GET THE FUCK OUTTA HERE. From [HERE]  GOP gubernatorial candidate Larry Elder has become a campaign gift to Gavin Newsom — with some Republicans suggesting the talk show host has actually become “counterproductive” to the recall drive.

Elder last week set off a firestorm by uttering out loud the sentiment that every major GOP recall candidate had studiously avoided. Speaking of Sen. Dianne Feinstein on fellow conservative Mark Levin’s radio show, Elder claimed that “nobody’s seen [her] in weeks,” and suggested the 88-year-old senator is in “even worse mental condition than Joe Biden.”

“They’re afraid I'm going to replace her with a Republican — which I most certainly would do,” Elder said. “And that would be an earthquake in Washington, D.C."

Elder’s comments immediately became a fundraising focal point for Democrats — and prompted some on social media to suggest Elder had just sunk the recall movement. But Elder was right on this point: few statements can fire up the party’s base like the threat of Republicans flipping the U.S. Senate — and Newsom immediately jumped on it.

Elder has continued to hand his incumbent opponent plenty of material. Take the case of Texas’ restrictive new abortion legislation: When anti-abortion activist Lila Rose tweeted that Elder promised a litany of actions to put the brakes on legal abortion in California, Elder, pressed by the Sac Bee’s Lara Korte this weekend, failed to refute that tweet and then had his security team block Korte from further follow-ups.

Over the weekend, Elder told conservative pundit Candace Owens that slave owners are “owed reparations” and said sex education has “no place“ in California schools. And CNN reported that Elder once admitted being accused twice of sexual harassment, saying that one of his accusers was too ugly to be credible.

THE FALLOUT: The stumbles have led recall campaign leader Orrin Heatlie, the former Yolo County sheriff's sergeant, to tell POLITICO this week that Elder’s entry has been “counterproductive” to the grassroots recall movement. “I rejected his candidacy from the get-go, because he’s so far outspoken on the extreme,’’ he said.

Randy Economy, one of the recall’s original spokespeople, said that Elder’s penchant for attention-getting quips may work on radio, but clearly doesn’t translate in a gubernatorial campaign. “He’s running for governor. He’s not a provocateur anymore,” Economy told POLITICO. “He needs to focus on the fact that if he’s elected, he's going to be the chief executive officer of a trillion-dollar economy, and I don't think he gets that. He’s very politically naive.’’

Former Rep. Doug Ose, a Republican recall contender who dropped out of the race after a heart attack, said at this high profile level of politics, “you have to be very disciplined and you can’t let your braggadocio get ahead of you.’’ Elder’s Feinstein quip “was unhelpful. … Talking about Sen. Feinstein was a strategic and tactical mistake.’’ Elder’s campaign, Ose said, “has amplified Gov. Newsom’s message.”

Sonoma State University political science professor David McCuan agreed Elder’s penchant for making headlines will have an impact on the polls. “Larry Elder does not seem to give a hoot which voters he pisses off … and there are more female voters than male voters.’’ In addition, he said, Elder “has not handled questions about how to govern opposite a Democratic legislature.’’

BOTTOM LINE: The more Elder speaks, the better for Newsom, McCuan said. Asked if the sitting California governor will survive, he said, “if the recall were an 8-ball, then all signs point to yes.”