Schwarzenegger Aims to Bypass Lawmakers

LA Times ^ | Dec. 7, 2003 | Peter Nicholas and Joe Mathews

[FairOpinion]

SACRAMENTO — Rebuffed by state lawmakers in an early test of his administration, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will now try to bypass the Legislature whenever feasible and tap into the public support he commands by bringing his agenda directly to the ballot, administration aides said Saturday.

The governor, himself, remained publicly silent about Friday night's defeat of the state spending limit and $15 billion bond measure he had proposed. His aides, however, cast the votes as confirmation that the Legislature is ignoring the message of the Oct. 7th recall vote and the mandate they contend Schwarzenegger won.

That campaign would take to the ballot possibly more than a half-dozen measures sponsored by Schwarzenegger and various groups aligned with him. Included would be a constitutional amendment for a balanced budget and spending cap, and a package of changes in the state's workers compensation system, according to a Schwarzenegger adviser.

[NormsRevenge]

obsessed?.. no more than folks like you who slam your own countrymen for having & expressing their own beliefs and fighting for principles you don't feel are expedient to support anymore when it matters most.

You get any snow down that way? I was stationed in New River way back when and remember going to the ocean and sitting there in a snow flurry. saw a nasty icestorm blow thru there too.

[Enterprise]

Oh dear, I am running up such a bill for ruined computers. I'll have to flee to Canada soon.

[Tamzee]

It sure isn't perfect, but it's incredibly stable.

I can't tell you how much I appreciate your post. I've recognized that the 2-party system prevents extremists from gaining power but never thought of it from the point of stability.

I gained something very valuable from your comments and thank you for kindly sharing your insight :-)

[Tamzee]

[Kevin Curry]

Arnold will likely pull off the coup though by going to the people.

"Kingfish" Arnie rousin' da rabble.

My.

[Kevin Curry]

This means that the looneys get to speak, but they get nowhere near the levers of power.

Reagan was considered a looney, a far right wing reactionary. He almost knocked off middle-of-the-roader Ford in 1976 and beat "moderate" Carter in 1980.

And the nation is much better off for it.

[gatorbait]

You get any snow down that way? I was stationed in New River way back when and remember going to the ocean and sitting there in a snow flurry. saw a nasty icestorm blow thru there too

Norm, the closest snow we got was in Shreveport about 5 years ago. Now, until last year, my kids had never sen snow except on TV. I'm from way South Louisiana .I did catch a snow stor that got as far south as McComb,MS about, 9 or so years back,, Brought it to them in a lunch box LOL. Now , we do get some horrific, though very rare ice storms but mostly in Central and North Louisiana .We end up closing the whole state down when that happens. Hurricane, no sweat.Thunderstorms with floods, we yawn..Temp below 150 and we are freezing .

Were you in the Marine Air wing? When? Aviator or ground crew?

Later,

dave

[Kevin Curry]

Arnold will likely pull off the coup though by going to the people.

Personally profilgate Arnold, the self-absorbed master of conspicuous consumption--whose idea of a night out with his Kennedy wife is to take her by private jet to Switzerland so she can ride in an alpine gondola--is going to go straight to the people of California and preach the gospel of fiscal austerity?

He'll get 100 percent buy-in as long he promises only to raid "the other guy's stash." Problem is, everybody is "the other guy."

And he's already on record as wanting to find a way to keep illegal aliens happy. So whose stash is he going to raid?

[AndyJackson]

But there is neither East nor West, Border, nor Breed, nor Birth, When two strong men stand face to face, though they com from the ends of the earth</I?

Kipling, The Ballad of East and West

[NormsRevenge]

MAG-29, New River MCAS, I was in a squadron supply group,, maintained a computer system (Univac relics already in their day), as a data systems tech.

Now I understand you're comment about the governor race better, Jindal got jobbed. too bad, those same polls did to him what they did to Landrieu's opponent. It just goes to show how far many states have to go to reverse the tide of rats.

I spent some time in Baton Rouge a few years later, and also did some work at a couple of the SPR strategic petroleum reserve (SPR), some pretty gals in that neck of the woods. I don;t handle the humidity too well tho, Im a sweater. It gets above 50 and Im half naked or in a tank top and shorts. ;-)

[gatorbait]

Jindal got jobbed. too bad, those same polls did to him what they did to Landrieu's opponent. It just goes to show how far many states have to go to reverse the tide of rats.
Norm, you don't know the half of it, Squatting Edwin is racing full tilt to the far left for her cabinet and legislative leaders, In a way, she ran a very Clintonesque campaign.

