CA: Governor's out-of-state trip nets more than $2 million, aide says

Bakersfield Californian ^ | 5/26/05 | Tom Chorneau - AP

[NormsRevenge]

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger raised between $2 million and $3 million for his expected special election campaign during a three-state swing last weekend, his chief fundraising consultant said Thursday.

The governor said he intends to continue his aggressive fundraising schedule in hopes of pressuring Democrats to negotiate over the various measures he wants to place before voters in November.

"Just remember, math says we need around $50 million altogether to fight the hundreds of millions of dollars the special interests and the unions are spending against our initiatives and against our reforms," Schwarzenegger told reporters during a media event Thursday in San Jose.

"So we are going to fight back," he said. "As I said during my recall election, if special interests are going to push me around, I'll push back. It's exactly what we are doing now."

Last weekend's trip was intended to generate money for Schwarzenegger's ballot committee, the California Recovery Team. It began with stops in Florida that featured Gov. Jeb Bush. On Monday, Schwarzenegger appeared at a lunch in Chicago hosted by billionaire developer Samuel Zell and then a dinner in Dallas hosted by oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens, and literary agent Jan Miller and her husband, Jeff Rich, chief executive of Affiliated Computer Services.

The trip generated between $2 million and $3 million, said Marty Wilson, a top campaign consultant who also helps oversee Schwarzenegger's fundraising. Names of donors won't be available until contribution reports are filed with the Secretary of State's office, which Wilson said would likely be next week.

"He's certainly viewed among Republicans as a true superstar," Wilson said. "So he's a draw in his own right. But in addition, there's keen interest in the kinds of reforms he's planning on putting before California voters."

The governor and his supporters have raised and spent close to $15 million to circulate petitions and conduct other activities this year aimed at qualifying three measures for a special election ballot in November. Schwarzenegger has until mid-June to call the election.

His three initiatives would place a new cap on state spending, mandate longer probationary periods for new teachers and have retired judges rather than lawmakers draw legislative district boundaries.

He has said he will call a special election in the fall if compromises cannot be worked out with the Legislature's Democratic majority.

Democratic consultant Bill Carrick said that while Republicans in other states are still drawn to Schwarzenegger as a celebrity, he suspects many of them have other agendas. He said corporations are focused on a measure that so far Schwarzenegger has not endorsed - an initiative that restricts the use of union dues for political purposes.

"It's the honey pot for corporations," Carrick said. "If you could get this started in California, it could become a national cause."

The so-called "paycheck protection" measure, pushed by Schwarzenegger supporters, would require public sector labor groups such as teachers unions, the California Correctional Peace Officers Association and the Service Employees International Union to get written permission from members to use dues for political purposes.

Schwarzenegger has asked his campaign staff to engage in polling and other activities in preparation of a possible campaign.

Democrats and unions have criticized the governor's fundraising, especially out-of-state trips that also have taken him to New York, Washington, D.C., and Cincinnati.

"All the money in the world hasn't been able to convince Californians that there's a need for a special election," said Steve Maviglio, spokesman for Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles. "We've been willing to negotiate for four months. If we could get the governor to stay in his office instead of traipsing around the country fundraising, we might have a deal."