Are They Qualified to be Attorney General?

Steve Cooley (Republican) and Kamala Harris (Democrat) have both been prosecutors. Both have both worked in local district attorneys' offices. But that is all they have done. Neither Cooley nor Harris has experience in civil litigation, neither of them have worked in the private or non-profit sector, neither have them have worked on energy or environmental issues, neither of them has been a judge or administrative law judge, neither of them have worked for a state agency, and neither of them have even worked in the other half of the state.

Given the broad responsibilities of the California Attorney General, their lack of relevant experience is striking. By comparison, I have significantly broader experience. I have worked for law firms, a non-profit, a state agency, and a major city. I have lived and worked in both Northern and Southern California. The following chart (based on information from the candidates' websites) shows the difference in experience between me, Cooley and Harris:

Candidates’ Experience	Peter Allen	Steve Cooley	Kamala Harris
Civil Litigation	X
Consumer Advocacy	X
Criminal Prosecution	X	X	X
Energy Law	X
Environmental Law	X
Financial/Securities Fraud Litigation	X	?	?
Judge or Administrative Law Judge	X
Telecommunications Law	X

Kamala Harris - Will Kill To Get Elected

As San Francisco District Attorney, Kamala Harris gained notoriety for her opposition to the death penalty. Now, however, as a Democratic candidate for Attorney General, she has decided that the death penalty is really okay. Her campaign website is notable for its utter silence on the issue (at least I couldn't find it anywhere), and according to the San Francisco Chronicle she has flipped her position. (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/04/03/MNUJ1CNFH9.DTL)

The logic is hard to follow as to why the death penalty is a bad idea if you are district attorney, but a good idea if you are attorney general. Unless, of course, she thinks being anti-death penalty helps you get elected in San Francisco, and being pro-death penalty helps you get elected statewide.