor.

ISSUE MALE FEMALE TOTAL Education 29% 39% 35% Environment 24% 25% 24% Crime 24% 25% 25% Economy 24% 14% 18% Ethics in Govt. 21% 19% 20% Taxes 18% 14% 16% Abortion 15% 28% 22% State Budget 11% 5% 8% Quotas in Govt. Jobs 3% 6% 4%

NOTE: Totals add up to more than 100% due to multiple responses.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times Poll

Compiled by Times editorial researcher Michael Meyers

SOUNDING

From Republican Pete Wilson, commenting after Sunday’s televised gubernatorial debate about his efforts to portray himself as a candidate of change.

“In all the roles I’ve held, there’s been a consistency. It is clear I have brought change, sometimes unpopular change.”

From Democrat Dianne Feinstein, in contending the only change Wilson wants is a job change.

“I don’t think you can change your stripes. I don’t think you can become an outsider when you’re effectively an insider,” EXIT LINE

“I support the concept of clean air.”

--Marian Bergeson, Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, saying she voted against the California Clean Air Act because of the burden it placed on local government.