Fiorina struggles to convince California conservatives she's one of them [Updated]

Former HP executive Carly Fiorina is trying to convince conservative California voters that she is one of them.

As she seeks the Republic nomination for U.S. Senate, Fiorina is feeling compelled to detail her views on abortion and same-sex marriage as she tries to appeal to the right, according to Times political writer Seema Mehta. [Corrected at 3:53 p.m.: A previous version of this post incorrectly stated that Fiorina was a candidate for governor.]

Part of the reason is that, unlike her primary opponents, Assemblyman Chuck DeVore of Irvine and former U.S. Rep. Tom Campbell, Fiorina is an unknown political quantity. She has never sought election to public office before now, so she doesn't have a paper trail of legislation, statements and votes, Mehta reports from the campaign trial.

Her prepared speeches and written statements on taxes, federal spending and the deficit are consistently conservative. But when asked about non-fiscal issues, she sometimes veers into more moderate territory. She said last week that she supported President Obama's effort to repeal "don't ask, don't tell," the policy excluding openly gay individuals from military service.

The week before that, when asked for an assessment of the president's first year in office, she said that although she disagreed with him on the economy and the decision to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, "I agree with many of the things he's done. ... I think that he is doing everything he can to keep the nation safe and I applaud him for that." That same week, a recording emerged of Fiorina praising the Rev. Jesse Jackson and saying that the nation will not be a "truly representative democracy" until women make up half or more of elected officials. Conservative pundits pounced, and people are still angry.

Read the full story here.

Get the latest on the campaign at California Politics, The Times' new blog.

Photo: Carly Fiorina and John McCain. Credit: Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Linda]

This woman was a disaster as CEO of HP, where the Board had the sense to ask her to leave before she'd completely destroyed the company.

[Norman Silver]

If the voters would take the time to compare Fiorina to Bioxer that would certainly influence them to give Fiorina the vote. Getting Boxer out of office should be our first prioroty.

[Ted]

Fiorina is the worst thing that could possibly happen to California. While at HP the value of their stock dropped by half. She is all for sending jobs overseas in order to maximize profits for herself or her corporation. She once said, "There is no job that is America's God-given right anymore." She is the worst type of capitalist and would be awful for California. This state needs someone to look out for our interests not their own. If she could lose half of HP's value through her poor management, imagine what she might do to our already foundering economy. I think I'll take my chances with Brown....

[WLA]

Didn't she get caught spying on board members at HP?

[lalaland skeptic]

Better the devil you know--than the devil you don't!!!Unbelievable can't the Republicans come up w/anyone in their party ranks who is more qualified, likeable, deserving . . . any one quality will suffice!!!!

[lalaland skeptic]

Better the devil you know--than the devil you don't!!!Unbelievable can't the Republicans come up w/anyone in their party ranks who is more qualified, likeable, deserving . . . any one quality will suffice!!!!

[Tom]

Ah, I hate to tell the brainless imbeciles at the Los Angeles Times, but Fiorina is running for the U.S. Senate, NOT for California governor.

It cracks me up: These same barely-educated cretins ("journalists") have the arrogance to condescend to people like Sarah Palin, yet they don't know the difference between a governor and a U.S. senator?

[Chuck]

I'm not in love with Carly, but I'll take her over Meg Whitman any day of the week. At least she can speak on her feet and seem to actually be considering what she says. She isn't the conservative robot the far right wants, like Whitman, but that makes her more appealing to the rest of us. Jerry Brown (is he running yet?) will lose a lot of support to Fiorina if she is more moderate than Whitman and the also rans.

[Mar Vista Guy]

I find it amusing that HP (the company she converted from a respected tech firm into a bottom-of-the-barrel PC manufacturer) is contributing money to her opponent. She was their CEO! Shows how much love she left there with her "successful management." I don't much like Boxer, but Fiorina would be a even greater disaster for California.

[Hoffmann]

After she almost ruined Hewlett Packard she wants to finish off the State of California. She needs to be Outsourced.

[justacomment]

If she was outsourcing jobs at HP, why did the stock value plunged to half if outsourcing suppose to save money and increase stock value? True happy outsourcing executives are usually doing it for the bottom line and heck with the employees. Nonetheless she did get rich with her parachute package.

[justacomment]

Notice the headline "struggle to convince conservatives.." This is a way of saying she might have democratic party values too so you dems should cross party line considering she is a GOP party's moderate. Ahh, tricks of the trade.

[Fearless Eagle]

Concerned U.S. Citizen,

While Carly Fiorina was working at HP, she made the follwing statements to Congress.

In January 2004, at a meeting to "head off rising protectionist sentiment in Congress," Fiorina said: "There is no job that is America's God-given right anymore. We have to compete for jobs as a nation."

Congress continues to lie to Americans about how American schools are subpar and that U.S. corporation need millions of visa workers. Dr. Norm Matloff from U.C. Davis has research that indicates 80% of these workers are working remedial, ordinary jobs. They are not the Best and the Brightest that Bill Gates claims he needs.

The War against the American worker is being hit on four fronts:
1. Illegal Immigrants who arrive without visas do many basic labor jobs.
2. Legal worker visas are approved by Congress and replace qualified American workers.
3. Multinational corporations buy American Companies, reduce their U.S. based operations, and move jobs offshore.
4. U.S. companies eliminate jobs in American and get cheap labor offshore.

Thomas Jefferson said, "When the government fears the people there is liberty; when the people fear the government there is tyranny."

There IS TYRANNY!

Fearless Eagle