Opinion: Ron Paul jumps into Tom McClintock’s fight for a Northern California House seat

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Ron Paul is getting ready to welcome Republican California state Sen. Tom McClintock into his caucus, but first, Paul must get him elected.

Paul, the libertarian-Republican congressman from Texas who raised more than $34 million for his presidential race, sent out an e-mail last week urging his massive donor base to contribute to McClintock.

McClintock is the career Southern California politician, who is in a tough fight to win a congressional seat in the region that runs from east of Sacramento north to the Oregon border. The district is heavily Republican, but Democrats think they have a chance for victory.

Now, Paul is asking his base again:

“Tom McClintock is one of the most promising warriors in the fight against big government we have seen in a long time, and the special interests and big bankers know it. ... You have stood with me as....

...I campaigned for the Presidency to return our federal government to its proper role. Will you help me bring a reliable ally to Congress?”

McClintock told The Times in a recent interview that he intends to vote for John McCain for president over Barack Obama, though he previously said McCain had not been his first, second or third choice in the primary.

In fact, McClintock had said he was enamored of Paul during the primary.

“You don’t turn down anybody who wants to raise money for you,” said McClintock’s campaign manager, John M. Feliz.

That’s especially true when you generally agree with the person raising money.

“Ron Paul is a reliable individual who stood up for limited government. I think Tom could do that,” Feliz said.

McClintock entered the final three weeks of the campaign with a mere $66,000 in the bank. His Democratic foe, Charlie Brown, had $224,795, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has spent nearly $300,000 on Brown’s behalf.

McClintock’s stock and trade has been his antipathy toward taxes and government programs. Brown, a Vietnam veteran who has never held elective office, is challenging him as a career politician who’s held office for most of 26 years, representing a district that includes parts of Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.

Brown’s campaign strategist, Eric Jaye, shrugged off the Paul plea. “Charlie Brown is a combat veteran. He is not too worried about incoming.”

-- Dan Morain

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