More Candidates Should Try the Lost Art of Political Leadership

Politicians have become gutless panderers to the public’s lowest common dominator, afraid to lead. Blame mainly their hired-gun consultants’ slavish addiction to polling and focus groups.

That summarizes a recently published book by Time magazine columnist Joe Klein, a great summer read for political junkies. It’s titled “Politics Lost -- How American Democracy Was Trivialized by People Who Think You’re Stupid.”

The book focuses on presidential races, but it’s equally apropos of gubernatorial politics in California.

Klein writes: “I am fed up with the insulting welter of sterilized speechifying, insipid photo ops, and idiotic advertising that passes for public discourse these days. I believe that American politics has become overly cautious, cynical, mechanistic, and bland; and I fear that the inanity and ugliness of postmodern public life has caused many Americans to lose the habits of citizenship.”

But “public lassitude,” he continues, is simply not an option today because “big changes are afoot” -- economic, demographic, “the probability of a long-term, slow-burning war against Islamist extremism. And big decisions have to be made about the nation’s future.”

Ditto California’s. We’re growing more diverse by the day -- already at 37 million people and heading for 50 million in 25 years. What services will we need? Who will pay and how much?

Fewer and fewer voters are deciding. The turnout of registered voters for the June 6 primary was only 33.4% at last count. It could wind up a record low, even more dismal than the 2002 primary turnout of 34.6%.

Klein’s book rips Democratic presidential candidates John Kerry and Al Gore, in particular, for fearing to speak from the heart and, consequently, leaving many voters cold.

Gore’s consultants shut him up about global warming -- his passion -- because, they argued, the issue wouldn’t win him one extra electoral vote. But it wasn’t the issue that mattered so much, Klein notes, as some demonstration of fervor and leadership.

The author describes Kerry’s TV commercials that featured the old Democratic standbys -- healthcare, education, jobs -- as “quite dreadful,” and quotes CNN’s Jeff Greenfield calling them “the sort of ads that Bulworth was watching when he decided to commit suicide.” The reference was to the Warren Beatty political comedy about a senator who chose to end his life after viewing his reelection ads.

Kerry seemed wobbly on the issues and to stand for little.

Ronald Reagan was a sharp contrast, Klein points out: “The strength and clarity of his beliefs was the key to his success.... One senses that he would have campaigned on what he believed whether the American people were ready for his revolution or not.”

So I’m reading through all this and thinking about California elections past and present.

In 1994, Democratic Treasurer Kathleen Brown, a former L.A. school board member, could have -- should have -- been the first gubernatorial candidate to make education her big issue. But it didn’t poll that well, her strategists later explained, and people who cared a lot about schools already were on her side. Like Gore, she missed a chance to show leadership.

Democrat Gray Davis campaigned on education in 1998 and won -- against a Republican who, to be honest, represented the flip side of Klein’s argument. Voters knew where Atty. Gen. Dan Lungren stood all too well; it was far to the right of where they found acceptable.

The 2002 gubernatorial race was dastardly and depressing. Gov. Davis was too lacking in self-confidence to promote himself so he splattered mud all over his Republican opponent, Bill Simon, who -- even more than Davis -- didn’t seem to have a strong belief in anything regarding public policy. Voters were so disgusted that they recalled Davis the next year.

Controller Steve Westly, in his losing bid for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in the spring, ultimately came across as a Davis-Simon composite.

It’s still too early to tell for sure, but the current gubernatorial candidates don’t seem to suffer from being weak-kneed.

Treasurer Phil Angelides does stand up for things, presumably for things that he believes. “It’s one of his as yet unrecognized strengths,” says Democratic consultant Darry Sragow, who’s not involved in the campaign.

But unfortunately for Angelides’ election chances, most voters, I suspect, think he stands mostly for raising taxes. His tough task will be to articulate what he wants to raise the taxes for, emphasizing they’d only be on corporations and the wealthy. He needs to articulate a lucid message about investing in the future and a clear vision of where he’d take his native state.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s problem isn’t lack of guts. It’s in convincing voters -- and perhaps himself -- who he really is.

First, there was the entertaining celebrity charmer who possessed the unprecedented political capital to accomplish anything. Those days are gone forever. Then there was the blundering “kick their butts” bully. Now there’s the calm, substantive, bipartisan governor most people had hoped for. But can we trust him to stay that way?

For any candidate to be convincing, as Klein writes, he can’t always be scripted. There must be shining moments of spontaneity. And consistent beliefs.

“Authenticity has emerged as the most important quality people are looking for in a leader,” says veteran TV ad-maker Bill Carrick, who recently signed on with Angelides.

Hopefully this will be a thoughtful contest for governor between two authentic statesmen who stand up boldly outside of the gutter, debating serious ideas and exciting voters. But maybe that’s just a midsummer dream.

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George Skelton writes Monday and Thursday. Reach him at george.skelton@latimes.com.