In and out

But perhaps more notable than Sen. Clinton's impromptu appearance - featuring a small army of campaign workers, Secret Service agents, Pasadena police and CHP officers, all causing some mildly irritating early afternoon congestion in the trendy Old Pasadena shopping district - was who did not attend the otherwise secret event at Twin Palms restaurant.

Missing were all of Pasadena's top elected officials, many of whom are Democrats, and other top party leaders, including Congressman Adam Schiff, who in January endorsed Clinton's party rival, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.

Former state Attorney General John Van De Kamp's secretary told the Weekly that he was attending a board meeting and was not there. Mayor Bill Bogaard, who also did not attend, did not return calls by presstime.

Although Clinton is expected to win the April 22 Pennsylvania primary, other major figures in the Democratic Party - New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, 9/11 Commission Chairman Lee Hamilton and Sens. Ted Kennedy and Christopher Dodd - have all thrown their support behind Obama.

Those who did attend included longtime activists and Democratic stalwarts Nina Chomsky, a former city commissioner and local lawyer; Mary Lois Nevins, wife of the late Richard Nevins, who served seven terms on the state Board of Equalization before retiring in 1986 to serve as president of the boards of the Pasadena History Museum and Pasadena Beautiful; and Diana Peterson-More, a former Democratic candidate for the Assembly. Also there was film star Corey Feldman, who was among the minority of men in the audience.

Both Clinton and Obama, the Associated Press reported, are fundraising this week in California, with Obama seeking donors in the state's northern half and Clinton collecting funds in Pasadena, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Silicon Valley.

Clinton began the month with $11.5 million to spend in the Pennsylvania primary, compared to $30.5 million for Obama, and was expected to have raised $20 million by the end of March. AP reported that most events were for contributors giving the $2,300 maximum allowed by law.

Clinton's staff, apparently unaware that the Weekly office is located less than 50 feet away from the popular restaurant, were not expecting any press for the event and barred entrance to two reporters seeking access, one of them Weekly columnist Ellen Snortland, a big Clinton supporter who frequently writes about the former first lady. In fact, Snortland's column this week is once again generally supportive of Clinton's candidacy, which was pointed out to Clinton's handlers.

An invitation to Clinton to visit the newspaper office and answer a few questions was either not relayed or ignored.

Ironically, the senator's husband, former President Bill Clinton, served as keynote speaker during a 2006 convention for the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies in Arkansas and heaped praise on alternative papers like the Weekly.

Photographers with the paper, along with passersby and photographers from other news outlets that eventually learned of Clinton's visit, were kept across the street from the restaurant while the candidate was inside. When she left, Clinton's driver moved the SUV into a position that blocked cameras. Before getting into the backseat, Clinton stood over the top of the passenger side of the vehicle and waved to a small crowd of onlookers before heading off the wrong way on that one-way portion of Green Street, which had been blocked off by Pasadena police.

"She wasn't there to mingle. She was there to pick up a check," said one Obama supporter who asked not to be identified. It appeared fewer than 100 people attended the event. It was not immediately known how much was raised.

Feldman, like a number of other supporters, said he was most impressed with Clinton's leadership experience.

"She'll say it herself, but I have to say it as well, and I think anyone who pays attention will know this, but she comes from experience, and that's the key," Feldman said. "I think the most important thing is she has been down the road before. She's been in the trenches, she knows what it takes to dig our way out of this hole - and we certainly are in a hole - and I think with [Republican candidate John] McCain it's more of the same. He's going to keep moving us in the same direction which, frankly, is a very negative and bad direction to be headed in."

Peterson-More also stressed Clinton's leadership experience as a deciding factor in the contest with Obama.

"When she says she'll be ready on day one, that means day one," Peterson-More said. "I think now, because of the sad state of the world thanks to the current president who, frankly, had very little experience, we need someone who can hit the ground running and make change. Personally," she said, "I think she can beat McCain. Unfortunately, I don't think Obama can."

Robert Dairygold, who just happened to be walking by while Clinton was at Twin Palms, also stressed her experience as an important distinction from the younger Obama.
"She makes a lot of sense. She has more experience. She has her husband to follow, who got the country out of debt and into the black, and two months after Bush was in we were $2 trillion in debt again. ... She's the next president as far as I am concerned," Dairygold said.

Angela Ziani of Mt. Washington was also just walking around Old Pasadena when she was attracted to all the commotion being caused by Clinton's visit.

But Ziani is not fan of either Hillary or Bill Clinton. She's also not a Democrat. She's a moderate Republican, but she still likes Obama.

"He makes a lot of sense. He's very personable, and in a general election he would probably beat McCain," she said. As for Clinton, "I think she's a phony. I think she tells lies. The Clintons are a disgrace," she said. "I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings, but they are really bad people."

Michele Smith of Long Beach doesn't believe that's true. "I've never been a super-political person. I've never been energized by any candidate whatsoever. I've never donated anything to any candidate ever in my 54 years, but I'm energized by her. I just think she's going to make a very good president," Smith said.

"People just have to remember what the '90s were like when [Bill] Clinton was in power," Smith continued. "My gosh, we had a great economic future. We all did well, and I don't know why people are forgetting that. I trust that kind of mentality to get us back to some sort of economic relief."

Clinton, Nevins said of the lunchtime presentation, "had an answer for everything. She was energetic. She greeted absolutely everybody there and listened to them. Everyone had a little something to say and she listened to it. The energy it must take for her to do this campaign, it's absolutely awesome. ... It was really uplifting to be at a whole table of women who were enthusiastic about supporting Hillary Clinton."

Deputy Editor Joe Piasecki and City Hall reporter André Coleman contributed to this report.