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21st Assembly District (Peninsula) Lumber Joe [March 6, 2000, 2:45pm]    As a general rule, special interests donate money to campaigns to court favor with elected officials and influence their decisions (though politicians rarely admit it). But Democratic Assembly candidate Joe Simitian insists he doesn't know why Pacific Lumber Company--the tree-killers who battled with state government over the fate of the Headwaters Forest last year--has donated $1,000 to his campaign. "Your guess is as good as mine," he shrugs. Simitian, currently a county supervisor from environmentally-sensitive Palo Alto, held a fundraiser in Sacramento at Brannan's last week where a Pacific Lumber rep turned up with a check in hand. "Pacific Lumber is just one of the folks who responded to a wide-ranging [fundraising] solicitation," Simitian explains. He estimates that his campaign had mailed 1,500 to 2,000 invitations to businesses and Sacramento lobbyists. Craig Breon, environmental advocate for the Audubon Society, theorizes that Pacific Lumber might have cut a check to Simitian because they suspect he will serve on a committee--like Natural Resources--that affects the company. But Breon doubts a measly $1,000 donation will turn Simitian into a lumber-joe. "Joe's record on environmental stuff is pretty good," Breon says. "I expect he'll have a good voting record when he goes to the Assembly." [ San Jose | MetroActive Central | Archives ]