When were you here? I've not been out there in Cali since June 2000 though I may be going to the Bay area first of January. I hear I may need a flak vest for that trip. Any truth to that rumor?

[NormsRevenge]

Nawww, it's safe here in California or as safe as anywhere. Just be heads up if you're anywhere near Oakland and Richmond. The occasional pot shooters and crack pots are out here, too bad we don't have CCW so folks could stand a fighting chance tho.

I was in Louisiana way back in the mid and late 80s and NC in 74-75.

[winker]

The Gray Machine stole and spent your thunder; Get Colleyfornia on a Budget!

[gatorbait]

The occasional pot shooters and crack pots are out here, too bad we don't have CCW so folks could stand a fighting chance tho.

We still have CCW here, though Squatting Edwin is picking notorious gun grabbing thieves for her staff and cabinet. I know the Lt Governor, and amiable dunce but a dedicated marxist.

Hell I was here then; why did you not call? I'll let you know when I head west so you can take care of the whackos in the Bay Area for me before I arrive.

[Tamzee]

Personally profilgate Arnold, the self-absorbed master of conspicuous consumption--whose idea of a night out with his Kennedy wife is to take her by private jet to Switzerland so she can ride in an alpine gondola--is going to go straight to the people of California and preach the gospel of fiscal austerity?

Yep... he arrived here with $20 bucks in his pocket. I can't think of anyone better to preach that capitalism allows hard work and sacrifice to bring rewards.

[Hoverbug]

How very mature of you. /sarcasm

No rebuttal to my point, I see.

If you continue to live in fear of the boogeyman they present you and vote for the "lesser of two evils", you'll be controlled all your life.

Another question: How do you know "who has the best chance to win?" Polls? If you're going to let polls dictate your vote, why don't you just send the pollsters a proxy and let them vote for you?

Hb

[Tamzee]

Well dear, your supposition was a pretty silly one. If we had to choose between an ULTRA-ULTRA-ULTRA Socialist and an ULTRA-ULTRA Socialist, then that would mean that the bulk of the electorate resides around those two extremes.... no matter how poor the ideology, they should win. Do you honestly feel that a teeny percentage of the voter pool should be able to overrule the rest of it and pull a coup?

Educate the voter pool, oh-confrontational-one, and then you can put forward candidates that will appeal to them. If we believe there are SHEEPLE who don't believe in our values, then it is our own fault they remain that way. Putting your efforts instead to attacking fellow right-wingers is tiresome and counterproductive.

[jagrmeister]

You obviously haven't been following the negotiation with the legislature. Arnold is proposing billions in cuts. Burton, the Democrat Assembly leader, is staunchly opposed to any cuts. This is part of the reason for the impasse. So put aside your preconceptions of Arnold and pay attention to the news.

[Hoverbug]

Well dear, your supposition was a pretty silly one. If we had to choose between an ULTRA-ULTRA-ULTRA Socialist and an ULTRA-ULTRA Socialist, then that would mean that the bulk of the electorate resides around those two extremes

Well dear, no it wasn't. Not if the electorate (such as yourself)who wants a conservative can be convinced that "a conservative just can't win" and therefore votes for the ULTRA ULTRA socialist in order to beat the 3xULTRA socialist.

But then, you've just pointed out another flaw in voting for the lesser of 2 evils. Whomever received the beneifit of being the lesser evil can point to his vote totals and say "I'm what the majority wants, and nobody wants conservatism" just as you did when you said it would mean the majority resides around those two extremes.

Do you believe for a minute that you were the first one to come up with the idea of voting for the lesser of two evils and that it's never been tried before? Those who have done it before you know it doesn't work.

Educate the voter pool, oh-confrontational-one, and then you can put forward candidates that will appeal to them.

Oh really? Do you know of any election in recent history where people voted for a different candidate other then the one that appealed to them because, instead of voting their convictions, they voted for someone other than their first choice because "a conservative just can't win" and their second choice was "the one most to the right who could win" over the guy they didn't want?

If you really are conservative, one day you'll realize that I am not your enemy.

Hb

[Hoverbug]

Can you give me a closer figure on that? I heard under 2 billion in cuts, and a 15 billion dollar revenue increase to the state government, really costing more because of the interest.

In other words, the tax increase (renamed "borrowing")he said he wouldn't do.

Hb