DE-SEN

Christine O'Donnell's Claremont Class: A Dentist, A Felon, A Libertarian Who Called Her 'Susie Homemaker'

Christina Bellantoni and Jon Terbush | October 14, 2010, 8:47AM

Delaware GOP Senate Candidate Christine O'Donnell

Christine O'Donnell (R-DE) believes her participation in an eight-day conservative think tank fellowship is the "number one" thing qualifying her for service in the U.S. Senate. O'Donnell says the "deep analysis of the constitution" taught at Claremont Institute's competitive Lincoln Fellowship program would help her make sound decisions in the Senate, but the teachings couldn't keep one of the other fellows from facing jail time.

Among the 10 fellows awarded the fellowship with O'Donnell in 2002 was Scott Bloch -- the "Geeks on Call" guy who headed the Office of Special Counsel under President George W. Bush who pled guilty this April to criminal contempt of Congress for withholding information from a House oversight committee.

Read more »

DE-SEN

Conservative On O'Donnell's Claremont Creds: 'It's Helped Me Tremendously' (VIDEO)

Christina Bellantoni | October 8, 2010, 4:39PM

Chuck DeVore and Christine O'Donnell

Conservative Republican Chuck DeVore told TPM today that he agrees with Christine O'Donnell that a week-long think tank program qualifies her for the United States Senate. He completed the Claremont Institute's competitive Lincoln Fellowship program two years after O'Donnell was a fellow, and he said in an interview its rigorous discussion of the Constitution is unrivaled in modern politics.

"It's helped me tremendously in my political life. What it gave me was the practical understanding of what makes the United States unique," DeVore, a member of the California State Assembly, told TPM.

DeVore said that being a Lincoln Fellow gave him "a deeper understanding" of whether laws he is voting for on the floor of the assembly are "really appropriate" or constitutional.

Read more »

DE-SEN

Christine O'Donnell Fibs, Says 'Passion Of The Christ' Was Nonprofit (VIDEO)

Christina Bellantoni | October 8, 2010, 10:42AM

Christine O'Donnell (R) Senate candidate in Delaware

Senate nominee Christine O'Donnell (R) yesterday told Delaware voters a big fib that she worked for a "nonprofit" when doing marketing for Mel Gibson's "Passion of the Christ," real-world experience that she said claims her best suited to represent the state in office.

"What I do is nonprofit work, I take on clients," O'Donnell said when asked about critiques she is unqualified in video you can watch below. "I have a very extensive client history from working with Icon Productions at the 'Passion of the Christ.'"

Yes, the same Icon Productions that shattered box office records with "Passion of the Christ" in 2004. It's not listed in the nonprofit disclosure databases, and Icon's own description doesn't include any mention of being a nonprofit.

Read more »

CA-SEN

Chuck DeVore To TPM: Jury Still Out On Whether Fiorina Will Be A 'Trainwreck'

Christina Bellantoni | June 18, 2010, 2:59PM

US Senate candidate Chuck DeVore (R-CA)

In the wake of a massive loss to Carly Fiorina, conservative Senate candidate Chuck DeVore is asking supporters to help him retire campaign debt, making no mention in fundraising emails of the former rival whom he once called a "long, slow trainwreck." Now that Fiorina (R-CA) is transitioning to the general election against Sen. Barbara Boxer (D), TPMDC caught up with DeVore to ask if he still foresees a trainwreck down the tracks.

"That's up to the candidate and the press. These things unfold," DeVore told TPMDC in an interview today. "Can she execute a sharply run campaign or not?" DeVore did say that from what he's seen in the days since Fiorina won the nomination, she's kept to conservative principles and "didn't wobble."

Read more »

CA-SEN

CA GOP Chooses Carly Fiorina To Challenge Barbara Boxer

Christina Bellantoni | June 8, 2010, 12:33AM

CA-SEN candidate Carly Fiorina (R)

Carly Fiorina has won the Republican nomination for the Senate race to challenge Sen. Barbara Boxer (D) this fall. Fiorina, the former Hewlett Packard executive, bested two opponents in one of the most hotly contested primaries this cycle.

