Schwarzenegger's re - election chances up

The Argus ^ | Jan. 13, 2005 | Steve Geissinger

[FairOpinion]

A recent poll shows the born-again "moderate" Republican governor has gained back some popularity, especially in the Bay Area, and is now in a dead heat with Democratic competitors.

"Our survey demonstrates that Schwarzenegger's retreat from the more conservative rhetoric and agenda he brandished during the latter part of 2005 has paid off among middle-of-the road voters," said Melinda Jackson, director of the Survey and Policy Research Institute at San Jose State University.

The governor's job performance rating among voters in a Democrat-leaning state has climbed from 36 percent positive and 53 percent negative in September, to 40 percent positive and 51 percent negative this month.

[calcowgirl]

Amen!

[A CA Guy]

Well, I have yet to be wrong regarding the outcome of any people running in a race in all the time since I've posted here at FR for starters.
I even said that Bush would win by a minimum of 3% in the last election.

I have the ability to look at things unbiased with logic.

McClintock is no Reagan.
Reagan was world known when he became Governor of California and had he not been already known to all the California voters there would never have been a Reagan Governor based on his politics. The fact he was a well known actor gave him an edge.
McClintock is a ghost to most California voters and to those that do know him he is known as a strong conservative, not as a guy who can do anything.
There is no desire to elect a Governor to office because he is a conservative. People in California will only vote a conservative in over a Democrat if they are made to believe they can do things.

All McClintock has shown was he can get himself a living in state government at the level he has been at on the people's tax money, so what?

He sure screwed the pooch with a ton of Republicans/conservatives with his staying in the race as long as he did before. People will NEVER forget that.

I at this point don't even know if the man is mentally stable the way he stayed in that race before.
Sure he says the right things, but when he did what he did at the risk of getting Bustamante elected, he shows us he fails in the judgment arena.

So he is pretty much unbearable for liberals, those that don't know McClintock are not very motivated by him and conservatives/Republicans are split now over him by his own hand.

He is politically dead still IMO.

[A CA Guy]

If he isn't re-elected so what?

Bustamante and a liberal is DO WHAT!

There is something to lose by running a race stupid of being so dense as to vote for a third party past a primary.

SO WHAT has been the whole problem with CA IMO.

[A CA Guy]

Yeah, you are Amening what has been a lot of the reason why we lose.

The big SO WHAT!
Liberals winning and making things worse is the big SO WHAT.

Stupid third parties making idiotic protest votes have been great examples of the SO WHAT philosophy of losing.

[calex59]

Are you telling me you don't think Arnold is a liberal? He is adopting a liberal agenda in order to win votes, this makes him a liberal, believe it or not!

[A CA Guy]

I think Arnold is a fiscal Conservative who was abandoned in the special election by the conservative base who were too lazy to come out and vote.
As I said, most people I know who are conservative voters did not know it was election day when I called them.
Not exactly a sign that they were all that motivated to vote that election.

Arnold is more socially less Conservative and would try to start programs for people if money is there IMO. Not anything I am for.

If you wish to try and unseat Arnold, good luck to you in the primary.
After the primary, who EVER is the Republican nominee should be voted for. (That will be Arnold)

Now typically this is where all the third party types will come out to tell us all how they are too special to vote Republican, and will either sit it out or vote some protest vote. Anyone doing that should tattoo I am a Big Democrat on their butt, because that is the result of that kind of stupid thinking IMO.

Primary is where you try to make changes, then you vote the Republican in the main election.

If there is a third party dog catcher running, go for that, but vote Republican for Gov., no matter who it is. (And it will be Arnold who is better than a CA Democrat).

Had the conservative base voted last election, Arnold would have been at the throats now of unions and government employees instead of getting along.

Arnold tried to blow up the boxes, and the people failed him. It was not the other way around.

[birbear]

Okay then, why didn't McClintock spend more money? I assume he couldn't raise it.

Why couldn't he raise it?

[calex59]

You cannot unseat Arnold in the primary, he will be the GOP candidate of choice. That does not mean I have to vote for him of course, and I probably won't. I did not say I could unseat Arnold, but he should be unseated, at least in the primary. I doubt very seriously if a conservative can win an election in CA, but if one does they should stick to the conservative agenda and not worry about getting votes from Dems by adopting their agenda. My opinion and I will stick to it.

[A CA Guy]

You cannot unseat Arnold in the primary, he will be the GOP candidate of choice. That does not mean I have to vote for him of course, and I probably won't. I did not say I could unseat Arnold, but he should be unseated, at least in the primary. I doubt very seriously if a conservative can win an election in CA, but if one does they should stick to the conservative agenda and not worry about getting votes from Dems by adopting their agenda. My opinion and I will stick to it.

If there were people from DU here, do you realize they could post just like you did now IMO, because a non vote or a third party vote in any regular election is a Democrat vote.
And though I agree about your stated desires in wanting a top conservative outcome in California, I also realize there are no quick fixes for a state so deeply entrenched with Democrats. We have to keep voting the less liberal Republicans in and make the changes at the grass roots. That is where the action is IMO.

