In California Elections, Whitman, Fiorina Win; Orly Taitz Falls Short

AP

Republican women made a strong showing in California in Tuesday's primaries, save for Orly Taitz, the infamous "birther" who was vying for the Republican nomination for Secretary of State.

Meg Whitman, the billionaire former eBay CEO, saw her more than $81 million investment (including $71 million of her own money) in the gubernatorial primary pay off. She soundly defeated state Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner for the GOP nomination, even though he also spent a small fortune of $25 million on the race. She will now face former Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown in the general election.

Another female titan of the tech industry, former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, won the GOP nomination for Senate, pitting her against three-term Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer. Fiorina prevailed over former Rep. Tom Campbell and Tea Party-backed Chuck DeVore. Fiorina propelled her campaign forward with an investment of $5.5 million of her own fortune and the endorsement of former GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

The primary results pit the female businesswomen against Democratic politicians that have a combined total of 59 years of experience in elected office, the Los Angeles Times points out.

"Jerry Brown has spent a lifetime in politics, and the results have not been good," Whitman said last night. "Failure seems to follow Jerry brown everywhere he goes."

Brown, meanwhile, promised an "agenda of humility" in Sacramento, the Sacramento Bee reports, emphasizing his experience and frugal style.

CBSNews.com Special Report: Campaign 2010

"It's not enough for someone rich and restless to look in the mirror one morning and decide, 'Hey, it's time to be governor of California,'" he said.

After results for the Senate primary came in, Campbell also warned voters against too quickly dismissing experience, according to the L.A. Times.

"We're not at a good point in our political system," the defeated Republican said. "We need to have people with experience in government so we can learn from what we have done before. So I am worried."

In his concession speech, DeVore channeled the anti-incumbent sentiment that fueled his and other Tea Party candidacies, the L.A. Times reports, urging Fiorina to fight "as vigorously as possible over the next five months to... end [Boxer's] 28-year reign on Capitol Hill."

But the anti-incumbent mood wasn't strong enough to help Orly Taitz, the woman best known for questioning whether President Obama is a natural born citizen, in her bid for the GOP nomination for secretary of state. She was soundly defeated by former NFL player Damon Dunn, who garnered 74 percent of the vote to Taitz's 25 percent. Dunn now goes on to challenge Democratic Secretary of State Debra Bowen.

California voters also approved Proposition 14, a measure that will revamp the primary process in the state. Traditional party primaries would be replaced with a first round of voting in which all candidates are on the ballot. The two candidates who win the most votes -- regardless of party -- move on to the general election. The change could potentially create races in which there are two Democrats on the ballot and no Republicans, or visa versa. Proponents of the system say it will help moderate candidates win, but opponents say it undermines the party system and would make it difficult for third party candidates to ever gain a spot on a general election ballot.

Bowen, the secretary of state, said yesterday there will be an "army of lawyers" reviewing at the constitutionality of the proposition, the Sacramento Bee reports.

More CBSNews.com Coverage of Tuesday's Primaries:

Winners: Blanche Lincoln | Nikki Haley | Meg Whitman | Carly Fiorina | Sharron Angle | Roundup
Anthony Salvanto: What's Next for the Big Primary Winners?
Jeff Greenfield: California Vote to Alter Primaries Could Have Huge Impact
Bob Schieffer: Money and Melodrama Shape Primaries
Marc Ambinder: How Did Sen. Blanche Lincoln Pull Victory From the Jaws of Defeat?
Women Win Big on Primary Day
Interactive Map: CBS News Campaign 2010 Race Ratings

[ibwilliamsi]

Are Californians unaware that Fiorina tanked HP's stock to 40% of it's value by the time she was forced to resign by the board of directors?

[ibwilliamsi]

Are Californians unaware that Fiorina tanked HP's stock to 60% of it's value by the time she was forced to resign by the board of directors?

[txlady706]

There is much compelling evidence to substantiate that Obama is not a natural born citizen of the US.
As to negating an argument by insulting the other individual, proves that the person articulating the insult, has no evidence,logic or creativity to establish an articulate argument.
Articulate or not, the truth is the truth and there is much evidence to support that this Administration and President have agendas that are less than upstanding.
http://txlady706.wordpress.com/2010/06/09/barack-obama-should-not-be-president-hawaiis-chief-elections-clerk-during-the-2008-presidential-election-goes-on-radio-and-says-that-obama-is-not-a-natural-born-citizen-and-was-not-born-in-hawaii/

[txlady706]

There is much compelling evidence to substantiate that Obama is not a natural born citizen of the US.
As to negating an argument by insulting the other individual, proves that the person articulating the insult, has no evidence,logic or creativity to establish an articulate argument.
Articulate or not, the truth is the truth and there is much evidence to support that this Administration and President have agendas that are less than upstanding.
http://txlady706.wordpress.com/2010/06/09/barack-obama-should-not-be-president-hawaiis-chief-elections-clerk-during-the-2008-presidential-election-goes-on-radio-and-says-that-obama-is-not-a-natural-born-citizen-and-was-not-born-in-hawaii/

[kansas1946]

Orly Taitz Falls Short
*****************************

No kidding. Even the right-wing nuts couldn't stomach this dim-wit.

[superdem1]

It's a waste of time talking to Republicans about politics, they're the drunks who ran the car into the ditch, and they want the keys back. They deny any responsibility for the wreck they've caused, blame our new President for everything, and promise more of what has already proven a disaster. They even deny President Bush was a conservative ! They deny the stimulus money provided any jobs, but their states sucked that money down fast, Republicans took credit even though they voted against it. They live in a fantasy world unencumbered by facts. Want a new Depression ? Vote REPUBLICAN.

[superdem1]

The only thing worse than a Republican man is a Republican woman. They are so stupid they are actively working against their own interests. They only got the vote because their sisters in the Labor Movement went to jail and defied the system with street demonstrations, and they haven't gotten fair pay yet, but Republicans and Libertarians seem to think America is great as a direct result of a color-blind and merit based "free market" - a ridiculous misreading of history. Republican women work to destroy their own reproductive rights, their own labor protections, they support absurd foreign wars that will kill their own sons and daughters. Most women are smarter than that, but Republicans are stupid, no matter what their gender.

[jefflz-2009]

Fiorina drove HP into the ground and left in disgrace. Whitman bought Teletubbies to the US and and spent most of her career in marketing. We in California have had a parade of incompetents as political leaders including tap dancer George Murphy, Ronnie Reagan, and most recently, Schwarzie. Are the voters of California going to continue to make fools of themselves by voting against their own interests yet again?

[afmcalax]

Funny they are all against career politicians and rightfully so, but do you really think former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina cares about the average citizen either. Do you really think she will be able to relate to the regualr worker. She has spent a career making sure her bonuses were high while her worker's pay decreased. How many jobs did she off-shore while leading HP? How many Washington lobbiests did she employ while at BP to deregulate her industry to make it less accountable. Career politicans are bad, but super rich corporate CEOs are not going to be any better.

[cdegolier]

And the career politicians have done such a good job for California. Business minded people is what we need, people who have been successful in running a business, employing people and beating the odds. Career politician are a worthless bunch of do nothing morons, they are the reason California is broke.

[myopinionpal]

Say the right things to get elected but once inside the Capital Beltway they are working for the lobbyist not the voters. They only work for the voters when they want to be re-elected.