Posted on 02/11/2006 4:17:10 PM PST by NormsRevenge
SACRAMENTO (AP) - Members of a key GOP conservative group said Saturday they are reconsidering their call for the California Republican Party to withdraw its endorsement of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in this year's election.
Despite ongoing differences with the governor over issues such as the minimum wage and his reliance on Democratic staff members, the Republican Assembly is reevaluating its position based on assurances from party leaders that its concerns will get a full airing at the upcoming party convention.
"We want to make sure our views on specific policy issues are openly discussed," said Mike Spence, president of the assembly - one of the oldest and most conservative member organizations of the state GOP. "We have differences from the governor on some issues, and we want to make sure we are able to discuss them."
The group's board voted in December to ask delegates to the upcoming Republican Convention in San Jose to withdraw the expected endorsement of the incumbent governor. Conservatives have been angered by Schwarzenegger's moves toward the political center since his disastrous loss in the November special election.
The biggest issue was the governor's decision to hire a prominent Democrat - and a former aide to Gov. Gray Davis - as his chief of staff. But Republicans are also uneasy with Schwarzenegger's $222 billion public works building proposal that relies on borrowing; his idea to increase the state minimum wage; and his proposed budget that would spend nearly $6 billion more next year than the state would take in from tax revenues.
But Spence said the conservative group is taking another vote on the endorsement issue. The results are expected early next week.
Even if the organization decides not to change its position, party leaders said they do not expect the issue to receive much attention at the convention, which runs from Feb. 24 to Feb. 26.
"Out of 1,400 delegates, I only know of a handful of people who are taking this issue seriously," said California Republican Party Chairman Duf Sundheim. "The endorsement is not in trouble. We are going to come out of the convention with a unified ticket, with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger at the top."
Still, delegates will likely be asked during the convention to consider a floor resolution that calls for the party to withdraw its endorsement of the governor. Sponsored by former state Republican Party Chairman Michael Schroeder, the resolution must pass out of a screening committee before it can be considered by the full delegation.
Spence said that while his organization was not involved with introducing the resolution, he acknowledged that if the Republic Assembly withdraws its support, the call to rescind the party's endorsement of Schwarzenegger would be badly undermined.
Sundheim said attention has already turned away from the endorsement issue. Now, he said, members are talking instead about crafting resolutions that would express some of his party's concerns with positions the governor has taken.
For instance, Schwarzenegger wants to increase the minimum wage by $1 an hour over the next two years, but many Republicans do not support the idea. Sundheim said a resolution might be presented to the party stating that Republicans believe that an increase in the minimum wage would be bad for low-wage workers and minority-owned businesses.
"I think there's differences of opinion, but it does not go so far that we are not going to support the governor," he said.
If you want to talk about advancing conservative ideals, I'm all ears; but if you just want to continue with the "you're either with us, or your with the (d)'s" line of infantile posturing, find someone else to argue with.
YOu're wrong on both counts! Minority can control the budget with the super majority hurdle and the Governor has a line item veto that Arnold has blown. I want this thing straightened out before I'm takin that long dirt nap and fartin dust!!!
Indeed, Davis could have only dreamed of passing half the spending and borrowing bills that Arnold has finagled. The super-majority requirements in the legislature would not have been met with Republicans and conservatives sticking to principle. Instead, a few have been weak and forced to support liberalism as the CA GOP holds their purse-strings and threatens their career. I don't condone their weakness, although I do understand it.
My point is we want to get far more (R)s in the State Legislature to get this state back under some form of reality again.
The biggest opportunity for change is now the Legislature. Then the other deal that we SHOULD stay on Arnold's back over would be that any judges he gets to appoint are leaning toward full conservative. If you want an area to bug Arnold in calls and Emails about, it would be the judges issue.
Let's get back to those pesky little facts. I know that partisans hate to discuss facts but let's.
Public employees, in this case teachers, didn't spend millions. Unions did. All the Unions needed to motivate their membership to vote against Prop 74 and Prop 75 was a bad guy and the gang gave it to them when Schwarzenegger attacked teachers personally, instead of the union leadership.
Had the gang treated teachers as victims, a time proven, political goldmine, Prop 75 probably would have won by a narrow margin, in spite of the millions spent to defeat it. Instead, the gang painted teachers personally as evil doers, which motivated just enough teachers to narrowly defeat Prop 75. A 3% swing in the vote was the difference between victory and defeat.
The man is an utter WASTE as a Republican Governor!!! A putrid waste!!! But you and your stubborn friends will never admit it. You just couldn't bear to admit the error of your ways and that's so sad... Instead you have to try to incorrectly smear consistent conservatives with bogus baloney and tired tirades... Give it up!!!
Wouldn't DU be the ones sabotaging CA by not voting, voting a stupid third party and seeing to it Democrats have power?
That is where you should bully him in Email daily.
You swooned over him, got him elected and support him to this day in spite of the terrible damage he's been doing to this once great state, so it's YOUR JOB to slow him down, turn him around and stop him!!! Not mine!!!
Besides, I'm certain he will never be allowed to see, let alone read an email from an "irrelevant" admitted McClintock voter like the Waspman!!! Ha Ha Ha!!! He don't like alla my buzzin around, thumbin my nose at him!!!
Well, it is productive to Email from some surplus Email account SW because they consider that as representing what is out there.
The more in mail there is the greater number they know they have pissed off.
Those pesky little facts.
Teachers are forced to pay union dues by California code. They aren't a union and they aren't necessarily in a union. They're simply forced to pay the dues.
Again, had the gang confronted the root cause of the problem, California's closed shop law, instead of personally attacking teachers, the results may have been very different by that slim 3% margin.
I didn't, but a whole chit-load of my friends worked on the Recall, then carried on workin on gittin someone that has out Gray Davised Gray Davis elected in Gray Davis' place and really can't stand the stench still boilin out from under the same dome of that Crapitol in Sacramento!!!
Now I lay me down to sleep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord make CA Republican FReepers stop thinking it's just a little too embarrassing to be a righteous Conservative Republican seeking high office in CA! (even the highest office) Nitey nite!!!
Could it be true? Times a wasting. They have less than a month to file plus the little issue of 90 day prior, partisan registration.
It's in the story that started this thread. Toward the bottom of the story. First I'd heard of this, but I hope it happens.
If there needs to be GOP registration 90 days prior to the primary for a candidate to run in that primary (and there probably does), then Gilchrist may not qualify.
Amateurs have a way of not thinking about those little details.
It would be nice if a pro would take on this cause. But the pros tend to have their ballz in the clutches of other pros, so they don't generally make waves.
Oops, my mistake. The speculation about Gilchrist is in the other story, the Issa story.
Your Emails would not be a blinding blizzard of BS. I think you would send good content.
The teacher's union might be the most destructive union to our state.
There we can agree.
Had the gang traded shots with Kerr, instead of third grade teachers, things may have been slightly different.
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