The Associated Press and Fox News have called Fiorina as the winner, with 12 percent of precincts reporting. Fiorina had 58% while former Rep. Tom Campbell had 23% and tea party and conservative favorite Chuck DeVore had 17%. Like Meg Whitman, the former eBay chief executive who won the Republican nomination for governor tonight, Fiorina's only political experience has been serving as an adviser to Sen. John McCain's 2008 presidential bid.

The primary was marked by demon sheep and battles over immigration policy. Fiorina was boosted in recent weeks after former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin jumped in with an endorsement.

Read more »

2010 elections

Stop The Music! Artists Demand GOPers Quit Playing Their Hits

Eric Kleefeld | June 7, 2010, 9:58AM

(Clockwise from top left) Former President Ronald Reagan, Bruce Springsteen, Rep. John Hall (D-NY), Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)

If stereotypes held true, you would think that the Republicans would be the ones telling folks to turn that blasted music down. But this year -- and indeed in many past election cycles -- it's the GOP that has been attracting cease-and-desist letters for pilfering music against the artists' wishes. So let's take a look at some of the more notable GOP music fails from this cycle, and cycles past.

Senate candidate Chuck DeVore (R-CA) got burned for using for using altered-lyric version of Don Henley's "The Boys of Summer" and "All She Wants To Do Is Dance" for his campaign's Web ads. David Byrne is suing Gov. Charlie Crist (I-FL) for using "Road To Nowhere" in a Web ad during his previous Republican Senate primary fight, and of course, as we reported yesterday, Rush cut to the chase and told Senate nominee Rand Paul (R-KY) to stop playing "Tom Sawyer" and "The Spirit of Radio."

Read more »

CA-SEN

Last Shot: Candidates Lay Out Their Closing Arguments In CA-SEN

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 2, 2010, 5:29PM

Republican candidates for CA Senate Chuck Devore, Carly Fiorina and Tom Campbell

Carly Fiorina has money to burn. Former Rep. Tom Campbell has poll numbers. Assemblyman Chuck DeVore has neither, but he's got heart. So goes the closing arguments of the hard-fought California Republican Senate primary. Will public polls showing it's now Fiorina's race to lose, the two men who once seemed destined to keep Fiorina out of Washington are now scrambling to make in impact in the final days before the June 8 primary.

Campbell, who was once the frontrunner, has taken a spectacular fall from grace. Penniless, the man who won his party's Senate nomination ten years ago now can't afford TV ads in the primary's final days. DeVore, a Jim DeMint-backed conservative who started the race with visions of becoming the Marco Rubio to Fiorina's Charlie Crist, told me today about "keeping the fire going" among his remaining volunteers.

For her part, Fiorina has already left the primary behind. Up by double digits in the latest polls, she's turned her attention -- and considerable fortune -- to attacking Sen. Barbara Boxer. Her Republican opponents say that's the problem.

Read more »

CA-SEN

All He Wants To Do Is Sue: Judge Rules Chuck DeVore Unlawfully Adapted Don Henley Songs (VIDEO)

Jillian Rayfield | June 2, 2010, 4:49PM

Talk about your "Dirty Laundry"...

A California judge ruled yesterday that Chuck DeVore, a Republican candidate for California Senate, unlawfully adapted two Don Henley songs for use in campaign ads.

Read more »

CA-SEN

Poll: Fiorina Leads Campbell In CA-SEN Republican Primary

Eric Kleefeld | May 31, 2010, 9:59AM

CA-SEN candidate Carly Fiorina (R)

The new poll of California by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner (D) shows former Hewlett Packard Fiorina CEO with a strong lead in next Tuesday's Republican primary for Senate -- while it's also possible her main primary opponent, former Rep. Tom Campbell, could be the stronger GOPer for the general election against Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer.

