Arnold Schwarzenegger:
Exactly What He Promised To Be

A Governor Defines Himself 

EDITORIAL / San Francisco Chronicle 4oct04

CALIFORNIANS NOW have 1,265 ways to evaluate the governor they elected a year ago this week.

In one sense, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is exactly what he promised to be in the recall campaign. He is the best friend business interests could hope to have in the governor's office. He vetoed all 10 bills the California Chamber of Commerce identified as "job killers." They included proposals to increase the minimum wage, reduce air pollution at ports, expand consumer rights on used-car purchases and several measures to discourage offshoring.

The notion that Schwarzenegger would be pro-business -- even at the expense of compelling consumer concerns -- should not be a surprise to anyone who was paying attention during the recall campaign.

Where his actions were at odds with his rhetoric, however, were on his promises to change the ways of Sacramento. For all his criticisms of his predecessor's acceptance of special-interest money, Schwarzenegger has not turned off the spigot. He received a reported $337,000 from pharmaceutical companies before vetoing industry-opposed legislation to bring cheaper Canadian prescription drugs into California. He pleased car dealers -- among his biggest supporters -- by axing a measure that would have required more disclosure and lower rates on dealer-arranged loans.

For all his talk about open government, Schwarzenegger (as Gov. Gray Davis before him) vetoed a bill that would have given journalists broader access into reporting on prisons.

Say this for Schwarzenegger: He keeps an open mind. He once mocked a bill that would prohibit the force-feeding of ducks and geese for foie gras, but he signed it when it reached his desk. He also signed into law a ban on the de- clawing of animals used in entertainment.

He burnished his environmental credentials by signing legislation to create a Sierra Nevada Conservancy, allow hybrid vehicles in carpool lanes, extend tailpipe controls to older vehicles, tighten pollution limits on cruise ships and limit bottom-trawling fishing.

He surprised and delighted some Democrats by signing measures to allow ex- drug offenders to regain eligibility for food stamps, guarantee young women equal opportunities in community sports programs and allow the sale of prescription needles.

Schwarzenegger's actions on 1,265 bills showed he is neither an ideologue nor rigidly partisan. He is not easy to typecast. But if he wants to call himself a populist he must stop accepting contributions from special interests with a direct stake in his actions.

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source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/10/04/EDGIJ7P1U11.DTL&type=printable 4oct04