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Go left: Arnie tells US Republicans
The Age ^ | December 19, 2004 | ASSOCIATED PRESS

Posted on 12/18/2004 12:56:18 PM PST by yonif

California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger suggested in a German newspaper interview, that the US Republican Party should move "a little to the left", a shift that he said would allow it to pick up new voters.

Schwarzenegger, a Republican, has taken an unorthodox approach since winning office last year - standing by a promise to toe a conservative line on fiscal matters while veering leftward on social issues such as gay rights and the environment.

In an interview with Germany's Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily, Schwarzenegger said: "The Republican Party currently covers only the spectrum from the right wing to the middle, and the Democratic Party covers the spectrum from the left to the middle."

"I would like the Republican Party to cross this line, move a little further left and place more weight on the centre," he was quoted as saying.

"This would immediately give the party 5 per cent more votes without it losing anything elsewhere."

Schwarzenegger was guarded on suggestions that he harbours presidential ambitions, saying only that a debate on whether the constitution should be amended to allow foreign-born citizens to run was "overdue".

Schwarzenegger became an American citizen in 1983, 15 years after he emigrated from Austria.

He has said he'd consider running for president if such an amendment passed, but has also taken pains to say it shouldn't be created specifically for him.

"I would like people to remember me as someone who raised standards, wherever I got involved," he was quoted as saying.

"I brought bodybuilding from nothing, I made the action film a genre, and the same goes for politics - I want to do things that no one believed possible. I would like to bring people together as governor."


TOPICS: Front Page News; Government; Politics/Elections; US: California
KEYWORDS: bigtent; gop; republicans; rino; schwarzenegger
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To: yonif
standing by a promise to toe a conservative line on fiscal matters while veering leftward on social issues

Who is being fooled here? Schwarzenegger is farther to the left on fiscal issues than sociual issues.

41 posted on 12/18/2004 1:12:25 PM PST by nickcarraway
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To: yonif
Perhaps we could get Governor Arnold's opinion on what the Democrats could do to expand the size of their pup tent.

Presumably he would say they should move their fiscal policies away from Socialism and more toward supply-side economics but I guess that wouldn't be received very well in the Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily (or in The New York Times for that matter).
42 posted on 12/18/2004 1:13:01 PM PST by spinestein (Intolerance will not be tolerated !)
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To: Captain Kirk

I was looking in comparison to Democrat policies when they are in power. You are right that in this time period Bush is spending faster than Clinton. Maybe I could amend it and say that there are more differences when both the executive and legislative branches are occupied by the same party.


43 posted on 12/18/2004 1:14:18 PM PST by yonif ("So perish all Thine enemies, O the Lord" - Judges 5:31)
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To: yonif

Apparently, Arnie has a very European way of looking at things. A wiser American politician would look at the situation of the country itself and ask what should be done, rather than procede from abstractions of questionable meaning like "left" and "right."


44 posted on 12/18/2004 1:14:32 PM PST by x
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To: NittanyLion

Hey NittanyLion, I'm a Penn State Alumnus. Did you go to Main campus?


45 posted on 12/18/2004 1:14:43 PM PST by superskunk (Quinn's Law: Liberalism always produces the exact opposite of it's stated intent.)
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To: fish hawk
Another one term governor.

Exactly, I'm not voting for him again, I think a RAT should get elected next election and finish the job of chasing all the business out of CA so the state can go bankrupt and the Feds have to take over so they can enact the necessary Spending Cuts that have to be done here.
46 posted on 12/18/2004 1:14:52 PM PST by John Lenin
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To: Captain Kirk
The ones who are especially clueless are the ones who actually believe he is "rightwing."

I knew that Arnie wasn't rightwing, but he won, and breasts Bustamante didn't. His comments to the German newspaper have to be digested by Republicans nationwide, and BTW, I'm not for changing the Constitution.

Now I ask malcontent Californians on this thread who they would rather have as Governor, Arnold or Bustamante, and I state this as not being able to vote in California,

47 posted on 12/18/2004 1:15:24 PM PST by Dane (Trial lawyers are the tapeworms to wealth creating society)
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To: yonif

Arnie and Christie Witless....perfect together.


