Remember way back to this spring when there was a Democratic primary? And that one guy who looked like Phil Rizzuto beat the Really Boring Guy to take on the Governator? Whatever happened to him?

Yes, it's only been a few weeks into the main part of the campaign for Governor, that being after Labor Day, but questions are already being asked about whether Phil's campaign is either doomed or just F-----.. He's down in the polls, can't get much in the way of publicity, and is having trouble running money. As the article in the Mercury News points out, he appears to be in that political death spiral where people assume he is going to lose means, so he's having trouble raising money, which means he has less money to spend which makes it more likely he'll lose which makes it harder for him to raise money and so on and so forth.

It doesn't help when your opponent is a huge Hollywood star who gets publicity in anything they do. Even worse, when your opponent is doing everything possible to steal away your issues by signing "bipartisan" bill after bipartisan bill. First there's all the green stuff Arnie has been spouting out lately but on top of that is he's been going around campaigning for all those big infrastructure bonds with Democratic members of the Assembly. So much so, Fabian Nunez and others got into a little trouble with their party bosses for doing so. Hell, Arnie just hopped on the anti-Darfur bandwagon and signed an no investment bill with George Clooney at his side. It doesn't get anymore un-Republican than that.

Phil's one big chance to resurrect things and save his campaign comes on October 7, when he and Arnie debate man-o-man. Look good and he's back, baby! Do nothing and this sucker is pretty much over.