You're welcome, Andy Pugno.
We at The Bee are always happy to help young, idealistic and struggling political newcomers.
While we're not sure that Pugno perfectly fits that bill, the Republican nominee for the Sacramento area assembly seat being vacated by term-limited Assemblyman Roger Niello is using this column in his latest fund-raising pitch, sent earlier this week.
Pugno is a Folsom attorney, father of three, Eagle Scout, member of the Knights of Columbus, and author of Proposition 8, the 2008 initiative that bans same-sex marriage.
Given that last point, Pugno, 37, has attracted no small amount of attention, as the Stonewall Democratic Club of Sacramento's website shows. And he is telling his supporters all about it:
The June primary election is only two weeks behind us, yet already the political left is firing up their attack machine to defeat me in the General Election for the 5th Assembly District.
Pugno has said that he is not running a single-issue campaign based on his support of Proposition 8. But his fund-raising appeal made clear that he is appealing to backers of the 2008 initiative to bar same-sex marriage.
As reported on Sunday in this Sacramento Bee column, "Prop. 8 role defines local Assembly hopeful," our opponents are pulling out all the stops to defeat me.
This race is critical to their goals of undermining the people's vote for Proposition 8 and expanding the Democrat's hold on the Legislature to a two-thirds majority... enabling them to increase both taxes and spending in the state budget.
As the Sacramento Bee said, winning this all-out fight in the General Election will cost at us least $1 million... and probably more. Undoubtedly, we will be up against a flood of special interest money that will pour in to this district from all around the state and nation.
Pugno's Democratic foe is Dr. Richard Pan, a pediatrician who opposed the initiative.
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