For those of you who might be interested, William Simon, a  Republican 
candidate for governor in California, spoke to the Sacramento Press  Club at 
a lunch I attended today.? Simon is the son of the late William E.  Simon, 
the former Treasury Secretary.
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During his presentation, he made a few comments abou the  energy situation 
in?CA:
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A former U.S. attorney and Rudy Guiliani protege, it bothers  him that Gov. 
Davis has made a point of prejudging generators and marketers  before 
investigations are complete (Simon supports full investigations into  
generator/marketer practices).? He also called Bill Lockyer's "Spike" quote  
inappropriate, and said it violates the canon of ethics to threaten  
prosecution.
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He believes it is a mistake to buy the transmission lines and  that the focus 
should be on increasing supply.? The rhetoric coming from  the governor and 
AG "do nothing but chill investment," and said he doesn't blame  Mirant for 
its hesitation to build new plants.
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If the current energy situation were in his lap, he would  approach?it by 
getting everybody to the table?to try to find an  overall solution.? It's 
being done piecemeal now, he said, and that's not  effective.
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He sees three elements to?addressing the  problem:
1.? Limit state involvement -- he does not support a  public power authority;
2.? Get supply online;
3.??"Restructure,"?which he related to taking a  sagging company and figuring 
out a concerted approach?to fixing its  problems rather than?putting out fire 
after fire.? 
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He believes the generators should relieve some of the  debt.
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He was asked if?an Edison bankruptcy?would be a bad  thing.??He said 
it?"can't be good," but prefers to?think  of?Edison's status as a 
consideration to the overall approach but not  necessarily as the ultimate 
goal.? He indicated that bankruptcy is not  favorable but should not 
necessarily be avoided at any  cost.