THE POLITICAL LANDSCAPE:Harman proves to be on the bill

FOR THE RECORD

Thursday’s the Political Landscape feature, “Harman proves to be on the bill,” should have said 300 people were interviewed for a poll commissioned by congressional candidate Steve Young.

For the second consecutive year, Huntington Beach state Sen. Tom Harman has had more bills signed into law than any state GOP legislator, he announced this week.

Harman, whose district also includes Costa Mesa and Newport Beach, had 20 bills signed in the two-year legislative session that ended in September — more than any of the GOP’s 31 Assembly members and 14 other senators.

To Harman, that says he’s done well at working with the majority party, the Democrats.

“You do have to, in order to have successful legislation when you’re a Republican, work on a bipartisan basis, and I have a reputation for doing that,” he said.

Harman, a former attorney, lists among his notable bills this session one that requires playground equipment to conform to national safety standards and another that makes it easier for people to dispose of personal property in their wills.

Three immigration-reform bills he pushed were killed in committee, but he said he’ll try them again next session.

Though Harman was criticized during his Senate campaign as being out of touch with the GOP base, his legislative success has somewhat vindicated him, he said.

During the campaign, GOP opponents “simply ignored my record,” he said. “I’ve always done very well in getting legislation passed.”

YOUNG FEELING GOOD ABOUT POLL

Democratic congressional candidate Steve Young is feeling optimistic after a poll last week — commissioned by his campaign, of course — showed he’s making headway in conservative Newport Beach. Young is challenging Republican Rep. John Campbell for the 48th District U.S. House seat, which represents coastal Orange County including Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, Irvine and several other cities.

Young’s poll of 3,000 likely voters in the district showed that among voters who had seen Young’s advertising and campaign efforts, 32% intend to vote for Campbell, but 68% said they would consider voting for someone else or would vote for another candidate.

“The most surprising part was the part that was conducted in Newport, where the registration [of those polled] is 74% Republican, and 49% of the people responded that they wanted a different congressperson,” Young said Wednesday.

Voters may want someone else, but is Young that someone?

“Well, of course,” he said laughing. “How do you expect me to answer that?”

Despite the favorable poll, Young still has a gap to close before election day. To do that, he said, “we will continue to run a campaign of solutions with grass-roots, door-to-door contact with people.”

BREWER GETS CALL FOR STATE COMMISSION

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last week appointed former Newport Beach Assemblywoman Marilyn Brewer to the Little Hoover Commission, an independent agency that suggests ways to improve the efficiency and service of the state government. The position carries no salary.

Brewer, a Republican, served in the Assembly from 1994 to 2002, and voters also may remember her 2005 run for the 48th District U.S. House seat. She lost the GOP primary to John Campbell, who was later elected.

CHAMBER BACKS HALF OF GOVERNOR’S INITIATIVES

The Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce last week announced its positions on 13 statewide ballot measures, coming out almost half-and-half for and against the various measures and taking no position on four of them.

The chamber supported two of Schwarzenegger’s four bond proposals — propositions 1B and 1E — and took no position on the other two, and it is backing Proposition 1A, an ancillary measure to the bond issues.

The chamber also supported Proposition 83, which tightens penalties on sex offenders.

Newport chamber board members opposed propositions 86 through 90. Measures 86, 87, and 88, respectively, would raise taxes on cigarettes, oil and residential property to pay for various programs. Proposition 89 would reform campaign finance laws, and Proposition 90 would restrict governments’ use of eminent domain.

The Orange County Taxpayers Assn. also announced its opposition to Measure X, the Newport Beach initiative that would tighten voter controls on development in the city.

DON’T TOSS OUT THAT ONE BROCHURE, FOR SAFETY’S SAKE

Among the glossy campaign brochures arriving in Newport Beach mailboxes is one that’s not from a politician: The Newport Beach Fire Department has sent out an informational mailer on disaster preparedness and focusing on tsunami safety rules.

The brochure gives instructions for how to prepare for a disaster, lists what food and supplies to have ready, explains what a tsunami is, and gives information on city-sponsored emergency training courses for residents.

But even this seemingly innocuous mailer hasn’t escaped the political tsunami leading up to the Nov. 7 election.

City Council candidate Dolores Otting brought up the brochure at Tuesday’s council meeting, saying it might get lost among all the campaign mail.

She also criticized the city for not doing more to prepare for a disaster. Otting has long complained that the city is not properly equipped for emergencies and should buy some type of mass warning system to alert residents.