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FreeRepublic , LLC PO BOX 9771 FRESNO, CA 93794
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Posted on 10/04/2003 6:14:14 AM PDT by billorites
Arnold Schwarzenegger's biggest body count was in Commando, a 1985 film in which he played Colonel John Matrix and had only hours to rescue his kidnapped daughter after an evil dictator spirited her away. A hundred people, no doubt all villains, got what was coming as he tracked her down.
Nobody has died yet in the action hero's quest to become governor of California, but Mr. Schwarzenegger is learning that politics in California is no less of a blood sport than Hollywood movie-making.
On the verge of apparent victory this week, he found himself the target of a classic smear campaign. With just six days left in the campaign, the Los Angeles Times -- which opposes the recall -- devoted three pages to reports about women who claim the actor groped them in years past, on movie sets, in hotel rooms and even in elevators.
Then someone somewhere alerted ABC to an unpublished book proposal in which Mr. Schwarzenegger is quoted-- almost 30 years ago -- stupidly saying he admired Adolf Hitler's tenacity and his powerful public presence.
Jeez. Pretty original. What else are you going to do with an Austrian he-man actor, if you haven't been able to defeat him in the regular campaign, but to link him to Hitler and portray him as a sexual bully? As a plot line it displays an elemental crudeness that might otherwise be admired by fans of Mr. Schwarzenegger's films.
But it doesn't exactly cover the Democrats in glory. If this tactic doesn't work, what's next? Grainy shots of Arnold frolicking with small boys? Would that make Californians want to vote for Gray Davis?
Yesterday, Mr. Schwarzenegger was busy apologizing at every turn. He's trundling around the state in what was intended to be a final push toward victory, trailed by more than 200 reporters in a convoy of buses named after some of his better-known bad movies -- Terminator 1 to 3, and True Lies. Most of them came to play the campaign for laughs, unable to accept Californians might really go through with it. Sure, voters may threaten to hand the richest state in the world's most powerful country to a muscle-bound immigrant with more moxie than acting skill, but they wouldn't really go through with it, would they?
The first evidence they would appeared in a CNN poll early this week, which indicated Arnold -- his campaign Web site just calls him Arnold -- had broken free from a tight pack and was heading to a comfortable victory. Davis's people rubbished the poll, but then an L.A. Times survey reached the same conclusion, and Arnold felt confident enough to begin talking about his first 100 days as Governor Schwarzenegger. That's when the Times, apparently shocked by its own findings, launched its assault, and by yesterday the would-be Gubernator was on the defensive, forced to assure audiences he wasn't really a Nazi sex fiend.
If they accept his apologies-- or are so revolted by the cynicism of the Democrat assault that a backlash develops -- Californians may drag themselves out of bed on Wednesday to discover they've accomplished the closest thing to a coup d'état you can get in a democracy.
It's an arresting prospect, and it does raise some questions, which have been ill-addressed despite the oversupply of pundits tracking his progress.
For one thing, does any of it matter? Beyond fulfilling an ambition he apparently formed years ago, and providing the world with a bit of a giggle, would a victorious Mr. Schwarzenegger mean anything any of us should care about?
Does he have any policies? Like, after he gets sworn in and checks out his new office, does he have the faintest idea what to do next?
And even if he turns out to be the worst governor in the history of California, which would take some doing, could he actually ruin the place? Is there any evidence rank amateurs do a worse job than experienced (we won't say skilled) politicians?
The easiest answer is that, yes, it does appear to matter. You might have guessed that by the number of times Bill Clinton flew in to appear with the doomed Governor Davis, or the extent of the smear campaign Democrats are now mounting as a last resort (the kind of campaign, by the way, Mr. Clinton could well identify with).
The White House is certainly paying close attention. George W. Bush hasn't starred in any action movies involving cyborgs recently, but an upset victory by a Republican who has suggests it's not completely out of the question California's 54 electoral votes could some day be delivered to a Republican presidential candidate. It's a long shot, to be sure, but the way things are going in Iraq these days, Mr. Bush may need a couple of long shots if he's to stay on for a second term.
It's also important because of California's track record as the state where political eruptions emit their first tremors. The fundamental reality behind Mr. Schwarzenegger's popularity is that Californians are so thoroughly disgusted with the entire gang of political louts they've been stuck with they're willing to replace them with almost anyone who seems even remotely competent, even someone with no experience in any form of government.
It's not the first time this has happened, but never on this scale and with so much at stake, and if it catches on there could be a lot of career politicians nervously watching their backs.
Whether the governor-to-be has any policies is harder to nail down. His Web site carries detailed questions on all the major issues of the day, followed by imprecise answers.
