Posted on 10/19/2005 1:08:23 PM PDT by calcowgirl
REDDING Hailing him as the bravest California governor in history, State Sen. Tom McClintock, R-Thousand Oaks, candidate for lieutenant governor, visited here to stump for Schwarzenegger's slate of ballot initiatives.
"He has taken on some of the most powerful special interest groups that ever existed that has wrapped its tentacles around our government," said McClintock, referring to the public employee union.
The governor's opponent during the 2003 recall election, praised Schwarzenegger for having the courage to take on the big public employee unions and their money. Recently, the unions have stepped up their anti-Arnold messages and turned up the heat in a slew of television, print and radio advertisements.
McClintock said that Prop. 75 would require unions to get approval from their members before using union dues to support a candidate or make a political contribution.
"They know if they lose their stronghold on government, they will lose their power," said McClintock. "Let us be the era that begins a new renaissance of change to the Golden State."
While campaigning for lieutenant governor, McClintock stressed the importance of the often overlooked office.
"The old joke is that your main job is to call the governor each morning to see if they are still breathing," he said. "In reality, it's an office that was designed to be a powerful engine for policy reform."
He pointed out that the office is the second highest constitutional office in the state. The lieutenant governor is president of the Senate and also sits on the board of the California Regents, which oversees the University of California system.
"Right now, it's not being utilized," he said.
McClintock warned voters who may think his Democratic challenger Jackie Speiers is fairly conservative in some of her views, that she is one of the most liberal in government.
McClintock also talked about his goals if elected.
"My number one goal is to set forward the policy reforms I discussed the day after the 2003 recall," he said. "We need to reform the state and restructure our public works."
Another issue McClintock has been actively promoting is the Homeowners Property Protection Act he is sponsoring in the Senate. It is being sponsored in the Assembly by Doug LaMalfa.
On Tuesday, the measure received strong public support from the governor.
"The governor's office had called us to pledge preliminary support," explained McClintock after the governor's speech. "This is the first time he has spoken in favor of it in a large audience, and we are very pleased with what was said."
The measure would prevent governments from seizing private property in order to sell it to another private owner. Once illegal, the law was overturned in Kelo v. city of New London.
"One of the most fundamental rights Americans have is to be secure in their homes and shops," said McClintock. "The Kelo decision represented the ultimate challenge of these rights and awakened a sleeping giant."
He added that the measure won't interfere with legitimate cases in which eminent domain is justified according the State Constitution.
"It simply says the government can't take something from someone and force them to sell it to someone else if they don't want to give it up," McClintock said. "It's as simple as that."
Staff writer C. Jerome Crow can be reached at 527-2151, ext. 109 or at cjeromecrow@hotmail.com
On Tuesday, the measure received strong public support from the governor.
"The governor's office had called us to pledge preliminary support," explained McClintock after the governor's speech. "This is the first time he has spoken in favor of it in a large audience, and we are very pleased with what was said."
PING!
McClintock Ping List -- Please freepmail me if anyone wants on or off this list
BTTT!!!!!!
I'm glad we're finally seeing and hearing some positive ads. If I heard one more unopposed run of the ad whining about Arnold's "bad idea on education," "broken promise," and needing to "fund our school music programs" again I think I'd vomit.
Thanks, McClintock, for fighting the good fight.
How refreshing. A conservative who puts his personal loss aside and works for the betterment of his state.
If this sort of teamwork, along with Tom's choice to run only for LIEUTENANT governor instead of Governor, doesn't convince the state GOP apparatchiks that Tom's solid gold, then nothing will.
BTTT!
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