OAKLAND, CALIF. - California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's "Year of Reform" is fast becoming a year of retreat. What began in January as an outsized agenda - encompassing a range of issues as arcane as redistricting and as controversial as merit pay for teachers - has steadily shrunk as a chastened governor is set back on his heels, stung by his own missteps and an increasingly emboldened opposition. Already, he has abandoned an initiative to privatize the state's pension system, as well as promises to drastically cut the bureaucracy in Sacramento. Now, he appears to be considering a plan to drop...