The numbers for the primary: Fiorina 38%, Campbell 23%, and state Rep. Chuck DeVore 16%. The survey of likely GOP primary voters has a ±4.5% margin of error. The TPM Poll Average gives Fiorina 34.5% Campbell 24.8%, and DeVore 15.7%.

However, it should be noted that Campbell is the only one of the three GOPers who leads Boxer in this poll. Boxer leads Fiorina by 44%-38%, Campbell leads Boxer by 45%-38%, and Boxer leads DeVore by 46%-36%. Each match-up was tested among a separate third-sample of registered voters, with a ±4.5% margin of error each. The TPM Poll Average has Boxer leading Fiorina 45.3%-39.6%, Boxer leading Campbell 43.8%-41.1%, and Boxer leading DeVore 46.3%-38.9%

CA-SEN

Poll: Boxer Unpopular But Still Ahead Of Republicans

Eric Kleefeld | May 26, 2010, 2:17PM

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA)

The new survey of California from Public Policy Polling (D) gives Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer a very low approval rating -- but she's still narrowly ahead of her Republican challengers.

Boxer's approval rating is only 37%, with disapproval of 46%. however, she leads former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina by 45%-42%, leads former Rep. Tom Campbell by 47%-40%, and is ahead of state Rep. Chuck DeVore by 46%-40%. The survey of registered voters has a ±3.2% margin of error. The TPM Poll Average gives Boxer a lead of 45.6%-40.0% over Fiorina, with similar leads over Campbell and DeVore.

"It definitely looks like this will be Barbara Boxer's toughest fight for reelection to date," writes PPP president Dean Debnam. "Once again though she is helped by the fact that even if she's not too popular, her opposition isn't either."

CA-SEN

Campbell And DeVore Pounce On Fiorina At California Debate

Eric Kleefeld | May 25, 2010, 6:36PM

Republican candidates for CA Senate Chuck Devore, Carly Fiorina and Tom Campbell

The Republican candidates for Senate in California just debated on the local KFI AM talk radio station -- with ex-Congressman Tom Campbell and state Rep. Chuck DeVore turning their fire on the establishment frontrunner in the race, former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina.

While sparks flew at the debate, though, it's not immediately clear whether any candidates scored knockout blow that could sufficiently damage Fiorina in the home stretch of the campaign, or for that matter whether Fiorina fully sealed the deal. The TPM Poll Average gives Fiorina a sudden lead with 29.1%, Campbell 27.0%, and DeVore 15.9% -- in the wake of some very strong poll results for Fiorina -- after Campbell had previously led in polling for this primary all year.

During a period when the candidates were given the opportunity to question each other, DeVore grilled Fiorina on her lack of a voting record -- not simply as someone who has not been an elected official, but as a voter who missed many elections. It was noted that in 2000, she advocated for the failed Proposition 26, which would have relaxed an anti-tax statute that has been in effect since the 1970s. As if that wasn't bad enough for GOP orthodoxy, it was then added that she did not actually vote in the election itself.

Read more »

CA-SEN

Money And TV Ads Boost Fiorina Ahead Of Rivals In California Senate Primary

Eric Kleefeld | May 25, 2010, 3:54PM

CA-SEN candidate Carly Fiorina (R)

How is it that former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, the GOP's establishment-backed candidate for Senate in California, has quickly shot into the lead in the Republican primary? After having been down by double-digits against former Rep. Tom Campbell, she's now ahead by an even bigger double-digit margin, according to a pair of recent polls. The answer appears to be mainly money and a well-timed television ad campaign going into the home stretch of the June 8 primary -- along with a big push by conservatives against Campbell.

