Posted on 04/11/2004 8:29:17 AM PDT by John Jorsett
SACRAMENTO - Finding an opening on Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante's schedule is not normally a problem -- even last week when the state's No. 2 executive took over the wheel while Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vacationed in Hawaii.
Backed up in his lobby one afternoon was a group of Sikh businessmen from Stockton, here to talk to the lieutenant governor about a parade. There was a pair of conference calls on the list as well, an aide explained. And then there was the paperwork to read and sign -- two or three sheets at least that Bustamante busied himself with while the Sikhs, wearing turbans and bright clothes, cooled their heels outside.
But even on a busy day, Bustamante is the Capitol's forgotten man.
Six months removed from a crushing defeat in the recall election, Bustamante searches for ways to restore his battered political reputation and to fend off a multimillion-dollar lawsuit stemming from charges of campaign violations.
Eclipsed by the ascent of Arnold Schwarzenegger and the transformed political landscape that the new governor has inspired, Bustamante finds himself still largely isolated from his own party's mainstream by many Democrats who view his recall candidacy as an act of disloyalty.
While many Democrats and analysts believe the former Assembly speaker will need a phenomenal comeback to become a factor again in California politics, Bustamante himself is not discouraged.
"I don't believe the voters were saying, 'Cruz, we are rejecting you,'" the 50-year-old career politician said in an interview last week. "I think what they were saying is that we are looking for someone else. And in a different context, in a different campaign, the results might have been different."
Bustamante, who is termed out of the lieutenant governor's job in 2006, said he wants to take another month or two to decide what he might do next. He insists, however, that no negative fallout from the recall campaign limits his options.
"I don't think I have anything to prove," he said. "I think I've served the state well. I think I still have more to give and if the voters want me to do more, they give you a clear message."
Still, it's been quite a fall for someone who, at the outset of the recall, was considered one of the state's most important politicians. Last summer, a national survey of Latinos listed him as the most admired Latino public figure living in the United States, an honor he shared with entertainer Jennifer Lopez.
When the recall seemed about to hit the state ballot, Bustamante joined the rest of California's Democrats who held statewide office in saying he wouldn't run to replace then-Gov. Gray Davis. Then he jumped in at the last minute, saying he changed his mind and angering many Democratic loyalists.
Early in the race, Bustamante dominated the polls, but his campaign soon bogged down. He accepted millions of dollars from Indian tribes that run gambling casinos, first putting the money in an old campaign account and then shifting it elsewhere after Republicans and the California Fair Political Practices Commission said he violated state contribution limits. The commission filed a civil lawsuit during the campaign that is still pending, as are fines of up to $9 million.
Even more crippling, however, was his inability to excite voters. His image as a soothing hand who would calm a bitterly partisan Capitol did not sit well with angry voters who wanted change. During the campaign's most important debate, his appearance led a TV critic from the San Francisco Chronicle to say he "looked like a giant sleeping cat."
By the end of the race, Schwarzenegger's juggernaut had rendered Bustamante a distant speck in the rearview mirror. Davis was recalled, while Schwarzenegger won the replacement election going away, taking nearly 49 percent of the vote to Bustamante's 32 percent.
Bustamante can resurrect himself, observers said, but it won't be easy.
"You can lose a big election and still survive -- Richard Nixon proved that and Al Gore may prove it again one day," said Brian Janiskee, a political scientist at Cal State San Bernardino. "But to lose an election and alienate the core support of your own party -- that's another matter."
Robert Deposada, president of the Latino Coalition, a Washington-based business group that sponsors an annual poll on Latino views, agreed. "I think losing the way he did will diminish his standing tremendously. He's a very likable man, but his campaign was such a disappointment."
Most Democrats don't want to criticize Bustamante by name, but many said privately that his decision to enter the recall race crippled Davis' strategy to motivate the state's majority party to reject the recall outright and offer no replacement candidate.
Bustamante said he has not felt any chill from fellow Democrats, noting that he was "well received" at the party convention in January and can measure no change around the Capitol.
Jack Pitney, a professor of government at Claremont McKenna College, said Bustamante's standing might be worse "if there were more Davis loyalists around," noting that 25 percent of the state's Democrats voted to replace Davis.
Bustamante has two years to recondition himself, which under most conditions is more than enough time. But party leaders and big contributors must be convinced fairly soon that Bustamante can cut it, as many decisions are being made in the coming months about campaigns that will begin sometime next year.
Democratic consultant Bill Carrick said Bustamante would have a tough time persuading people he can contend for governor -- but there's no reason to think he could not run for another constitutional office.
"I would think that if he wanted to run for treasurer or some other statewide office that might be open, he could be competitive," Carrick said.
How come both you and McClintock don't seem to get it?
Glad I read the article.
Glancing at the title I initially though Bustamante was facing deportation since he can't provide government documents to prove he's a US citizen.
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