Liberal Brentwood Loves the Gov. Too

Brentwood, the exclusive West Los Angeles neighborhood that doubles as a money factory for Democratic candidates and causes, is having an identity crisis. Against its better instincts and molecular cell structure, the lefty enclave has fallen hard for a Republican.

Brentwood loves Arnold.

Gov. Schwarzenegger, thanks in part to the fact that he lives in Brentwood, is cleaning up on his way to what looks like an easy victory over Democratic challenger Phil Angelides. I ran the Brentwood ZIP Code -- 90049 -- for campaign donations to the two candidates as of Sept. 30, and here’s what I found:

Brentwood has given $256,924.22 to Angelides, a man whose Democratic credentials are impeccable.

And to Arnold? A man who helped get President Bush reelected, raised more money than God after vowing to get cash out of politics, and temporarily veered hard right last fall?

How about $411,600?

Angelides actually has far more contributions from Brentwood than does Schwarzenegger, but the governor has reeled in the bigger checks. Actor Rob Lowe and Staples Center boss Tim Leiweke each forked over the maximum individual donation this year: $22,300.

“We’ve been pretty much lifelong Democrats,” said Brentwood resident Frank Biondi Jr., who used to run Universal Studios and Viacom and considers himself a friend and admirer of Angelides, as well as his occasional tennis partner.

Next time they face each other across the net, it would be interesting to hear Biondi explain why he and his wife have given $12,500 to Schwarzenegger but just $4,500 to Angelides.

“I think he does not come across that well,” Biondi said of Angelides. “Particularly in his ads.”

As for Arnold, Biondi likes the governor’s spirit of bipartisanship, and he knows it firsthand. The governor appointed Biondi’s wife, Carol, to the state prison board.

“I’ve known him from the entertainment business and I think he’s a solid guy,” Frank Biondi said of Schwarzenegger. “We like Maria [Shriver] a lot and think they make a great team.... I think a lot of us feel, and with some degree of confidence, that he’s got an open mind on social issues that are important to Democrats. In some respects, it’s the best of both worlds.”

That notion doesn’t fly with Lee Oetzel, a retired psychologist I met strolling along San Vicente Boulevard Tuesday morning. She said she doesn’t trust the governor’s recent slide to the left and expects him to shuffle back to the right again as soon as he lights his victory cigar.

I told her that many of her fellow Brentwood Democrats maintained that Schwarzenegger wasn’t nearly as bad as other Republicans.

“Mussolini wasn’t as bad as Hitler,” Oetzel snapped.

I thought it was a great line, but Oetzel’s neighbors may not. Jeff Hall, publisher of the Brentwood News, told me he thinks lots of locals are proud to count the governor as a part of the community. And several merchants on San Vicente Boulevard backed him up.

“He’s family in here,” said the hostess at Toscana, where Schwarzenegger and his family often twirl spaghetti. “We like him.”

She was very protective of him, as well, wanting to make sure I wasn’t stalking the governor.

“We get lots of paparazzi,” she said.

The governor can also count on a vote from the manager of Le Beach Club, a Brentwood tanning salon. She even defended his honor when I questioned Arnold’s eternally perfect coloring.

“It’s natural,” she said of his tan. “He’s outdoorsy, isn’t he?”

Come on. The tan is the color of wood putty and it looks like his head was dipped in a bucket of Tang.

“I know his makeup artist,” said Susie Bender at the nearby Juan Juan Salon. She also said she knows which Beverly Hills hair salon he goes to for that Woody Woodpecker hair dye.

If you ask me, that place has a lot to answer for.

One guy who can’t believe the Westside has turned into a mini-red state is die-hard Dem Bob Rodino, a proud member of the Pacific Palisades Democratic Club. He thinks Arnold’s entertainment industry connections are making it next to impossible for Angelides to grab the very thing that might give him a fighting chance -- big bucks from Hollywood.

The tide might have turned, Rodino said, when Steven Spielberg -- as well as fellow moguls and Democrats Jeff Katzenberg and Haim Saban -- endorsed Schwarzenegger.

Rodino said a September fundraiser for Angelides in Brentwood featured Al Gore and drew a big crowd, with stars like Larry David and Ted Danson in the mix, but there was chatter about Arnold siphoning off cash that usually flows the other way.

“I think Angelides knows policy backwards and forwards,” Rodino said ruefully. “But with image -- star power -- Phil is not as good-looking as Schwarzenegger. Although in person, he’s much better-looking.”

Rodino suggested I get in touch with comedian Richard Lewis, who lives in a 323 area code rather than a 310, and doesn’t see things the same way as his Hollywood cronies.

“It’s crazy to me,” Lewis said of the Arnold Love Fest, communicating with me by e-mail. “I feel like I’m in Utah.”

If people vote based on who Jay Leno invites to appear on his late-night TV show, Lewis said, they’ll get what they deserve.

“Arnold ducked real debates and that’s just sad for everyone. It’s so political it smells ... Phil has worked long and hard for Californians and has an amazing family and a great vision for us, and I’ll take that over box office any day.”

If I were in the Angelides camp, I’d advise him to give Brentwood one more try. Sure, the neighborhood has turned its back on him, but there’s got to be a lot of guilt associated with that.

Come on, Phil. Stroll San Vicente Boulevard and let them get to know you a little better. You might even want to take a cue from a big supporter, and get this printed on a button:

“My name’s Phil Angelides, and I’m much better-looking in person.”

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Reach Lopez at steve.lopez@latimes.com. Read previous columns at latimes.com/lopez.