Clinton gives boost to Gore candidacy with California fundraising swing

By CNN's Kelly Wallace

March 3, 2000
Web posted at: 6:45 p.m. EST (2345 GMT)

SAN JOSE, California (CNN) -- It was not by mere coincidence that President Clinton traveled to California's Silicon Valley to unveil new adminstration policies on cyber security on Friday, just days before Vice President Al Gore competes in the Golden State's crucial Democratic primary.

"Nothing is ever entirely disconnected," admitted White House press secretary Joe Lockhart, who conceded that the trip was not altogether unrelated to the vice president's political aspirations.

After his speech in Silicon Valley, President Clinton was scheduled to attend three Democratic fund-raisers in San Francisco before heading to Los Angeles for another event on Saturday.

Some of that money will undoubtedly be used to run Democratic issue ads later in the election cycle, after the primary season ends and before federal matching funds are made available for the general race.

Most political analysts believe that Gore must win California to capture the White House. The vice president can take solace in the fact that his boss remains immensely popular in the Golden State, in part due to the booming economy that has emerged from the recession of the early 1990s.

Clinton -- who won the state in 1992 and again in 1996 -- has travelled to California 51 times since he first took office, often mixing it up with Hollywood celebrities and rising political stars in the state.

The president began accumulating political capital in California during his tenure as governor of Arkansas, former aides said.

"His bank account is so full in California, I don't know if he could ever spend it, certainly not in this presidency. It's been a love affair, a political love affair between California and this president," said former U.S. Trade Representative Mickey Kantor, a longtime Clinton friend.

Political analysts view Tuesday's primary contest as a test run for the general election. Democrats, Republicans and independents can select any candidate, regardless of party affiliation, in the open primary.

Although delegates will be awarded according to the votes of registered party members, Gore and Democratic rival Bill Bradley will compete with their Republican counterparts -- Texas Gov. George W. Bush and Arizona Sen. John McCain -- for the largest share of the California's popular vote.

"I think it's a mini-general election. Because the state is so large, there are 15 million registered voters, it really does give you a microcosm of what might happened nationwide," said Mark DiCamillo, director of California's Field Poll.