He is pro-abortion, though opposed to the most gruesome procedures. He supports the right to own guns, though he also backs some minor controls. He seems generally pro-car: He promises to reverse a car tax imposed by Mr. Davis, opposes "costly transit programs" and thinks the money could be better spent on bigger freeways. He would ban special lanes for high occupancy vehicles and open them up "so that all the taxpayers who paid for those lanes and are now sitting in traffic jams can use them."
He is generally against special treatment for undocumented immigrants, but is careful about saying so because the Hispanic vote is important. He opposes an initiative that would undermine affirmative action programs by making it difficult to collect racial statistics.
It's on the big things that he starts to lose focus. His proposal for closing the state's US$8-billion budget shortfall gets one paragraph in his platform: "I will ensure that California's government lives within its means ... and reins in spending to close the operating deficit."
His plan for the state's energy crisis is only slightly more detailed. "I have a six-point plan that will prevent further blackouts," he says, pledging to reform state agencies, attract new investment and improve the regulatory system based on successful models used in other states.
He's big on experts. He has an Economic Recovery Council to advise on the budget, plans to hire an independent auditor to go over the books, plans a coalition of authorities to address air quality programs and plans a "top to bottom" review of transportation needs.
He won't raise taxes and wants a constitutional limit on spending increases, but pledges not to cut education spending and does not identify any other examples of savings. He plans to call a special session of the state legislature to sort it all out and expects legislators to heed the "powerful message" voters will be sending by electing him.
Although it's often noted California is the state that first elected Ronald Reagan, the more apt comparison for Mr. Schwarze-negger is the unlikely victory of Jesse Ventura in Minnesota five years ago.
Mr. Reagan had years of experience as a political voice and a firmly cast set of principles; Mr. Ventura was an ageing wrestler who wanted some fun. He's also a buddy of Arnold: They appeared in a couple of movies together, and Arnold had a front-row seat at Mr. Ventura's inauguration.
Gov. Ventura had a great first year, using his celebrity to have his way with the legislature, keeping his main campaign promises and beginning a habit of handing back rebates to overtaxed voters. But the momentum began to ebb, and Jesse and the voters began to tire of one another. He ran off at the mouth, suggesting the problem with the Columbine massacre was too few guns -- the students had lacked weapons to defend themselves. He didn't take criticism lightly and started to lose interest, fleeing the legislature to chase book deals and wrestling appearances, and signing on as a motormouth for a shortlived football league. He quit after news reports criticized his son for having wild parties at the governor's mansion while Mr. Ventura was off on a junket in China, huffing his way up the Great Wall.
But the thing is, Minnesota survived. And Mr. Ventura, by conventional standards, didn't do half bad. There's probably no reason Mr. Schwarzenegger, a driven man who is obviously brighter than the characters he plays, couldn't do as well.
The groping, and general movie star flim-flammery will have to go -- people will be amused for a while, but will tire quickly if it's all he seems capable of. He could take a lesson from Mr. Ventura and use his momentum while he still has it. He might also learn from Mr. Reagan, who focused on the big problems and didn't try to sort out every traffic jam.
It seems unlikely he could actually ruin the state. The lesson of modern politics is that governments are inert by nature, reluctant to do anything rash unless circumstances force their hand.
The bigger danger is that he gets sucked into the same quagmire that trapped Mr. Davis, producing four more years of gridlock.
Mr. Schwarzenegger probably has a chance to escape that, though the moment will be brief. And there will be plenty of evil-doers gunning for him.
kmcparland@nationalpost.com
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FreeRepublic , LLC PO BOX 9771 FRESNO, CA 93794
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Dear Bert. By February the structural deficit in California may be approaching $20B.
Even if Schwarzenegger were thr only state employee, payroll cuts woun't solve California's problem.
The first thing that I'd like to see cut is Prop 98 which takes care of Prop 49. The quicker that the state gives K -12 schools and property taxes back to the counties the better off taxpayers will be.
At this time Los Angeles County is sucking the lifeblood out of the California budget. Los Angeles county needs to be cut adrift to rot in it's own foul juices.
Interesting how people can look at the smoking crater that's California government today and wonder if one guy might damage it.
I don't expect a Canadian self-enslaving sheep to recognize this, but Ventura was absolutely correct. With the addition that the teachers ought to have also been armed, as was instrumental in preventing other instances of carnage.
Kids were once taught by their parents and in the government schools to respect the awesome power and exercise the immense responsibility needed for using firearms. As late as the '60s -- I saw it myself. If this had persisted, Columbine would have remained, for most people, merely the name of a flower.
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