I generally think that Californians know enough about Gray Davis to have decided long ago whether they should vote 'Yes' or 'No' on the recall ballot. If not, they certainly should. For that matter, I think that they knew all of this back in November when they re-elected him last time.

Still, the recall election is Tuesday, and evidently just before the weekend before the election is the best time to plant meaningless personal stories about your least-favorite candidate. I haven't even lived in California in ten years, but I was annoyed when he blamed all Texans for California's energy crisis, so what the heck. I'll do my part to spread perfectly factual gossip about the man, as if it matters.

Jill Stewart wrote an article for the New Times LA (no longer in print) back on November 27, 1997, that revealed much about the personal character of then-Lieutenant Governor Gray Davis. A word of warning: The following article contains foul language. If you're easily offended, well, California politics just isn't for you.

Closet Wacko Vs. Mega-Fibber Jill Stewart

I have this file, labeled Gray Davis, that for the last few years I've been stuffing with all the bizarre little tales that are quietly shared among journalists and political insiders about the man who, though probably viewed as a blandly pleasant talking head by most Californians, is in fact one of the strangest ducks ever elected to statewide office.

Long protected by editors at the Los Angeles Times—who have nixed every story Times reporters have ever tried to develop about Davis's storied history of physical violence, unhinged hysteria and gross profanity—the baby-faced, dual personality Davis has been allowed to hold high public office with impunity.

Perhaps you are among the millions never told of Lieutenant Governor Davis's widely known—but long unreported—penchant for physically attacking members of his own staff. His violent tantrums have occurred throughout his career, from his days as Chief of Staff for Jerry Brown to his long stint as State Controller to his current job.

Davis's hurling of phones and ashtrays at quaking government employees and his numerous incidents of personally shoving and shaking horrified workers—usually while screaming the f-word "with more venom than Nixon" as one former staffer recently reminded me—bespeak a man who cannot be trust with power. Since his attacks on subservients are not exactly "domestic violence," they suggest to me the need for new lexicon that is sufficiently Dilbertesque. I would therefore like to suggest "office batterer" for consideration as you observe Davis in his race for governor.

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