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So far as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his re-election campaign team are concerned, President Bush's middle initial might as well stand for “Who?” With Bush's popularity near rock bottom and Republicans across the country fearing a shellacking in the Nov. 7 election, Democrats are trying at every turn to tie the Republican governor to the president. State Treasurer Phil Angelides, the Democratic nominee for governor, routinely rails against “Bush-Schwarzenegger” policies and accuses the governor of complicity with federal actions that don't play well with California voters. For his part, Schwarzenegger hardly mentions the president's name unless to criticize a Bush...

SURE sign that it's silly season: The normally sensible Tony Blair and the normally reasonable Governator are teaming up to defeat global warming. OK, I know it's been hot lately, but that doesn't mean the globe is in any danger of burning to a cinder. And the notion of Blair and Arnold Schwarzenegger grappling the global-warming dragon into submission by charging for carbon is just absurd. Anybody else remember when the hot part of the year was just called summer? And sometimes summer was cooler than "normal" and sometimes it was hotter than "normal." Until very recently, there was none...

He may be one of the most influential politicians in the world but even Prime Minister Tony Blair succumbed to the larger-than-life charms of movie star turned California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Blair, on an official visit to Washington and California, met the former body-builder this week to launch an agreement between California and Britain to reduce global warming. "I phoned my wife and she said to me, 'How did you feel meeting Arnold Schwarzenegger?'" Blair told guests at a Los Angeles luncheon on Tuesday. "I said I felt acute body envy, actually," confessed Blair, whose fitness regime consists of pounding...

Legislation that would make California a national pioneer in restricting carbon dioxide and other gases is likely to be one of the hottest topics as lawmakers finish the final portion of their session before the November election. ... some environmentalists and Democrats complained that Schwarzenegger is seeking to weaken the legislation. While the governor has said he wants to sign the bill, the administration has suggested changes that many environmentalists say would hurt the state's ability to enforce the caps and would allow some industries to avoid deadlines for compliance. But many business groups, including key Schwarzenegger allies like the...

British Prime Minister Tony Blair called for an "alliance of moderation" to counter the "arc of extremism" stretching across the Middle East, saying in a speech to be delivered Tuesday that a soft approach is as important as military action. Blair said he still hoped for a quick end to the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas hostilities in southern Lebanon, and once that happens, the global approach to a lasting settlement in the Middle East needs to be reconsidered. "We will continue to do all we can to halt the hostilities," said Blair in remarks prepared for delivery in...

TONY Blair is to team up with Arnold Schwarzenegger in a bid to terminate global warming. The PM will hold talks about green schemes with the former Hollywood star when he jets to California next month. Schwarzenegger, whose hit films included Terminator and Total Recall, turned his back on the big screen to become governor of California in 2003. Since then he has earned a reputation for championing projects to help save the planet. Mr Blair is also determined to stress the Government's green credentials amid fears that Tory leader David Cameron is wooing voters with his "Vote Blue, Go...

PACIFIC PALISADES - Wanting to see America beyond the beltway of power and politics in Washington, D.C., British Prime Minister Tony Blair began a two-day visit to Los Angeles on Monday - the first official trip to the Southland by a sitting British prime minister. Blair, who is here to discuss the environment, world politics and business, started with a meeting with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger at the Port of Long Beach, where the two signed an agreement to tackle global warming. Later, Blair was the guest of honor at a reception hosted by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa at the recently reopened...

• ‘Will not wait’ for federal government to act • To share research, information The state of California and the government of Great Britain have signed an agreement to collaborate on clean energy and ways to fight climate change. "California will not wait for our federal government to take strong action on global warming," says Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in a written statement following a meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair and the chief executive officers of more than a dozen California-based companies Monday. "Today, we are taking an unprecedented step by signing an agreement between California and the United...

