PD Editorial: Paper chase

Campaign contributions to state elected officials and candidates since 2000 total more than $1 billion.

That’s about $14,300 an hour.

Those astonishing figures, compiled earlier this year by the state Fair Political Practices Commission, sum up a blizzard of money blowing from all points on the political compass into a government best described as dysfunctional.

With special interests of every stripe seeking favors — or to thwart their rivals — it seemed as though the cash would never stop flowing.

Until now.

When he ended his campaign for governor last week, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom talked about the demands of City Hall and the time away from his young family. At least as significant was his inability to raise money, even after enlisting the help of one of the Democratic Party’s most prodigious fund-raisers, former President Bill Clinton.

Newsom’s fund-raising troubles may be one reason that other leading Democrats seem content to leave the gubernatorial nomination to Attorney General Jerry Brown.

The campaign cash drought is being felt by Republicans, too.

Tom Campbell is running for governor with an excellent resumé — university professor, former White House adviser, service in Congress, the state Senate and as state budget director — but he raised barely $300,000 in the first six months of 2009. That wouldn’t pay for a typical state Assembly campaign.

Campbell’s billionaire opponents for the GOP nomination are raising money but don’t need to rely on donors. Former eBay CEO Meg Whitman has loaned her campaign $15 million, and state Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner has kicked in $5 million of his own money.

It won’t be clear if giving is declining until the 2010 election cycle passes, and it would be naive to think that any dip is going to be permanent.

The recession may have made dollars tighter, and even insiders ought to be dissatisfied with the performance of the governor and the Legislature. However, California still has an $80 billion budget and, by some estimates, the world’s sixth largest economy. That should be enough to drive contests for political power and influence, and the state’s permissive campaign finance laws are designed to make fundraising easy.

Still it would be good to see the price of running for governor rolled back, even temporarily. And if a lack of funds cuts into budgets for TV advertising, perhaps the candidates will be forced to rely more on debates and interacting with voters. But that’s probably naive.