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His candidacy will change minds about voting Republican. Then, in the future, when ideologically sound Republicans run for office, Californians won't dismiss them out of hand.

News flash: it does matter if there is an R beside the name. If the R's start winning in California, even if they are liberal R's, then George Bush has a chance of taking the state.

Get off the purity horse. This is a revolution. California is a one-party state. This is a crack in the wall.

Exactly. Get Californians comfortable with voting Republican one step at a time. And one day we'll be in the saddle. Don't laugh - we did it in Texas and the Democratic Party machine there or what's left of it is fighting to remain relevant.

It took Ronald Reagan's candidacy and the incompetence of Jimmy Carter to move me into the "R" column. I came from a democrat family, and automatically voted democrat based on misguided ideas of what they stood for. Heck, I even voted for McGovern!

But in 1980 there was NO doubt that Carter had been a disaster as president, and Reagan intrigued me with the idea that the country could be proud of itself again. (The Miracle on Ice hockey victory gave a glimpse of what things could be like when people actually loved the country and believed in themselves.) So, for the very first time in my life, and as the very first person in my family, I voted Republican.

I have not voted for a democrat since.

Arnold can do the same thing in California, I think. The situation there is much like Carter's presidency. There is no doubt that Davis has been a disaster as a governor. People are intrigued by Arnold's candidacy. If some cross party lines and vote Republican for him, they very well may end up permanent converts, as did I.

His candidacy will change minds about voting Republican. Then, in the future, when ideologically sound Republicans run for office, Californians won't dismiss them out of hand.

News flash: it does matter if there is an R beside the name. If the R's start winning in California, even if they are liberal R's, then George Bush has a chance of taking the state.

Can I get an Amen?