Political Scorecard

21 days to go before Californians go to the polls

THE GOVERNOR’S RACE

* What Happened Monday: Republican Gov. Pete Wilson met with Asian American supporters in Westminster after visiting Little Saigon. Democrat Kathleen Brown made appearances in San Francisco and San Diego to discuss her plan to cut $5 billion in government waste and spending. She was joined by Ted Gaebler, author of “Reinventing Government,” who would lead the effort if she is elected, she said.

* What’s Ahead: Brown planned to discuss cutting benefits and privileges for government officials during an appearance in Los Angeles and will campaign in the Central Valley. Wilson joins Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan to discuss job creation with small business owners in Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley, and visits a business in Orange County.

THE SENATE RACE

* What Happened Monday: Both candidates reported their campaign spending for the period ending Sept. 30. The total came to more than $27 million, a record for a U.S. Senate contest. Sen. Dianne Feinstein discussed gun-free schools at a high school in Reseda and benefits of the new federal crime legislation in Pasadena. Rep. Mike Huffington and Sens. Phil Gramm of Texas and John McCain of Arizona addressed a veterans rally in San Diego.

* What’s Ahead: Feinstein was scheduled for a morning television interview and planned to join Los Angeles County Sheriff Sherman Block for a tour of the sheriff’s training bureau in Whittier. Huffington launches a four-day bus tour of California with a rally in Pasadena.

NOTABLE QUOTE

“In the final analysis, and in the absence of much definitive knowledge about Michael Huffington the man, we must conclude that he is a candidate for the U.S. Senate principally because he has the money to finance an expensive campaign.”

--Santa Barbara News-Press, in editorial endorsing Feinstein in the Senate race

A LIGHTER NOTE

So what does it really take to campaign for office in California? A good sandwich, claim the makers of Ziploc sandwich bags and their public relations firm, which announced that Nov. 2 is Ziploc National Sandwich Day. The press release proclaims the discovery of “the real story on what makes California’s candidates tick--their sandwich values.” Wilson’s favorite sandwich was reported to be “lean and mean,” ordered during his budget battles: turkey on whole wheat bread, no mayonnaise. Brown’s was “California vegetarian:” Six-grain whole wheat bread, avocado, Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato and alfalfa sprouts.