Meg Whitman booed for refusing to stop attack ads against Brown

[kpete]

Source: McClatchy

Meg Whitman booed for refusing to stop attack ads against Brown

By David Siders | The Sacramento Bee

LONG BEACH – Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman was shaken Tuesday in a high-stakes appearance with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic rival Jerry Brown, drawing jeers from an audience of women when she refused to stop airing negative TV ads.

Prodded by "Today" show host Matt Lauer, Brown said he would stop airing attack ads if Whitman would, too. When she refused, a crowd gathered to attend an annual women's conference booed the candidate seeking to become California's first female governor. The event drew an estimated 14,000 people.

It was a further setback for the billionaire former eBay CEO, already trailing in polls one week before Election Day. Not only did Brown claim a piece of political high ground, however impractical, but because of Whitman's refusal, he is free to keep attacking on TV.

"That hurts," said Renee Van Vechten, an assistant professor of government at the University of Redlands. "I don't know how much it will hurt (Whitman), but it certainly won't help."




Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/10/27/102658/meg-whitman-booed-for-refusing.html#ixzz13ZFgo048

[AndrewP]

1. She's behind, so she's not going to stop the attack ads

[wtmusic]

2. The election is Jerry's to lose now

Her only hope is for a major gaffe from the Brown camp.

Jerry's too shrewd and experienced - won't happen.

[naaman fletcher]

3. The attack ad issue is totally bogus.

There is nothing wrong with attack ads as long as they are true, and the voters are hypocrites: there is a reason so much is spent on attack ads. They work.

That being said Whitman deserves to be booed anyway. But I guarantee you that if Whitman was ahead she would have agreed to stop them if Brown would, and he then would not.

It's a total farce of an issue.

[Posteritatis]

7. I can't really see a conservative refusing to use attack ads no matter what the numbers are. (nt)

[Raine]

10. Yes it's bogus, shows how poor of a leader she would make

that she handled it so poorly.

[CountAllVotes]

4. Whitless lies and lies and lies

and she won't stop even when asked politely to do so.

:puke:

:kick:

[Renew Deal]

5. There's a week left. She could have agreed to pull the ads

And then handled it politically.

[No Elephants]

14. Despite all the hype about her genius at ebay, she's not the brightest bulb.

[saltpoint]

16. Agree.

There's a serious disconnect in Meg.

It's almost as if she doesn't have anybody to manage her campaign. A lot of it has been her reacting to her own misfirings and poor judgment.

You'd think with all that cash she could hire some seasoned pros to run the campaign.

[Change Happens]

6. I really want her to spend another $150 million of her own money this week!!!

You go girl!

[katty]

8. Meg is just putting nails in her own coffin of entitlement attitude

[Brother Buzz]

9. The coffin is already in the ground

All that's left is filling the hole; shoveling will commence shortly.

[No Elephants]

15. Yet, she refuses to stop digging.

[saltpoint]

11. I think these last few weeks of the campaign have not

gone as well as Meg might have hoped, and here's hoping that next Tuesday evening goes even worse.

The bluer the better, and never more so than in California this cycle with two superb candidates -- Brown and Boxer vesus two abominable ones -- Whitman and Fiorina.

[No Elephants]

12. +!

[No Elephants]

13. Lauer, Ahnuld and Whitan--all Rethugs--and Brown. Gee what a fair lineup!

[depakid]

17. Yet a lineup that worked against the big money pretender.

As a Californian, one would think she'd have learned about the concept of over exposure.