Republican Gubernatorial Primary Fight Slogs On Through Winter

If you had almost forgotten that there will be a Republican gubernatorial primary in June, you can't really be blamed. All was quiet on the GOP front over the holidays.

But the Steve Poizner for Governor campaign was waiting behind the festive holiday decoration, poised to strike, if their recent media efforts are any indication.

Offering up details to his fundraising, Poizner said he has $17.5 million of the $19 million he gave himself left to spend. The sum may be a subtle nod to how much Former eBay CEO Meg Whitman is spending on radio advertising early in the race. Whitman's campaign has not disclosed how much of her own $19 million campaign donation remains.

Poizner also made a "hilarious" appearance on CNBC to tout the details of his plans to overhaul state finances.

Besides his earlier promise of across-the-board tax cuts, Poizner wants to reduce spending by getting people off of CalWORKS, the state's welfare program.

He also proposes to freeze state hiring, spending and borrowing, meaning no new bonds, no new jobs, and definitely no new programs for the unemployed.

Magically enough, reducing taxes will actually increase state revenue according to Poizner, as the tax base will expand -- similar to the more generic anti-tax argument in the Whitman campaign's latest infomercial on YouTube where friendly businessmen threaten to leave the state if their demands aren't met.

And just think of all the money you'll take home from the job you don't have when all these tax cuts go through!

Niether Whitman or Poizner's appeals sounded good to longtime Republican campaign cash machine, mall developer Rick Caruso, who's backing Attorney General Jerry Brown, telling Democratic Party organ The Huffington Post Brown "has been on the ground and in the weeds."

Jackson West wonders if an Amber Alert should be sent out to find Tom Campbell.