California Candidates Battle Over ‘Threats’

SACRAMENTO – Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Poizner is accusing his primary opponent, Meg Whitman, of using threats in an attempt to force him from the race.

During a Monday news conference, Poizner said Whitman campaign advisers have repeatedly called and e-mailed his staff urging him to drop out of the Republican primary. He produced an email from a Whitman campaign strategist saying Whitman was willing to spend $40 million or more “tearing up Steve if we must.”

Whitman, a billionaire former eBay chief executive, is the front-runner in the GOP primary against Poizner, a wealthy Silicon Valley entrepreneur who is the state insurance commissioner.

Poizner has asked the FBI, the California attorney general’s office and the U.S. attorney’s office to investigate whether the exchanges are illegal.