Mark Baldassare Quotes (37 Quotes)

He needs to convince Democrats and independents that his reforms are not politically motivated, that he's looking after their best interests.

The meaning for the average person watching the ... demonstrations is that this is a very serious movement, a large issue, and it's not going to go away. People now have a face and they have a story that goes along with what they had previously viewed as a pretty abstract concept, illegal immigration.

I think I'm most surprised at the degree to which people are pessimistic about education and the extent to which they lack confidence and trust in state government in general. This is one of the reasons -- at the state level at least -- that people are reluctant to raise their own taxes.

hardly anyone picked out an initiative and said, 'This one interests me.'

Despite the perception that ideological and political attitudes make for deep divisions over such issues as sex education, we find just the opposite. The widespread support for sex education programs seems to be fueled by belief in their efficacy.

Come November, conservatives are going to vote in large numbers for the GOP candidate -- that's always the case. But I think it raises some questions about whether the governor is going to be able to energize the GOP conservative base. It's particularly relevant because he wasn't able to do it in the special election.

They're still looking for education, fiscal, political and government reform in California. They don't think government in California is working.

The governor has a big challenge ahead of him.

It's an unfortunate irony that state leaders were unable to reconcile their differences, while voters - who are often deeply split along partisan lines - were very much in agreement. This was an opportunity to give the public something it collectively wanted.

There's still a long way to go, but the governor is still looking to find the key to what will change public opinion. While his measures may not have moved in a negative direction, there's no sign that voters have any more inclination to support his package.

This is a real test for the governor. If they are able to reach an agreement on a bond measure and a consensus on what type of budget to pass, voters will think differently about this governor. If they are not able to do that, voters will question what kind of leadership the governor is able to provide.

It's reasonably good news for the governor on a number of levels. It seems many Californians continue to be pulling for the governor.

The Democrats and their allies have been very successful this year in painting a different picture of the governor -- a partisan figure who has his own group of special interests. He has to find a way to win back the trust, which he's lost ... but he hasn't done things to help himself much.

There is growing recognition that global warming is not just something happening in the polar regions but that it will affect Californians in a real way. It's not abstract, and it's not about the future.

The governor's standing has improved among Democrats and independents but he's still not to the point where he needs to be as a Republican running for governor in California.

He's being viewed as someone with a lot at stake in the bond deal but one who was willing to compromise. Unlike last year when he seemed to be saying, 'My way or the highway,' this year he appears to be conciliatory. He seemed to be willing to settle, and voters understand that.

He was able to do it two years ago in the recall election, and that's what he's trying to do again.

The favorable response to the infrastructure plan, even at this stage, is an auspicious sign. The question is whether the governor has, or will have, the political clout to see this grand ambition through.

Clearly the governor got the message of the special election. The question is whether the words translate into action in Sacramento and move the state in the direction the governor says he would like to go and the public says they would like to go.

This is an issue that really matters to (voters). They will make a decision about who to support based on what they hear.

The frustration is coming from across the political spectrum and ethnic groups. There's a strong belief that some schools are doing very well and some are doing very poorly, and the broad consensus is that that's not an acceptable system.

The challenge for him this time is really twofold first of all, he's got very strong disapproval ratings among the voters, who are opposing his measures, particularly Democrats, and secondly, there is a very substantial amount of money that is being spent on the 'no' side.

It has huge implications for how campaigns are going to operate if 40 percent of voters are going to make up their minds before the media blitz that occurs right before an election.

He's faced the challenge all year of convincing people that this is an important election and he has important things on the ballot, ... And that's become that much more difficult at a time Californians have become increasingly concerned about the national and state economies, rising gas prices, government's ability to respond to natural disasters just a host of issues that seem very threatening to people that just don't seem connected to the special election.

Clearly, without having a policy in place on where we're going, the public itself seems to be going toward mailing in the ballot. No matter what direction is coming out of the state capital, that's the direction that the public is going in.

He's had modest improvement with Democrats and independents, but he's nowhere near where he was two years ago.

People are very concerned about the direction of the economy, rising gasoline prices and the ability of the government to respond to the terrible things that are happening around us, such as natural disasters. They're looking to this special election and they really can't draw a connection between what concerns them the most and what seems to be the purpose and the emphasis of the special election.

The governor must still convince independents and moderates that he is as he seemed to be last year ... a figure in Sacramento who stood for solutions and an end to partisan bickering, who put the people's interests first.

Californians treasure the ocean and the state's beaches. These attitudes run deep and wide across political parties, coastal and inland areas and in the growing Latino community.

He has been fairly consistent on the issue, and it's one that puts him in exactly the same place as the Democrats and independents he's trying to reach out to this year. If I were him, I would be talking a lot about this.

The Legislature has been looking at the calendar for elections rather than the calendar for legislation. The balance of power has shifted from the legislative cycle to the election cycle.

These attitudes run deep and wide. To ignore them could be politically perilous.

This would be unprecedented. I think it will be a real challenge to explain to voters a plan of this magnitude.

None of the propositions favored by the governor's administration are inspiring much passion or enthusiasm among voters. With little connecting them to this election, support for the entire enterprise is low.

The March primary was an experiment that didn't work. Nationally, it didn't really put California in the driver's seat for the presidential election and at the state level, campaigns didn't really have time to get off the ground.

The majority of Californians need to be convinced that there's a reason for having this special election.

I think it is significant. His numbers have been steady during a time when Californians were disappointed over the lack of agreement on the infrastructure bond.