Posted on 09/09/2007 1:45:52 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
One of California's leading conservatives delivered a public slap at Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Sunday, two days after the celebrity governor called for the Republican Party to move to the political center or risk a future of irrelevance.
Sen. Tom McClintock never mentioned the governor by name, but his speech to GOP activists at a state convention was thick with transparent digs at Schwarzenegger and referenced remarks the governor made last week.
On Friday, the governor declared that the GOP was "dying at the box office" and would drift into the political margins unless it tackles issues like global warming to attract new voters, especially from the growing ranks of independents.
The governor describes himself as a "post-partisan" who wants to bridge the political divide that often leaves the state capital of Sacramento gridlocked. He has cut deals with Democrats in the Legislature to curb global warming, provide low-cost prescription drugs and boost the minimum wage with only a sprinkle of Republican votes.
McClintock, R-Thousand Oaks, warned of policies that would "devastate California under the empty banner of post-partisanship." He predicted Californians would not flock to a party that is "a pale, post-partisan reflection of the Democrats."
"We don't need to redefine our principles, we need to return to them," McClintock told cheering activists.
"We can win some short-term victories by compromising our philosophy for political expediency," McClintock said. "But a party that does that soon discovers it has ceased to be a party at all."
Adam Mendelsohn, a Schwarzenegger spokesman, said McClintock misunderstood the intent of the governor's remarks.
"Gov. Schwarzenegger was advocating Republican solutions," Mendelsohn said. "We cannot continue to ignore the issues Californians care about."
McClintock's speech capped a weekend convention that spotlighted deep divisions between the party's conservative and moderate wings. On Saturday, party Chairman Ron Nehring steered around questions on Schwarzenegger's assessment of the party's future.
Republicans at the convention also endorsed a proposed ballot initiative to change the way the state awards electoral votes in presidential contests, a plan the governor has questioned.
Like most states, California awards all its electoral votes to the statewide winner in presidential elections. Under the ballot proposal, the statewide winner would get only two electoral votes. The rest would be distributed to the winning candidate in each of the state's congressional districts.
That would create 53 races, each with one electoral vote up for grabs. President Bush carried 22 of those districts in 2004, while losing the statewide vote by double digits.
The so-called Presidential Election Reform Act, if it qualifies for the ballot and is approved by voters, could shift those votes into the GOP column in 2008 and potentially alter the outcome of the race.
Only Maine and Nebraska allocate electoral votes by congressional district.
“We don’t need to redefine our principles, we need to return to them,” McClintock told cheering activists.
PING
And we all know that Democrats won't meet the GOP halfway on GOP issues such as tax cuts, spending, crime, etc. The GOP will be forced to compromise even more.
Many in the field of GOP candidates for president are directly out of Arnie’s mold. Liberal and proud of it. We need to weed the libs out and let them be democraps.
Compromise is: getting rid of your principles a little bit at a time.
- Patrick Lear
Tom McClintock should run for Congress. The current Congressman from his district (Elton Gallagly) is a flake.
Arnold is a Liberal shill and a huge disappointment for everyone that was stupid enough to support the recall and then his election for governor. He is a sick joke that backfired on a lot of us.
A friend gave me a ticket to the McCain luncheon keynote speech. Several at my table thought it was mildly humorous to ask why they allowed the governor to speak at a GOP convention.
McClintock is wasted on local California politics. He is one of the best men out there in public life. We need him to step up to a bigger stage.
He was a good man until he lost those ballot initiatives.
I’d love to see make a Senate run and then see him debating DiFi and bringing up MILCON and a few other little items.. ;-)
Tom tells it like it is!
Which is why campaigns pretty much ignore Maine and Nebraska. A win in either state nets you 1 (one) Electoral Vote. Big deal. Much bigger fish in Delaware or North Dakota or Wyoming.
What an idiotic thing to say, let alone impressing that tossing conviction to the wayside is OK.
RNC Chairman?
Even though I have never resided in CA, he is the only politician (outside of the national) that I have ever sent financial support to.
Ditto
You did the right thing.
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