In Calif., recall battle brews between Davis, his backup

SAN FRANCISCO - Tensions between California's top two officials publicly flared Sunday as Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante accused Gov. Gray Davis' aides of sabotaging his efforts to keep the state in Democratic hands.

Bustamante, the state's top-ranking Hispanic official, has urged voters to reject the Oct. 7 recall that aims to oust the unpopular Davis, but also has offered himself as a candidate.

"If some of the governor's minions would stop trying to undercut my efforts, I think we could have a very coalesced opportunity for Democrats . . . and we have a possibility of having a win-win position on the ballot," Bustamante said on NBC's Meet the Press.

Bustamante's chief strategist, Richie Ross, said the Davis camp was pressuring Democratic donors and activists to withhold support from Bustamante.

"He's run into a pretty wide range of people as he's been making his phone calls, finding that many of them are being visited or called from the governor's campaign in an effort to shut him down," Ross said in an interview Sunday.

Steve Smith, Davis' campaign manager, said his team was not trying to cripple the Bustamante effort.

"As far as I know, and I think I would know, we're not engaged in that," Smith said. "From the governor on down, I think we've been fairly complimentary of the lieutenant governor."

The top two Democrats in state government have never been close friends, and relations were further strained when Bustamante joined the field of possible replacement candidates. Top party operatives had urged leading Democrats to stay off the ballot and rally around the governor; Bustamante bucked that call, arguing that Democratic voters deserve a choice if the recall effort is successful.

The lieutenant governor's no-on-recall, yes-on-Bustamante campaign is at odds with the governor's Davis-or-nobody strategy, but Smith said Bustamante's presence on the ballot won't ruin the governor's survival odds.

"As long as the lieutenant governor is supporting "no' on the recall, I don't believe that completely undercuts our campaign," Smith said. "Does it make our campaign more difficult? Maybe. But I believe he has taken a principled position and is pursuing it."

The latest polling suggests Davis is likely to be recalled and places Bustamante atop the field of replacement candidates. The nonpartisan Field Poll showed Bustamante had the support of 25 percent of likely voters, and Republican actor Arnold Schwarzenegger 22 percent, with a margin of error of 5 percentage points. Other candidates all had single-digit support.

Though Bustamante has said he opposes the recall and will urge voters to vote against it, his televised appearance Sunday had the feel of a candidate stepping out on his own.

"Well, clearly, we have a different style and I think that you'll find that the two people have a different way of doing things," Bustamante said.

He noted his opposition to a Davis-backed measure to triple the state's car tax as a way to help close the state's $38-billion deficit. Bustamante has called the tax an unfair burden on working families.

Ross said Bustamante on Tuesday will outline his proposals to tackle the state's budget crisis. Asked why Bustamante was offering the proposals now, rather than during budget talks throughout the legislative session, Ross bristled.

"He has suggested quite a few ideas over the last few months," Ross said. "The governor has never been interested in talking to him on this or any other subject."

OTHER GOVERNORS' SUPPORT SPLIT ON PARTY LINES: Many of the nation's governors at their summer meeting said they are sympathetic to embattled California Gov. Gray Davis and are breathing a collective sigh of relief that their states don't have California's relatively convenient recall rules.

Members of the Democratic Governors Association will campaign in California for Davis and will probably send money to the state to try to defeat the recall effort, said Washington Gov. Gary Locke, chairman of the group. Locke said all but a couple of governors are facing their own financial crises because of the downturn in the economy.

"The problems in California are not Gray Davis' fault, nor can they be solved by a new governor," Locke said.

Colorado Gov. Bill Owens, chairman of the Republican Governors Association, said his group supports the recall effort but isn't backing a particular candidate running to replace Davis.

"We think the last years under Gray Davis have been bereft of leadership and that California could benefit from a Republican governor," Owens said.

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