In a news conference she said: "Last week Barbara Boxer was in California, she did not bother to visit the Central Valley."
But, Boxer did in fact come to the Central Valley. Last Wednesday she made a campaign appearance in Fresno at the Fresno Police Officers Association. A spokesperson for the Fiorina campaign later told us the candidate is recovering from surgery and made a simple mis-statement.
Fiorina who's best known as a former corporate executive was in the area to receive the endorsement of an agricultural group, the Nisei Farmers League.
League President Manuel Cunha said, "She has taken a great effort to understand our industry. Water, regulatory, labor the big issue of immigration."
On that big issue of immigration, Fiorina has endorsed Arizona's controversial immigration law, aimed at cracking down on undocumented workers. Statistics from the California Research Bureau show undocumented workers comprise more than 40 percent of the farm labor force in the Central Valley.
When asked if she favored the deportation of all those undocumented immigrants, Fiorina said, "The facts are, we need a secure border to protect the citizens of this country and we need a temporary worker program that works to support the labor needs of this great community and the Central Valley."
Political Analyst Don Larson of Fresno says when it comes to immigration it's tough for conservatives to be too specific in the Central Valley.
"It's easy to say well, we think we ought to crack down on illegal immigrants but not the ones that do the work we need to have done. There is something of a conflict there."
An exclusive Action News Poll conducted by SurveyUSA shows the race between Boxer and Fiorina to be close with Fiorina leading by about two points. Larson says despite winning three terms in the Senate, Boxer has never had an easy time. "Boxer has always been in a tight spot going into an election."
Campaign finance figures show Boxer appears to have a fundraising advantage over Fiorina. Boxer has received more than $17 million in donations while Fiorina has brought in just $3.5 million. However, Fiorina is a multi-millionaire and has already loaned her campaign some of her personal fortune.