To our way of thinking, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's eagerness to have California become the de facto world leader of an aggressive effort to combat global warming by requiring businesses to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions has an inescapable fundamental flaw: It would add unique costs to industries here not borne by competitors in the other 49 states, to say nothing of the many developed and emerging nations who see pollution as a small price to pay for prosperity. Especially at a time of growing international competition, for one state to tackle global warming alone isn't just quixotic, it's economic folly. Obviously, a...

WASHINGTON -- Britain and California are preparing to sidestep the Bush administration and fight global warming together by creating a joint market for greenhouse gases.British Prime Minister Tony Blair and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger plan to lay the groundwork for a new trans-Atlantic market in carbon dioxide emissions, The Associated Press has learned. Such a move could help California cut carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases scientists blame for warming the planet. President Bush has rejected the idea of ordering such cuts. Blair and Schwarzenegger were expected to announce their collaboration this afternoon in Los Angeles, according to documents provided by British...

So Angelides went to work trying to put together a meeting with Blair. His ace in the hole was Bob Mulholland, a longtime friend and campaign aide who has worked as a consultant to Blair's Labor Party, introducing them to hardball campaigning, American-style. It wasn't until late Friday that the meeting was confirmed. Angelides spent 30 minutes with Blair before tonight's reception, talking about education, the global economy and, of course, politics. "The private meeting itself is very significant (British prime ministers do not meet with nominees for governor),'' Mulholland said in a note to reporters. "On Tuesday night, former...

British Prime Minister Tony Blair's visit to California was quite an election-year coup for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Schwarzenegger is expected to get a big photo op with Blair today when he introduces the prime minister at that star-studded corporate conference down in Pebble Beach. It's hosted by News Corp. publishing mogul Rupert Murdoch and features the likes of Bill Clinton, Al Gore, U2's Bono and Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Shimon Peres. Everything from the environment to poverty to AIDS will be addressed. The even-bigger show comes Monday in Long Beach. That's when Arnold, who has been trying to buff up...

SAN FRANCISCO -- When British Prime Minister Tony Blair attends a reception in his honor at George Shultz's San Francisco home tonight, it will be the only social event of his four-day visit to the Bay Area. From the time he arrived on his British Airways charter at 5:30 Friday evening until the reception with the former secretary of state, Mayor Gavin Newsom and business and community leaders, Blair has been holed up at the Fairmont Hotel, working on his speech to the World Affairs Council in Los Angeles on Tuesday and handling government affairs at long distance. "I know...

TONY BLAIR has launched a drive to attract American bioscience companies to Britain in an attempt to capitalise on restrictions imposed by President George Bush on US government funding for stem-cell research. Blair is to use his trip to America to propose a joint UK-California conference in London to highlight the opportunities Britain can offer stem-cell scientists. Today, the prime minister is due to meet executives from the biggest biotech companies in California specialising in stem-cell research and to highlight Britain’s favourable regulatory regime and government incentives available to investors. Many medical experts consider stem-cell research vital for the future...

Promoting Britain's biotech businesses will be at the top of British Prime Minister Tony Blair's agenda when he meets with California's government and industry leaders over the next few days. It is the first visit to the state by a sitting British prime minister, and Blair's visit demonstrates how aggressive his country has become in courting investment in its booming high-tech industries. In particular, Blair is keen to promote Britain's commitment to stem cell research, and will meet with executives from California's biotech companies on Monday. Blair's official spokesman said that a conference on stem cell research - between Californian...

Prime Minister Tony Blair's first visit to California has a bit of everything: serious environmental discussions, business meetings, a foreign affairs speech -- and a star-powered, incredibly eclectic gathering of world thinkers, leaders and luminaries in posh Pebble Beach. The tony, private event, a five-day management retreat for 250 executives of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., is set to bring together a VIP guest list for the ages to chat about issues like volunteerism, technology and politics. Among them: Blair, Israeli Vice Premier Shimon Peres, former President Bill Clinton, former Vice President Al Gore, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Oakland A's...