The Democrats are all voting because their pay is all tied up in government employment. They are highly motivated to vote Democrat.

Conservatives have the rougher road of getting people to be mature, self reliant and independent. That is a grass roots deal and you won't ever get there by not voting or voting some goofy third party person in.

I feel the same frustration as you about it all, but I have this huge logic streak in me and I know it takes steps to get to the goal we all want.

Calex59, not voting isn't a step anywhere but off the political cliff for the benefit of Democrats. Vote and make some real changes by perhaps changing the hearts and minds of your neighbors.

[FOG724]

has gained back some popularity, especially in the Bay Area

A vote for Arnold is a vote for a Dem.

[A CA Guy]

A vote for Arnold is a vote for a Dem.

Fine, get him out in the primaries if you can, then vote whoever the Republican is.

If it is Arnold and you think you are too special to vote for him, you are a Democrat yourself in fact, because a non-vote or protest vote in a regular election is a Democrat vote.

If you add logic to your emotion, you cannot deny the truth of this post to you.

[68 grunt]

... Keep insulting the base, Poindexter. ...

Hey Gladys, your problem is you think the ilk are the base. The overly loud and often threatening 'voice' of the California extreme right is not the base. The real base think the ilk are nutz ...

[Amerigomag]

If it is Arnold and you think you are too special to vote for him, you are a Democrat yourself in fact, because a non-vote or protest vote in a regular election is a Democrat vote.

It can't get much worse.

The governor is a liberal, foreign national.
The Lt. Governor is a Mexican separatist .
The Attorney General has a mail-order law degree and a history of cross dressing.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Liberal said what ?

[A CA Guy]

Let me correct you, the Governor came out as a fiscal conservative who went to battle against the unions and public employees but was abandoned by the Conservative voters.
He was given no backing by Republicans/conservatives and has had to get along with who else is in power.

Not his fault and he has tried.

Putting a real liberal in won't get it better.

[b9]

Could you ever vote for a dem, or encourage anyone else to?

[Amerigomag]

the Governor came out as a fiscal conservative who went to battle against the unions and public employees but was abandoned by the Conservative voters

We agree.

He was given no backing by Republicans/conservatives

We disagree. Schwarzenegger was backed by loyal Republicans but not by conservatives. Schwarzenegger is still backed by loyal Republicans. Conservatives are now adamant to get rid of him.

The problem many loyal Republicans experience on this forum is the separation of political philosophy and partisan politics. Conservatives vote based on the principles of the candidate. Partisan on the basis of party registration.

Conservatives don't care if not voting for Huey is really a vote for Dewy and many, loyal, California Republicans aren't particularly concerned about the philosophy of their candidate as long as he wins.

[b9]

Conservatives don't care if not voting for Huey is really a vote for Dewy

If that's true, then this forum is useless twaddle, isn't it?

The effect of my one and only precious, purple fingered vote will never EVER be to elect a dem.

[fieldmarshaldj]

"Could you ever vote for a dem, or encourage anyone else to?"

In almost all instances, usually not. I became a Republican in reaction to the widespread tolerance of corruption within the Democrat party. For a long time, I felt that ANY Republican was better than a Democrat, until I discovered that that wasn't necessarily the case. Some Republicans were even worse and more destructive WITHIN the party than any outside force could hope to be (meaning a Democrat who stays a Democrat can only inflict so much damage since they aren't in the GOP party apparatus).

The things that can destroy the Republican party are #1 corruption and #2 liberal statism. Those two things are what destroyed the Democrats as an ethical party and as a moral party (though I probably overstate the latter, since they've always carried the original sin of being the champions of human bondage and racial supremacy). If the cancer of liberalism and/or corruption pervades the party, which unfortunately it has in many state parties (MA, IL, NJ, CA), drastic steps have got to be taken to correct the problem. By that measure, sometimes it is necessary to put the party "in the shop" as one would do to a car that is broken down, and work on it to get it back into fighting shape. If that means that the Democrats beat us for the short term, it's a necessary price to pay. Most of the time when that happens, it will scare both the public (and hopefully the party) back to reality and help us to sweep back in before the Democrats can inflict too much damage.

Unfortunately, some in here seem to think that by copying the Democrats in substance (liberalism/socialism/statism) that that is the "only way to win." Well, folks, if that's the "only way to win", we've just lost the war. If the Republican party decides it wants to copy the Democrats, just as the morally vacuous Whig party did 150 years ago, I and millions of other registered voters nationwide can take the show elsewhere. I didn't leave the Democrat party only to see the Republicans become exactly that which is wrong with this country today. I hope that answers your question.

[b9]

Well, I watched the Alito hearings and I see what dems are.
I see what they do to our innocent children, to families, to schools, churches, marriage and everything enduring and good and hopeful.

They hate America. They're ashamed.

Anyone on this forum who advocates voting dem is on the wrong forum.