Schwarzenegger Implores GOP To Follow Script of His Sequel: Court the Center

Washington Post ^ | Nov. 10, 2006 | John Pomfret

[FairOpinion]

In his victory speech Tuesday night to a confetti-swamped crowd at the Beverly Hilton, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had a message for the rest of the Republican Party after its worst defeat in decades.

Follow "the California way," he said. "We are proving to the nation that there is another way to go, a better path to solve problems."

Schwarzenegger's landslide victory in a largely Democratic state illustrates the growing power of moderate candidates and the electoral appeal of bipartisanship, and it could contain important lessons for Republicans and Democrats as they seek to position themselves in the future, analysts and politicians said.

"If I was a Republican National Committee chair, I would hire Arnold out and teach Republicans what is necessary to put together a winning campaign," said Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, a political analyst at the University of Southern California. "He really is the poster boy of what Republicans have denied for so long. Elections are won from the center."

[LexBaird]

Although the final totals won't be known for weeks, election day turnout in Fresno, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and SanDiego counties, which all have Republican pluralities, ran as much as 10 percentage points below the state's 44 percent average turnout.

Surprise, surprise. The SF Chronic is lying with stats.Two of the counties listed were ABOVE the average. All of them were above the typical midterm election average. Two were above the San Fran turnout and one above the LA turnout.

Orange: 41.6%
Fresno: 46.4%
Riverside: 34.5%
San B: 36.8%
San D: 48.2%

[calcowgirl]

I don't make things up, unlike a lot of people here. I only deal in facts.

It still does not support your contention that Conservatives didn't show up to vote.

Sorry, FO... you're about 0 for 20 now.

[LexBaird]

Again, FO. That says that Republicans didn't show up to vote, not Conservatives as you contend.

It's also a lie. See #241.

[Mojave]

I only deal in facts.

You posted an article claiming that Republicans had less turnout than usual, and another article that claimed that "contrary to forecasts that religious conservatives would stay away from the ballot booth, voter turnout resembled that of previous elections..."

Looks like you've made the argumant that your "centrists" were the ones who stayed home.

Your plea to move the party left just crashed and burned.

[goldstategop]

I was referring to the Blue Dog Democrats. The moonbats may get their revenge but not in the way they think. Over time, it may lead to both parties getting colored Red. After all, even the Democrats figured out the political math and positioned themselves accordingly. The irony of this election if you can call it that, is Republicans forgot just how conservative the country was when they kept pursuing liberal domestic policies in power. And so they paid the price at the polls on Election Day.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus

[NormsRevenge]

well, I guess discounting Tom over eminent domain and rejecting endorsing Prop 90 a few days before the election may not have been what broke the election for Tom, but it certainly didn't help much either.. big donors behind major projects don't like having roadblocks like Prop 90 dropped on them when they are out doing their thing like big projects and such and now that 43 billion is up for grabs, well.. connect the dots.

btw, There is no party loyalty in the Ca GOP leadership, there used to be but history is not taught much these days it seems, it seems to be a lost art, and that also will be intoned by certain folks here as all the conservative base's fault as well..

are ya starting to see a pattern develop yet?

[Amerigomag]

I am disappointed that Gov Arnold did not campaign too hard for McClintock.

Too hard?

If you went with his way of thinking, you would never rebuild California,

[NormsRevenge]

lol.. I got a kick out of using stats from the SF Carbunckle to make a point too..

[higgmeister]

The country is becoming more moderate all the time.

That is a self-correcting problem.

When the Islamists come with the next attack against a Major Population Center, 95% of the casualties will be Dems.

You have to understand the effect in the long term.

[goldstategop]

Voters see the Democrats as better at governing. But they hate tax increases and said NO to that idea Tuesday. The liberals here are perfectly logical. They'll keep their own money in their wallets and spend their children's money instead.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus

[Amerigomag]

Fresno County still had over 10,000 absentee ballots to count as of last evening and absentee ballots don't show up in the stats until they are counted. Fresno has a close local election and has warned the candidates involved that it won't be able to certify the election until early December because of determinations with provisional ballots which are also uncounted.

[fieldmarshaldj]

God bless you.

[calcowgirl]

These were as of today from ss.ca.gov (see also #111)

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1736379/posts?page=112#112

[LexBaird]

absentee ballots don't show up in the stats until they are counted.

I know. IMO, the republican GOTV effort is overly reliant on absentee voting. Too often these votes are never counted, because of some statistical model says it won't change an end result. Many races, even if still lost, would be shown to be much closer if these votes were tabulated as they should be.

If the GOTV pushed actually getting to the polls, it would positively effect exit polling and early returns, which in turn would effect evening voting patterns.

[calcowgirl]

God bless you.

Ditto that.

[Amerigomag]

95% of the casualties will be Dems

Not exactly. Many could be PRD.

Los Angeles is so overrun with illegal aliens that an attack at that location could only be seen as an attack on Mexico for cooperating with Bush. The irony is that many of these potential victims were motivated to leave Mexico by the actions of the PRI.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Why wasn't I surprised to see this pablum thread started by the lead Ah-nold pornbot ? That was a real sweep for the GOP in CA thanks to Landslide Ah-nold, wasn't it ? ;-)

Oh, and FO, dig it, RINO Governors ARE WORTHLESS.

[Proud_texan]

"She won, because conservatives stayed home to punish the Republicans."

I don't see that as the case but if it is are you suggesting that conservatives should be to the republicans as minorities are to the dims; vote republican even if they think the candidate stinks and isn't acting in their best interest or that of the country?

Wow, talk about plantation mentality. That's so sad I can't even get my mind around it.

Parenthetically she won in a single congressional district, she wasn't on the national or even the state ballot and if "by won" you mean the pickup in the house it's because in many cases the dims found candidates to run in republican leaning districts that were more conservative than the republican dolts.

[LexBaird]

A couple of the stats for 2006 have been revised up from your link. OC and San D are up a couple. Looks like both Dems and pubs are down a little from 2002.

[calcowgirl]

The thread was used to to promote Arnold's new "California Way" (sounds a whole lot like Clinton's "Third Way") that is being fully embraced by the leftist media. The quotes spammed throughout were from left leaning California political "analysts" who are ecstatic at the advancement of the liberal agenda under this new "birpartisanship" (read: capitulation).

All shades of conservatism, actual or perceived, have now been shed by both the Governor and the FO account.