Opinion: Meg Whitman still explaining decades of not voting
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Meg Whitman is still fending off questions about her spotty voting record.
Whitman, you may recall, is the former eBay CEO who spent most of her adult life not registered to vote. She also is hoping to become the GOP candidate for governor in California. Presumably, this would be accomplished through a decidedly un-high-tech fashion — people (or to be precise, registered voters) going to the polls or filling out absentee ballots and popping them in the mail.
As our friends over at the political blog The Swamp report, Whitman had to answer more questions about voting this morning on the Fox Business Network. ‘I’ve been very straight-up that my voting record isn’t perfect,” Whitman told Neil Cavuto. ‘I did not consistently vote. Like many Americans, I’ve missed too many elections ... ” Here’s the full report.
So how will California voters react? Two letters to the editor in the Opinion section of today’s Times offer instructive examples.
Audrey Wicks of Irvine says Whitman has the abilities to be a great governor and doesn’t mind that Whitman had not registered until a few years back.
“She was very busy not only running a large company but furthering it, making it a big success,” Wicks writes. “She puts all of her energies into the job for which she’s responsible. This is to her credit. There are too many people who vote because they think it’s the American way. There are too many people who do not study the issues and merely vote without thought on the issues. This is one of the factors that has our state in such a detrimental status.”
Vincent J. Carollo of Upland takes a decidely different view and Whitman has to hope he’s in the minority:
“I have two signs for the campaign trail: ‘Sorry Meg, I will be too busy to register and vote for you.’ And: ‘Meg, ever heard of the absentee ballot?’ ”
Meanwhile, the Whitman campaign announced today that she has won the endorsement of former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. In a statement the campaign says she’s already been endorsed by former California Gov. Pete Wilson, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Arizona Sen. John McCain. No word yet on whether Whitman will be tapped for any GOP get-out-the-vote efforts.
-- Steve Padilla
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