As recently as last week, a Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll gave Campbell a lead of 37%-22% over Fiorina in the GOP primary. But now, SurveyUSA gives Fiorina an even bigger lead of 46%-23%, and Public Policy Polling (D) similarly has her ahead of Campbell by 41%-21%. (The other candidate, Tea Party-backed state Rep. Chuck DeVore, has consistently polled in third.) The TPM Poll Average gives Fiorina a sudden lead with 29.1%, Campbell 27.0%, and DeVore 15.9%, after Campbell had led in polling for this primary all year.

Read more »

CA-SEN

Another Poll Shows Fiorina Jumping To Front Of CA-SEN Republican Primary

Eric Kleefeld | May 25, 2010, 1:51PM

Republican candidates for CA Senate Chuck Devore, Carly Fiorina and Tom Campbell

Another new survey of California, this time from Public Policy Polling (D), shows former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina suddenly shooting to the top of the Republican primary for Senate.

The numbers: Fiorina 41%, former Rep. Tom Campbell 21%, and state Rep. Chuck DeVore 16%. The survey of likely GOP primary voters has a ±4.8% margin of error. The TPM Poll Average gives Fiorina a sudden lead with 29.1%, Campbell 27.0%, and DeVore 15.9%, after Campbell had led in polling for this primary all year.

PPP also has former eBay CEO Meg Whitman posting a very strong lead in the GOP gubernatorial primary over state Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner: Whitman 51%, Poizner 26%. The TPM Poll Average gives Whitman a lead of 42.8%-31.0%.

Read more »

CA-SEN

Poll: Fiorina, Whitman Take Big Leads In California GOP Primaries

Eric Kleefeld | May 24, 2010, 7:09PM

CA-SEN candidate Carly Fiorina (R)

The new SurveyUSA poll of California finds that Carly Fiorina has shot to the top of the Republican primary for Senate, and Meg Whitman is maintaining a huge lead in the gubernatorial primary, as well.

The numbers for the Senate race: Fiorina 46%, former Rep. Tom Campbell 23%, and Chuck DeVore 14%. The survey of likely GOP primary voters has a ±4% margin of error. In the last SurveyUSA poll from just two weeks ago, Campbell led with 35%, followed by Fiorina with 24% and DeVore at 15%.

The numbers for the gubernatorial race: Whitman 54%, state Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner 27%. The survey of likely GOP primary voters has a ±4% margin of error. Two weeks ago, Whitman was ahead in SurveyUSA polling by the statistically insignificant margin of 39%-37%.

CA-SEN

Chuck DeVore: 'Jack Bauer' Would Support Me (VIDEO)

Eric Kleefeld | May 24, 2010, 6:08PM

California US Senate candidate Chuck Devore (R) - Jack Bauer, a fictional character portrayed by Kiefer Sutherland

Chuck DeVore, a California state legislator and Tea Party-backed candidate for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, has a new Web video claiming that "Jack Bauer," the protagonist of the action-adventure show 24, would support him for Senate.

"Ask yourself this question, Jack Bauer fans: Which person would Jack want as his U.S. Senator?" the announcer says. "Barbara Boxer, a Guantanamo-closing, tax-raising, big-government growing ultra-liberal who reads Miranda rights to foreign terrorists? Or Chuck DeVore, a U.S. Army Reserve intelligence officer, who likes Guantanamo Bay as it is, thinks foreign terrorists should have an interrogator, not a lawyer, and supports lower taxes and smaller government?"

Of course, it should be noted that "Jack Bauer" is a fictional character portrayed by the actor Kiefer Sutherland. In real life, Sutherland is a Canadian democratic socialist whose grandfather, the late Saskatchewan Premier Tommy Douglas, was the founder of his country's single-payer health care system. The real-life Kiefer Sutherland remains a staunch supporter of his grandfather's left-wing New Democratic Party, and is a vocal advocate for single-payer health care.

Read more »

CA-SEN

Poll: Tom Campbell Widens Lead In CA-SEN Republican Primary

Eric Kleefeld | May 21, 2010, 1:12PM

Republican candidates for CA Senate Chuck Devore, Carly Fiorina and Tom Campbell

The new Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll of the California Senate race shows that former Rep. Tom Campbell, a Republican who is widely opposed by the national right wing, is continuing to run away with the GOP primary for Senate.

