Beam me to Planet Gore !
Posted on 12/26/2010 9:23:56 AM PST by SmithL
A month before the historic recall that drove Gov. Gray Davis from office in 2003, Arnold Schwarzenegger appeared in a TV commercial making a promise to the voters of California.
"Here's my plan," he said. "Audit everything, open the books, and then we end the crazy deficit spending. "... If you're happy with the way things are, keep your current leaders. If you want to change this state, then join me."
Voters joined in droves. But as he prepares to leave office seven years later, Schwarzenegger's promises are a distant echo.
He leaves a legacy of landmark environmental laws, public works spending and the first steps of significant political reform. Yet Schwarzenegger also leaves California a financial basket case, with the nation's lowest credit rating and a staggering $25.4 billion budget deficit -- far larger than the $10.2 billion deficit he inherited from Davis.
At his peak in 2004, Schwarzenegger enjoyed a 65 percent approval rating in the nonpartisan Field Poll -- higher than legendary governors Ronald Reagan or Pat Brown ever achieved. His latest rating is 23 percent, no different statistically than the 22 percent with which Davis left office.
"He was going to tear down the bureaucracy and blow up the boxes, make government more streamlined and efficient. It didn't happen," said Field Poll director Mark DiCamillo. "People still like the man, but he was just ineffective. He didn't do what he said he was going to do."
Legislative battles
Schwarzenegger, 63, has exuded optimism since he first came to the United States in 1968 from Austria. A champion bodybuilder with little money, barely able to speak English, he became one of Hollywood's A-list actors and a member of the Kennedy family through his marriage to Maria Shriver.
But as California's 38th governor, the larger-than-life Schwarzenegger failed to break the gridlock and dysfunction
(Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...
When a politician goes on TV and radio and says over and over that “Taxes are too high,” and “California must operate under a budget,” how is that a “whisper campaign?”
Could have had Tom McClintock, and we’d have dodged the bullet. We’d have had a very exciting confrontation between Tom and the legislature, but veto’s would have slowed the growth and intrusiveness of CA gov. No, the OC mafia that runs the CA Repubs wanted Arnie. Guess they figured they could manipulate him and stay at the trough. They were right. Now the states in a budget mess worse than with Grey. And Jerry Brown says “he didn’t realize it was as bad as it is.” Expletive.
Every politician on the planet says that. Let me know if you ever locate a politician who gets elected by saying "I'm a fiscal liberal, vote for me and I will increase wasteful spending and raise your taxes". Doesn't happen. Even FDR ran on a platform to streamline and downsize government, then gave us the New Deal.
It was clear from Arnold's actions and his policies that he was no "fiscal conservative". Arnold had married into and been brainwashed by the Kennedy clan, surrounded himself with left-wing advisers and Hollyweird types, and his only government involvement had been to support new nanny state programs like "afhtar schewl programs fur all de children". Arnold admitted several times his intentions were to "provide programs fur all de people" and even got caught discussing tax hikes with Warren Buffet. He ran hard-left on social issues and openly supported taxpayer funded abortion on demand, gay rights programs, etc. (his fan club here said it didn't matter, everyone must vote for him anyaway) He made it ABUNDTLY clear he despised conservatives and the GOP platform, calling efforts to repeal affirmative action the work of "right wing crazies" and so on.
His only "conservative" beliefs were soundbites, as calcowgirl noted, they were part of a campaign script he memorized so he could have applause lines like "live within our means", "tear up de credit cards" and "blow up de boxes". If you actually studied his policy positions in detail, there was no big conservative plan to shrink government, just alot of smoke and mirrors, and feel good promises to have transparency.
The pro-Arnold freepers were warned that he was lying through his teeth and given amble evidence of his liberalism, they chose to ignore it. The signs were all there. Just like how Mark Kirk recently ran as a "fiscal conservative" in Illinois and lied through his teeth about how he would be a "lame duck killer", then promptly voted for every big government gravy bill and Obama pet priority his fellow liberals needed to pass before January.
The reason why these RINOs keep getting away with calling themselves "fiscal conservatives" is because gullible GOP voters keep drinking the kool-aid and ignoring the candidate's nature because the want to "win" at all costs.
When is the last time ANY RINO who campaigned as a "fiscal conservative" actually governed that way? It doesn't happen.
It was a popular saying that “failure was not an option” now in California it is the only option.
Arnold Lied
California Died
I’d like to see what his investment portfolio looks like now. If it is in green tech, then I want to see him in jail!
Ridiculous! We did NOT want Cruz Bustamante. There was absolutely no way Tom McClintock was going to win. You have selective memory of the circumstances.
Seems you're the one with selective memory
You’re dreaming. McClintock would not have won and there was no reason for Arnold to drop out. One takes circumstances as they are. And they were NOT favorable.
Typical comments by someone clueless about California. Try to clean up your own state, genius!
He made these promises too. When a politician makes such promises, guess which ones you should believe? If you saw where Arnold's money was coming from, you'd have known better.
No, it was the third party "Arnold is a fiscal conservative; he can win" campaign that made the difference, organized by Bob White under the direction of Pete Wilson and Gerry Parsky that made the difference.
Here is the last USA Today/CNN/GALLUP poll before the recall.
"6. If the choice were between Cruz Bustamante, the Democrat and Tom McClintock, the Republican, who would you be more likely to vote for: Cruz Bustamante or Tom McClintock?"
September 25-27
Registered Voters
McClintock 49%
Bustamante 42%
Probable Voters
McClintock 56%
Bustamante 37%
Looks to me like you're the one who's clueless, not to mention defeatist.
That was never in question. Typical of you! When did Arnold ever say he might drop out? You can wish, and wish and wish all you like, but circumstances don’t change on your whims.
Arnold, McClintock, Bustamante and others were in that race. McClintock was never going to win.
A little realism goes a long way.
Your "realism" is what gave us Arnold in a state that passed props 209, 22, and 8.
The realism is that Arnold was never going to drop out. It was your fantasy.
Face the facts and get over it.
Had those who preferred McClintock voted for him, Arnold would have taken more votes from left than right. Instead, people like you voted for your fear of Bustamante rather than Arnold. There were thousands of posts on FR alone to that effect. I interviewed scads of Republicans who expressed that exact sentiment.
No. You're full of crap.
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