Fiorina touts her business experience during a stop at Leisure World
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Republican senatorial candidate Carly Fiorina campaigned in Seal Beach Saturday, emphasizing her corporate background, advocating for the extension of the Bush-era tax cuts and slashing Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer’s record on taxes and spending.
“I’ve been managing billions of dollars for almost 30 years,” said the former Hewlett-Packard chief executive who presided over the company for 5 1/2 years before the board fired her in 2005. “By the time I left Hewlett-Packard, it was an $88-billion company. And I will guarantee you this -- you show me a billion dollars that no one is accountable for, no one scrutinizes, no one is responsible for making sure every dollar is spent wisely and well, and I will show you hundreds of millions of dollars of waste, of mistakes, of abuse and, yes, of fraud as well. And that is precisely what we have going on in Washington, D.C.”
Fiorina’s pledges to rein in spending, repeal President Obama’s healthcare legislation and direct unused federal stimulus money toward paying down the federal debt drew cheers and applause from an audience of about 300 seniors who gathered at a clubhouse in Leisure World.
The former executive said her experience in business had prepared her to focus on reinvigorating the manufacturing base in California.
“We grow jobs, we can make our economy vibrant again by focusing on small businesses, family-owned businesses, innovators and entrepreneurs,” Fiorina said. “We can hold Washington accountable…. But first, you have to vote to change the people we send to Washington, D.C.”
“Barbara Boxer has behaved for 28 years as if she is accountable to no one,” the Republican candidate continued. “With your help and with your prayers, and with your willingness to talk to everyone you know to get out and vote on Tuesday, I will look very much forward to being held accountable to the voters of California.”
Fiorina’s visit to Leisure World was part of a four-stop tour of the state that began with a pancake breakfast in San Diego and will include afternoon events at her campaign headquarters in Sacramento and the GOP’s Butte County Victory Headquarters in Chico. Boxer campaigned in San Jose on Saturday morning.
Speaking to reporters after the Seal Beach event, Fiorina dismissed the findings of the recent Field Poll and the Los Angeles/USC poll showing her about eight points behind Boxer. Other recent polls, she said, show her down by two or three points.
“This is very tight race, and Barbara Boxer knows it,” Fiorina said. “And when you are a three-term incumbent senator and you cannot get above 45% of the vote -- and she hasn’t been able to get above 45% of the vote for an entire year now -- you are in deep trouble. We are going to win this race on Nov. 2.”
Contrary to her remarks, however, Boxer led Fiorina 50% to 42% in a recent Times/USC poll, a margin that was unchanged from September. And in the Field Poll released Friday, Boxer drew the support of 49% of likely voters.
Fiorina said Saturday that she had not put any more of her own money into the race since her $1-million loan to her campaign announced a week ago, but she ignored a reporter’s question about whether she planned to do so in the final days.
During her three-way primary race, Fiorina loaned $5.5 million of her own money to her effort, which she has mostly forgiven. The former business executive’s wealth has been valued at $27.7 million to $121 million, according to Senate financial disclosure forms.
-- Maeve Reston in Seal Beach
