Sens. Dianne Feinstein, Barbara Boxer call for tax campaign truce

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California’s two U.S senators don’t like what they’re seeing from the Proposition 38 campaign.

Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer sent a letter to the head of the California State PTA, the sponsor of Proposition 38, imploring them to stop what they call “personal attacks against Gov. Jerry Brown” that they fear could sink the governor’s tax measure, Proposition 30.

Proposition 38, which has been financed by wealthy Pasadena attorney Molly Munger, seeks to raise income taxes across the board to help raise money for schools. Brown’s measure uses a mix of taxes on the wealthy and sales to raise money that would be used to close the state’s chronic budget gap.

‘We have watched the campaign for Prop. 38 become increasingly negative ...’ the Senators wrote in a letter, co-signed by Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez (D-Los Angeles) and Senate leader Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento). ‘These attacks should stop.’

The letter calls for Proposition 38’s proponents to adopt a ‘positive campaign compact’ in which “the two campaigns would refrain from directly attacking or referring to the other. We have spoken with Gov. Brown, and he will strongly support this.”

[Updated, 4:14 p.m., Aug. 16: The Yes on 38 campaign said it would not make any changes to its campaign because of the senators’ letter. ‘Prop 38 will help California’s public schools more than any other measure on the ballot,’ said campaign spokesman Nathan Ballard, ‘and we won’t shy away from communicating about that fact in a civil, respectful manner.]

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-- Anthony York in Sacramento