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The Terminator's Biggest Challenge
By Tim Siggia
October 13, 2003
The results are in in California, and the good news is that Gray Davis is out -- or, at least, will be in about a month's time -- and a Republican will take his place. That the Republican in question is Arnold Schwarzenegger is perhaps not the best of news, but it's their state, and the people of California have spoken.
The administration of Gray Davis, by any standard, was a disaster. One must at least wonder why Californians re-elected him to a second term, knowing what his tenure had cost the state already. Fortunately, their state constitution allows for corrective action to such errors in judgment to be taken without having to wait until another election. As their economy plummeted, Californians began to recognize the need for such a drastic action as a recall, and, despite a formidable public relations campaign by the Davis forces and their allies in the entertainment industry, and even an attempt by the more extreme elements of the notoriously liberal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to stop the recall effort, the recall prevailed. Even Davis's most loyal constituencies, the labor unions and Hispanics, backed away from embattled governor. Californians voted to recall Gray Davis, and also chose not to replace him with his ideological twin brother, Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante. Instead, they chose Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger to be their next chief executive.
State Representative Tom McClintock, an experienced and highly qualified Republican, would have been a better choice, but California is apparently not ready for a governor as conservative as McClintock. Besides, California traditionally has been a state where celebrity and name recognition trump such credentials as experience and qualifications. This is not always such a bad thing -- Ronald Reagan, we will remember, was such a candidate when he was first elected California governor, though he could claim some experience as president of the Screen Actors' Guild -- but it can be risky, particularly when the electee is a total political neophyte.
Arnold Schwarzenegger comes with celebrity, name recognition, and little else. He has never held political office of any kind, plus he also comes with a bit of personal baggage which the Democrats tried unsuccessfully to exploit. He inherits from his predecessor an economy in free-fall and the state's ongoing electric power problems, and will be dealing with a Democratic state legislature sure to fight him in each and every one of his efforts. His specific plans for dealing with these problems are as yet unknown, and so far he has been hazy, at best, in addressing these issues. On the plus side, Schwarzenegger, though liberal on social issues, is a fiscal conservative, which is exactly what California needs right now in the wake of the total fiscal irresponsibility of Gray Davis. He is also known as a man of great personal charm and persuasiveness, assets he will certainly need in the months to come.
If he is smart, Schwarzenegger will surround himself with the brightest and the best of staffers and advisors. Arnold apparently knows this and intends to do so. His selection of Warren Buffett as a strategist was a wise move. While many may look askance at Mr. Buffett's politics, few, I believe, would question his market savvy. The delay in seating the goveror-elect will give him the necessary time to put his team together and plan for California's future.
It is in the interest, not only of Californians, but all Americans, to wish success to Governor-Elect Scwarzenegger. California is our most populous state, and provides roughly one-quarter of all America's food. So what happens there has impact on the entire country. What has happened in California since the election of Gray Davis has not been good, and Arnold Scwarzenegger has elected with a mandate to turn that state's fortunes around. He deserves the support of Americans everywhere in this titanic effort which will surely prove his biggest challenge to date.
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