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Davis to Make His Case, but Not Plead It "The question is whether it's too little too late," said Bruce Cain, a political scientist at UC Berkeley. By depicting the recall as part of a pattern by Republicans of "not accepting the decision made by voters at the ballot box and looking for ways through the side door to [gain] power," Davis hopes to appeal to the discomfort many Californians feel about the process, an advisor said. The speech is intended to launch a more active strategy for Davis in which the governor will travel around California in a series of town hall-style meetings and other events that will showcase his knowledge of issues, aides said. The idea of a speech directly addressing Davis' predicament has been nurtured in part by Clinton's successful strategy for surviving his impeachment, which included a public admission of marital infidelity and bad judgment, and by polls that show about half of voters believe Davis should fight the recall and not resign. At the same time, Democratic strategists say their focus groups have indicated willingness among Democrats and independents to give Davis a second chance, people close to the campaign said. "Voters in this country are very forgiving," said Democratic consultant Darry Sragow. "He's perfectly within his rights to say it's been a very difficult time and it would have been difficult for any governor. But voters want to know that he understands that he has disappointed them. He's got to acknowledge the anger and frustration. He's not going to defeat the recall unless he acknowledges it." Republican Simon found to his annoyance Monday that his campaign continued to be shadowed by Schwarzenegger. The candidate had to respond, again, to a query on whether he would leave the race in favor of the actor. Questioned by ABC radio host Sean Hannity about whether Republicans should have one candidate to go up against the one Democrat running to replace Davis, Simon's voice rose in irritation:
"We don't know where Mr. Schwarzenegger stands. We haven't heard a word out of Mr. Schwarzenegger. We don't know -- no, let me finish -- we don't know where Arianna Huffington stands. For all we know, she's a Democrat. We don't know where Peter Ueberroth stands. You know, he's probably a Democrat. So when you say the Democrats have one candidate, I would disagree with you. I actually think the Democrats have a couple of candidates."
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