Smyth completely disagrees with Brown's proposed tax extensions - and he came into the meeting a bit skeptical.  He says many Republicans who have steered clear of the governor's events feared the crowd would be filled with Brown supporters, and his party wouldn't get a fair shake.

Smyth: "But I can tell you that in this instance, I knew a majority of the people here, and many of them do not share the governor's position.  So I appreciate that the meeting included people with differing views, and that certainly was reflected in the comments."

Smyth says some audience members asked him and the governor to reach across the aisle and find a solution to California's $15.4 billion budget shortfall.  But he says he doesn't think the event changed many minds.