Conan gains another endorsement for governor

Paul Clinton

Assemblyman John Campbell is the latest locally elected politico to

toss his endorsement for the state’s top elected post to actor Arnold

Schwarzenegger.

Campbell follows Reps. Dana Rohrabacher and Chris Cox, as well as

state Sen. Ross Johnson, in lending his support to the “Governator.”

President Bush hasn’t endorsed any candidates, but has said

Schwarzenegger would make an effective governor.

“I actually spent quite a bit of time talking to members of Mr.

Schwarzenegger’s team and Arnold himself,” Campbell said. “I became

completely comfortable with him as a man and with his ability to lead

this state out of its current doldrums and back to prosperity.”

On Wednesday, the Terminator appointed Campbell as one of three

economic advisors. Campbell joins billionaire investor Warren Buffet

and former secretary of State George Shultz.

In the almost two weeks since announcing his candidacy,

Schwarzenegger has said little about how he would address the state’s

$38-billion budget deficit. He held an economic summit in Los Angeles

on Wednesday to air his views.

Campbell heard one comment from the Running Man that held a nugget

of truth for him.

“He said, ‘You shouldn’t spend more than you bring in,’” Campbell

said. “I am very comfortable knowing that Arnold will do the right

thing for this state.”

Campbell deemed Schwarzenegger “a bright man” and said he’s

impressed with the actor’s ability to succeed in three arenas in life

-- sports, entertainment and business -- as he looks toward a fourth

in politics.

The election to recall Gov. Gray Davis is set for Oct. 7.

Office space an easy find for Ueberroth

Less that a week after announcing his campaign for governor,

Emerald Bay resident Peter Ueberroth set up his campaign headquarters

in Costa Mesa -- oddly enough, at the same location used by Issa in

his brief flirtation with a run.

Ueberroth secured Issa’s former offices in Costa Mesa on Aug. 14,

having formally thrown his hat in the ring on Aug. 8.

Ueberroth has also hired many from Issa’s campaign team, including

top strategist Scott Taylor.

Tom Wilson endorses candidate for seat

In other endorsement news, Tom Wilson, Orange County chairman and

Newport Coast supervisor, has endorsed Van Tran for the 68th Assembly

District seat.

Tran, a Garden Grove councilman, is vying with council colleague

Mark Leyes for the seat. The winner would replace Assemblyman Ken

Maddox, who is termed out and running for the state Senate against

John Campbell.

Newport-Mesa’s supervisor, Jim Silva, has also endorsed Tran.

Consultant keeps busy on another front

Campaign consultant Chris Wysocki popped up in the news this week

and it wasn’t in connection to any local candidates.

Local politicos know Wysocki as the Sacramento campaign consultant

for John Campbell, 70th Assembly District candidate Cristi Cristich

and others.

However, Wysocki is also the campaign spokesman for Rescue

California, Recall Gray Davis. The group has led the effort to raise

funds and gather the signatures needed to remove Davis.

The group counts some 25,000 donors, including Rep. Darrel Issa

(R-Vista), who gave $1.7 million, and John Campbell, who gave

$10,000.

More than $2.8 million was raised overall, with $2.4 million spent

to pay for the professional signature gatherers.

Zippi works on expanding her reach

A local Assembly candidate is kicking her fund-raising efforts up

a notch by scheduling two events within the week.

Marianne Zippi, who is running for the GOP nomination in the 70th

District, has scheduled private fund-raisers in Orange and Newport

Beach.

Zippi will hold events on Sunday in Orange and Tuesday in Newport

Beach in her bid against Cristich, Chuck DeVore and Don Wagner

leading up to the March primary. Zippi is most noted for her run at

the Newport Beach City Council in 2002, a race she lost to Councilman

Tod Ridgeway.

Zippi says the Orange event is proof that she’s more that just a

one-town gal. She has held several events in Newport Beach so far.

“You can’t be a Newport Beach candidate in a race that covers

seven cities,” Zippi said. “But solidifying the base was the first

order of business.”

Sunday’s event is set to take place from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the

home of Priscilla Yale. For more information, call (714) 368-0997.

Tuesday’s event is set for 6 to 8 p.m. at the home of Larry and

Yvette Mandell at One Ford Road. For more information, call Anita

Ferguson at (949) 644-7425.

* POLITICAL LANDSCAPE appears Thursdays. If you have political

tidbits for the column, please e-mail [email protected].