48 posted on 12/18/2004 1:15:49 PM PST by OldFriend (PRAY FOR MAJ. TAMMY DUCKWORTH)
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To: superskunk
Anyone who claims the GOP needs to move left is already too far gone. The Democrat Party is in shambles and there's a large likelihood they'll move right to try and gain votes. If that happens, the political spectrum's center of gravity will shift right as well, which is good for conservatives.

Why in the heck would the GOP ever consider preempting this shift with a move LEFT? The mere suggestion of it is asinine.

49 posted on 12/18/2004 1:15:56 PM PST by NittanyLion
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To: Kitten Festival

I liked The Terminator's speech at the RNC, but does he grasp the significance of 60,000,000+ voters for one candidate??


50 posted on 12/18/2004 1:16:06 PM PST by KStorm
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To: John Lenin

Readan brought them back from the depths before. Will they never learn?


51 posted on 12/18/2004 1:16:54 PM PST by superskunk (Quinn's Law: Liberalism always produces the exact opposite of it's stated intent.)
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To: yonif

The article doesn't say what Arnie means by left so it could mean anything. What is left on the environment? I'm sure he doesn't mean anti business, anti competition so what does he mean? If he's looking at gay marriages apparantly he didn't watch the last election returns on those props.


52 posted on 12/18/2004 1:17:11 PM PST by byteback
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To: John Lenin
Right on. Calif. is like an alcoholic, they have to hit rock bottom, then realize their mistake and then fix it. They have to quit drinking that Democrat coolade. I don't think that will happen though, until the Messiah shows up.
53 posted on 12/18/2004 1:18:58 PM PST by fish hawk
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To: Cicero
He was installed by Rove and Parsky, after they failed to install Richard Riordan a few years earlier.

Karl Rove wanted Arnie as governor over gray davis about as much as Ted Kennedy wanted Ronald Reagan for prez.

Part of Karl Rove's original strategy was to show the country what a mess california was with dems in control, and use that to punish kerry, it also wouldn't hurt Bush to benefit from angry voters in california who were furious with davis.

However, arnie winning there, ended that whole thing mighty fast.

54 posted on 12/18/2004 1:19:14 PM PST by Sonny M ("oderint dum metuant")
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To: Canticle_of_Deborah

Them's fightin' words!


55 posted on 12/18/2004 1:19:27 PM PST by Rabid Dog (Make a difference in your community - Join your local Free Republic Chapter!)
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To: yonif
California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger suggested in a German newspaper interview, that the US Republican Party should move "a little to the left", a shift that he said would allow it to pick up new voters.

Sounds like a true conviction for what conservatism stands for!

Arnie, why didn't you run under the RINO party if you feel this is how one gains enough support to achieve office?

1. What I need as a politician to maintain a political base.

2. What I need to maintain favor to maintain my power structure by following groups of people instead of maintaining an attitude of professing what is right and leading the people.

3. What I need to do to guarantee my reelection.

4. Gaining PAC support as to divest myself from having to use my own finances to maintain my power.

5. Creating government issues which requires the signature of the Governor on correspondence required to be sent to a majority of the public of California explaining good things happening on the publics behalf as to give name recognition to the public using the public finances.

It's time to stop trying to deceive the public and create a third party....The "RINO" party.

56 posted on 12/18/2004 1:19:32 PM PST by EGPWS
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To: NittanyLion
Why in the heck would the GOP ever consider preempting this shift with a move LEFT? The mere suggestion of it is asinine.


I agree completely. I guess I'm just a little disillusioned over Arnold screwing us. (I really hope it's just a ploy of some kind.)
57 posted on 12/18/2004 1:19:45 PM PST by superskunk (Quinn's Law: Liberalism always produces the exact opposite of it's stated intent.)
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To: John Lenin

I'm glad I am not the only one hoping for bankruptcy.


58 posted on 12/18/2004 1:20:17 PM PST by Canticle_of_Deborah
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To: superskunk

I was at Main Campus for four years. Great place!


59 posted on 12/18/2004 1:20:56 PM PST by NittanyLion
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To: Dane

Considering what Arnold has done and intends to do (licenses for illegals), I can't see how he is different from Bustamante.


60 posted on 12/18/2004 1:21:17 PM PST by Canticle_of_Deborah
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