With only 5 days until the big election we continue to see attack ads increasing, particularly in the tight Attorney General race. The candidates in the race, Kamala Harris and Steve Cooley, are neck and neck. What happens between now and Election Day will determine the outcome.
Kamala Harris has a clear record of being tough on crime. As the District Attorney of San Francisco she doubled the trial conviction rate for gun felonies to 90 percent, sent 50 percent more serious and violent offenders to State Prison, put more than 220 gang members behind bars and convicted more than 1,200 domestic violence offenders. According to the San Francisco Superior Court, the office’s overall felony conviction rate is at its highest point in nearly 15 years.
Cooley has spent the campaign manipulating voters, trying to frame Harris as soft on crime. He has done this because he underestimates Californians, assuming that we have a very narrow view of the position and see the only role of the office as the state’s “top cop”.
That is exactly why I wasn’t surprised to read an article in the New York Times this week about the race, focusing on a negative ad against Harris that continues to manipulate voters. (http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2010/10/27/27greenwire-calif-ag-race-has-national-energy-implications-57619.html).
I was very surprised, however, to see who paid for that ad. The Republican Senate Leadership Committee, whose donors include Exxon Mobil, BP and Devon Energy, funded that attack ad. Why would big oil and energy companies get involved in the Attorney General race? And why would their message be about Harris and her record on crime?
First, these companies also assume that people view the position of Attorney General in a very narrow way. They think that if they want to reach voters they need to convince them that Harris is soft on crime. That explains the message.
Why these companies would get involved in the first place is explained when you look at the true role of the Attorney General. The next person who holds this position will play a key role in protecting the environment for California and the nation. They will have the responsibility of implementing California’s global warming law, holding companies and cities accountable for their environmental practices, and will play a role in forming and implementing the federal climate bill if it resurfaces.
And so it becomes very clear why Big Oil wants to keep Kamala Harris from becoming the next Attorney General in the state.
Harris is supported by nearly every environmental organization in the state, including CLCV and the Sierra Club. She has made a commitment to CEQA and AB 32 and she has adamantly opposed Proposition 23, which would suspend our global warming law indefinitely. Cooley, on the other hand, has made no commitment to protecting the environment and has said he would not be willing to fight for our global warming law.
Don’t let these attack ads fool you. Not only has Kamala Harris decreased crime in San Francisco, but the role of Attorney General is so about so much more. We must elect an environmental champion, someone who will use their power to protect our environment and continue to make this state a leader in environmental protection. Kamala Harris has made that commitment. Please vote for Kamala Harris on November 2, the only choice for California and the environment.