The numbers: Campbell 37%, former Hewlett Packard CEO and establishment favorite Carly Fiorina 22%, and Tea Party favorite state Rep. Chuck DeVore 14%. Back in March, Campbell had 33%, Fiorina 24%, and DeVore 7%. The survey of likely primary voters has a ±5% margin of error. The TPM Poll Average has Campbell 30.1%, Fiorina 22.7%, and DeVore 15.4%.

The primary will be held in just two and a half weeks, on June 8.

Read more »

CA-SEN

Has DeVore Stretched The Truth About Being 'Shot At' In Lebanon?

Rachel Slajda | May 21, 2010, 9:29AM

State Assemblyman Chuck DeVore (R-CA)

Chuck DeVore, the conservative candidate in California's U.S. Senate election, has apparently embellished an incident in which he says he was "shot at in Lebanon."

As the L.A. Times reports today, part of DeVore's personal mythology is that he was "shot at in Lebanon." He said it in a recent debate, in interviews, in a Facebook post about whether the Council for American-Islamic Relations is really a "terror-loving group."

Read more »

CA-SEN

Poll: Barbara Boxer In Tight Race In California

Eric Kleefeld | March 18, 2010, 10:28AM

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA)

The new Field Poll finds Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) in a tough race this year, with the results within the margin of error against her three Republican challengers.

Former Rep. Tom Campbell has a statistically insignificant edge of 44%-43% over Boxer, within the ±3.7% margin of error. Boxer has a similarly narrow 45%-44% advantage over former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, and Boxer leads state Rep. Chuck DeVore by 45%-41%. Back in January, Boxer led Campbell by 48%-38%, led Fiorina by 50%-35%, and led DeVore by 51%-34%.

Read more »

CA-SEN

DeVore Campaign Gimmick: 'Demon Sheep Hunting Spree'

Eric Kleefeld | March 1, 2010, 3:54PM

A still from Fiorina's "FCINO" web video.

California state Rep. Chuck DeVore, a candidate for the Republican nomination for Senate, has a fun online activity going on today: Asking visitors to go a special Web site and hunt the demon sheep!

The site is a takeoff on an infamous Web video that was put out a month ago by the campaign of his Republican rival Carly Fiorina, who was attacking the third candidate in the race, former Rep. Tom Campbell, as a "fiscal conservative in name only." The video depicted Campbell as some sort of monstrous creature with glowing red eyes -- perhaps a wolf, perhaps a demon -- in sheep's clothing.

Read more »

Tom Campbell

Poll: Tom Campbell Leads Republican Senate Primary In California; GOPers All Trail Boxer

Eric Kleefeld | January 21, 2010, 10:11AM

Former Rep. Tom Campbell (R-CA)

Former Rep. Tom Campbell (R-CA), who recently switched from the gubernatorial race to instead run for Senate against incumbent Democrat Barbara Boxer, has now become the leader in the GOP Senate primary, according to the new Field Poll. The big loser for now is state Rep. Chuck DeVore, whose support has collapsed in the process.

The numbers: Campbell 30%, former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina 25%, and DeVore 6%, with 39% undecided. Back in October, Fiorina had 21% and DeVore 20%, before Campbell entered the race. All three Republicans trail Boxer in the general election matches. Boxer leads Campbell by 48%-38%, leads Fiorina by 50%-35%, and leads DeVore by 51%-34%.

Campbell, a socially liberal and economically libertarian Republican, previously served in Congress from 1989-1993, then narrowly lost the Republican primary for Senate to run against Barbara Boxer in an open-seat race. He returned to Congress in a 1995 special election, then became the Republican nominee for Senate in 2000 against Dianne Feinstein, losing in a landslide.

