IS IT TIME FOR AN "ARNOLD-TOM WIN/WIN DEAL" (?) OK. THEN HERE'S HOW....

Free Republic site ^ | 27 September 2003 | AmericanInTokyo

[AmericanInTokyo]

[Opinion. Open for Discussion.]

The vitriol and passion are reaching unparalleled heights.

Arnold Schwarzenegger feels he is close to an October 7th victory and that a knockout punch of both Gray Davis and Cruz Bustamante is within tantalizing reach.

Were it all not for one jagged pebble in his hiking boot. State Senator Tom McClintock.

Both sides are polarized, even here and especially here, on Free Republic. And for damned good reason.

One side, comprised of so-called "RINOs", (moderate-centrists), later joined by pragmatic conservatives who see the paramount need to dethrone the irresponsible and dangerous Socialist Democrat regime in Sacramento, have dug in their heels in for a pitched battle against their new nemesis: the ranks of conservatives of principle who strongly support the continuation of their choice, Senator Tom McClintock, in order to prevent a sellout of the state of California to centrist or moderate political policies down the road.

OK. "Let's Make a Deal".

[Torie]

Davis has made pro choice one of his signature issues. I don't think Arnold cares that much about it, and perhaps he would oppose partial birth abortion. In any event, it is a non issue in a California state election anyway you cut it, since it has been taken over by SCOTUS, and California will be one of the last places in the land to put any restrictions on abortion in any event. After all, in California, it is all about me, to wit, the culture is quite sybaritic. It's the weather thing, and the Hollywood thing, and the Bay Area thing, and the High Tech thing (a loci of anomic libertarian impulses), and some other things. Trundling out abortion in this election strikes me as onanistic.

[Torie]

Agreement number three would be viewed as a public castration of the Hulk. It won't happen. If the agreement happens, it will be behind closed doors, and informal.

[Nita Nupress]

I think you are delirious and you haven't been listening to Tom for the past 6-8 weeks. He's in it to stay.

Not that it matters since I don't life in CA, but my interpretation of his behavior is much different, especially when he gets that irritating smirk on his face.

The only thing I can't figure out is whether his behavior originates from delusional thinking or an overinflated ego.

[SierraWasp]

Hey! We been there... Done that! All the time with Pete Wilson. Then they tried to do it again with Reardon and now they're mad because they wouldn't hold their noses and vote for Simon and here they come a snearing that Simon was a "loser" and so are all conservatives, including and especially McClintock who is supposedly too principled!!!

What a putrid PANT-LOAD!!! This is revenge and you can't play Monte Hall with vicious, vengeful people whose only dream is to crush consistent conservatism!

The problem in CA is a fiscal & infrastucture crisis that is triggering a huge threat to the business climate. Just because someone running for Governor holds to some social issues means nothing as he'll be too busy solving the fiscal issues in 3 years, alone! Tom doesn't need to waste time with a dang audit as he already knows where the fiscal waste is and how to solve it. It doesn't take starpower to deal with that. The Governor has a line item veto pen!

The polls mean less in this compacted election as no one really understands how to correctly pose the questions and the organizations polling all have axes to grind, so they're all push polls anyway. Some huge suprises are in order that would make deal making look stupid in hind-sight!

As Bruce Hershenson's commercial says, if everybody that likes Tom's promise but says "he can't win" would stop pretending to be some astute political genius and vote for Tom, HE WOULD WIN IN A LANDSLIDE!!!

[Nita Nupress]

Tom does not have a graceful way out. He has forcefully said he is a man who keeps his promises and has promised to stay in to the end. Nothing the S camp can offer would be graceful enough.

What many people see as a "principled stand" comes across to me as a poorly-disguised and pitiful attempt at grandstanding and attention-seeking.

Besides, anyone stupid enough to burn his bridges like this has no business driving the engine.

[Nita Nupress]

Nice thought-provoking thread. Thanks.

[RDangerfield]

Torie: I don't think Arnold cares that much about it, and perhaps he would oppose partial birth abortion. In any event, it is a non issue in a California state election anyway you cut it, since it has been taken over by SCOTUS, and California will be one of the last places in the land to put any restrictions on abortion in any event.

Perhaps you did not read the key words in Rohrabacher's interview that I posted in post 138 on this thread.

Q: On his website, Arnold says, "I support the state's current family planning programs, and as governor would make no changes to this policy." The state of California currently pays for abortions with tax dollars. ROHRABACHER: Right.

That means that the state pays for abortions and that Arnold plans to make no changes in that program. Pardon me for interpreting that as the fact that the decision can be made locally and he does not plan to. Pretty much as clear as the nose on your face.
--Raoul

[Torie]

I read them. My post stands. Regards.

[Fred Mertz]

Gee, I think I hate you tonight, Nitz.

[hedgetrimmer]

What happens to the votes of the people who already voted because of absentee ballots? You want to horsetrade their votes away if you force Mr. McClintock to quit? Since we have absentee voting for the masses, forcing a candidate out of the race after people have voted for him is a great way to corrupt an election.

[hedgetrimmer]

If Mr. McClintock quits then everyone who's voted already will have there votes thrown out. They cannot vote again. Without getting into the fact that opening absentee voting to anyone and everyone has corrupted the voting process incalcuably, how can you argue that these votes are worth nothing, that electing a person who does not represent the values stated in the republican platform is worth more than an uncorrupted voting process?

Because forcing a candidate out at the last moment corrupts the the process that was made so easily corruptible by the liberals who pushed absentee voting for everyone and got it.

[Xthe17th]

Screw Rnulled: Vote "NO" on Recall, "YES" on McClintock.

[Xthe17th]

& screw Issa & Simon too!

[A CA Guy]

F all that, Tom McClintick has been proved a non-trustworthy guy for the party and people of California.

I wouldn't trust him to walk my dog and he has no future on California anymore.

[Nita Nupress]

Gee, I think I hate you tonight, Nitz.

That's okay. We can kiss and make up later. ;-)

[Nita Nupress]

He didn't have to "officially" withdraw. All he had to do was tell his supporters to unite behind the man who has a real chance of winning.

It's too late now, though. He's already shut that door with that hogwash about being a "man of his word."

[hedgetrimmer]

He still has votes from the people who've already voted. Can't you see how crooked it is to change the ballot after balloting has begun? If it were your vote for schwarzennegger that got thrown out, and you couldn't chose another candidate because you'd already voted, wouldn't you feel that the election process was totally corrupt?

BTW, it was in the communist cold war plan to corrupt the election process in America. I think Nikita Kruschev would be gleeful were he alive to see the corruption and turmoil that our election process is experiencing. The more people get a bad taste about voting, the fewer vote. Which probably means that fewer Americans will vote in future elections and more illegals will. You can pretty much count on that.

[Nita Nupress]

He still has votes from the people who've already voted. Can't you see how crooked it is to change the ballot after balloting has begun? If it were your vote for schwarzennegger that got thrown out, and you couldn't chose another candidate because you'd already voted, wouldn't you feel that the election process was totally corrupt?

No. I never vote absentee for that very reason. I prefer to give all candidates maximum time to display their arrogance before voting. Kind of like Tom is doing now.

[hedgetrimmer]

Yes, lets not throw the election. Lets do away with absentee voting so that next time around, problems like this don't occur.

[justshutupandtakeit]

Looks that way from here. McClintock seems determined to scuttle a promising career through muleheadedness.

If he is this out of the loop it is not likely he will be elected to a higher post.