Read more »

Carly Fiorina

Fiorina: I Would Have Voted To Confirm Sonia Sotomayor To The Supreme Court

Eric Kleefeld | November 23, 2009, 10:52AM

Former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina (R-CA)

Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, a candidate for the Republican nomination to run against Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), may have just gotten herself in trouble with the right -- saying that she probably would have voted to confirm Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court.

Dave Weigel reports:

At a breakfast with reporters this morning, California Senate candidate Carly Fiorina responded to a question about whether she would filibuster Obama nominees by saying that "elections have consequences," but that she'd look at the nominees' qualifications.

"I did not closely follow the Sonia Sotomayor nomination," said Fiorina. "I was battling breast cancer. But I probably would have voted for Sotomayor. She seemed qualified."

Look for state Rep. Chuck DeVore, Fiorina's opponent in the Republican primary, to use this against her in his efforts to be the hard-line conservative option.

Chuck DeVore

GOP Senate Candidate DeVore Seeks To Defuse Birtherism Story

Eric Kleefeld | November 16, 2009, 2:45PM

CA-SEN candidate Chuck DeVore (R)

Chuck DeVore, a California state Assemblyman running for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in California, is working to defuse comments that seemingly made him out to be a birther-sympathizer.

"The president is doing himself no favors by spending millions of dollars to block the release of documents surrounding his birth certificate," DeVore said to Dave Weigel. "As long as the president keeps fighting tooth and nail to prevent the release of such things, people are going to remain skeptical."

In an interview just now, DeVore's communications director Josh Trevino told TPM that key statements the candidate made were omitted from the published report. "Assemblyman DeVore believes that Barack Obama is the rightful, legitimate and constitutional President of the United States," said Trevino. "He said 10 years ago that the move to impeach Bill Clinton was a distraction from countering his liberal policies, and he believes that the movement now to question Barack Obama's birth is a similar distraction."

Weigel has responded to inquiries about this by posting a full transcription of DeVore's answer to his question -- and maintains that DeVore did not fully repudiate the birthers: "I was a little surprised that DeVore didn't knock this down harder; it seems to be stinging him today."

Read more »

CA-SEN

Poll: Fiorina And DeVore Tied In California

Eric Kleefeld | November 9, 2009, 12:28PM

CA-SEN Republican candidates Chuck DeVore and Carly Fiorina

A new Los Angeles Times poll finds a tie in the California Republican Senate primary, with former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina and state Rep. Chuck DeVore at 27% each, for the right to go up against Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer.

A whopping 40% of Republican primary voters were undecided, plus 4% who refused to answer and 2% who said they preferred another candidate. The take-away from this poll is that both candidates have a long way to go in building up their respective name identifications.

Expect both candidates to tout the big-name conservatives who are supporting them. DeVore is running an antiestablishment campaign, and has the endorsement of Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC). Fiorina has the backing of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) -- for whom Fiorina had been a campaign surrogate during the 2008 presidential election - as well as the conservative hero Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK). (The NRSC itself is not backing Fiorina, but the endorsement of the top leaders in the caucus is a pretty strong statement.)

CA-SEN

Senate Conservatives Fund Picks Sides In Ca. As DeMint Backs DeVore

Christina Bellantoni | November 4, 2009, 12:53PM

CA-SEN Republican candidates Chuck DeVore and Carly Fiorina

A California Republican aiming to unseat Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) next year has gotten a boost from conservative Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC).

DeMint announced last night his Senate Conservatives Fund was endorsing state Assemblyman Chuck DeVore over former Hewlett Packard chief Carly Fiorina. The group supports only "rock solid" conservatives, organizers told supporters on a conference call last night as election results came in.

DeVore "will work with me to shake things up," DeMint said, and "vote the right way ...
stand up in our conference meetings and say, 'Folks this is wrong let's turn this thing around.'"

DeMint's fund already has endorsed Republican senate candidates Marco Rubio in Florida and Pat Toomey in Pennsylvania.

Read more »