"Wrapping up a post-election visit to Mexico, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
urged national officials Friday to resume selling U.S. spinach, while a Los Angeles lawmaker traveling with him complained that the governor excluded her from promised meetings with Mexican political leaders," writes the LAT's Peter Nicholas.
"Schwarzenegger visited Mexican President-elect
Felipe Calderon in Mexico City, urging him to drop a spinach prohibition imposed amid the recent E. coli scare. Calderon said he wasn't familiar with the spinach issue but would look into it when he takes office in December, according to Schwarzenegger aides."
What could Calderon possibly be dealing with that's
more important than California spinach?
"California
exported $388,000 worth of spinach to Mexico last year — out of a total of $581 million in agricultural products shipped to Mexico."
The governor probably spent more than that shopping on his three-day Mexico trip...
"Schwarzenegger began his two-day trade mission Wednesday night, a day after his reelection victory. He traveled with a delegation of 63 business leaders and a trio of Latino lawmakers."
The Bee's Steve Weigand
reads the gov's interview in Men's Journal magazine. "And then there's this Q&A sure to endear himself to the local Chamber of Commerce:"
"Q. 'What about living in Sacramento? A lot of Angelenos would rather be dead.'"
"A. 'Sacramento was death -- until I got there!'"
"Yeah,
George Deukmejian said the same thing."
The Merc News's Mike Zapler looks at the
budget problem facing the governor. "A host of daunting, potentially multibillion-dollar problems confront the governor as he begins his second and final term. Prisons are filled dangerously beyond capacity. Public schools are badly in need of reform, the governor has said. More than 6 million Californians lack health insurance. And a $5 billion budget deficit looms next year."
"But Schwarzenegger faces those challenges constrained by his central,
George H.W. Bush-esque campaign promise: No new taxes. How the governor reconciles his sweeping policy ambitions with that anti-tax stance could prove a defining challenge of his governorship."
"'If the state's economy grows and brings in new revenues, he'll be able to hold to the no-taxes pledge'' and pay for new programs, said
Jack Pitney, a political-science professor at Claremont McKenna College. But that's a big if."
"'He may eventually face a situation,' Pitney added, 'where the state will have to either raise taxes or make some very unpopular cuts.'"
Dan Walters writes "Schwarzenegger has been
all over the map on the state's finances. He's tried and failed to cut spending, refused to sanction new taxes, unloosened purse strings to curry political favor and even cut taxes himself. The deficits persist -- with the danger of a serious crisis looming should the economy slow down even a bit -- but at the moment,
he doesn't appear to have any answer other than to cross his fingers and hope that the economy continues to generate enough money to more or less keep up with the inevitable increases in spending until his second term ends four years hence."
"A wish is not a plan. But any plan that involved either serious reductions in spending or increases in taxes would not only bring howls of protest from those affected but face likely rejection in a Legislature of pro-spending Democrats and anti-tax Republicans."
"For the past half-decade, the only way out has been to borrow more money each year to cover the deficits. But someday, surely, the banks will cut up our credit cards."
Until then, we party!
Meanwhile, Clea Benson writes "The defeat last week of Proposition 86, which would have raised the state's cigarette tax by $2.60 per pack,
raises a new hurdle for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger as he heads into his second term with health care at the top of his agenda."
"The measure would have paid for insurance coverage for all of California's children -- a fact largely obscured during a campaign that focused on the other things the tax would have funded, such as emergency rooms and anti-smoking efforts."
"Schwarzenegger has been pledging to find a way to cover the state's 800,000 uninsured children since 2003, when he was campaigning in the recall election. But the question of where to get the roughly $300 million it would cost to do that each year has been a stumbling block."
"Advocates say they don't see the failure of Proposition 86 as a referendum on health care for children. Tobacco companies spent more than $65 million to defeat the measure. Their campaign
criticized the hundreds of millions of dollars that would have been funneled to hospitals."
Good to see all those temporary bedfellows are fighting again.
"'The no on 86 argument is not an indication of any lack of public support, because children's health polls very, very strongly,' said
Ted Lempert, director of Children Now, one of the measure's sponsors."
"When Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger leaves the Capitol in four years, Democrats
may try to win back the governor's office with a different approach — fresh faces," writes Edwin Garcia.
You mean,
like this one?
"'There's going to be a really interesting generational shift,' predicted
Chris Lehane, a Democratic consultant in San Francisco. 'We have a very deep bench of young talent, relatively speaking, that's up and coming.'"
"Topping the list in most political circles is 53-year-old
Antonio Villaraigosa, the popular first-term mayor of Los Angeles who, according to his associates, has long aspired to be governor."
"The other name being widely circulated is 39-year-old San Francisco Mayor
Gavin Newsom, who has managed to draw nonstop media attention, whether it's juicy gossip about his newest girlfriend, his gelled and ungelled hair, or his latest proposal to deal with homelessness."
Known in California political circles as the Big Three when it comes to issues facing the state of California.
"A couple of women also are being openly talked about: termed-out state Sen.
Jackie Speier of Hillsborough and Orange County Congresswoman
Loretta Sanchez."
Somewhere,
Jack O'Connell's staff is making an angry phone call to Ed Garcia...
However, Steve Geissinger writes that they might have to get past
Jerry Brown in the primary. "Given 25-1 odds in the Capitol that he'll run for governor in 2010, attorney general-elect Jerry Brown
refused to rule the move out or in — but expects to be a powerful, key senior statesman-adviser to Californias novice bosses."
"That attitude might backfire with younger politicians and the public, analysts warned."
"Brown said in an interview that
given the fact that my experience is much greater than most of the politicians in Sacramento, that gives me a unique opportunity to offer some leadership and guidance and play a very important role."
You see, we
need Jerry Brown.
George Skelton does a
post mortem on Proposition 89 and campaign finance reform. "Most legislators prefer raising money on their own because that's how they got elected. They're comfortable with the system, even if it is inherently corrupt. Now, after the vote of the people on Prop. 89, they can rationalize not even feigning an interest in public financing."
"So it's back to the ballot. Someday."
"'We're going to do a lot of listening and a lot less talking,' says
Susan Lerner, executive director of the California Clean Money Campaign. She adds that "obviously we have to go back to the drawing board" to figure out how to pay for financing politicians' campaigns."
"Everyone should chip in."
Michael Doyle reports on the
growing clout of the political center. In Washington, mind you. Not California.
"With
a record number of members in the 110th Congress that starts in January, the
House Blue Dog coalition in particular anticipates more clout than ever. Its leaders are already plotting strategy and staking claims."
"'I think we're going to play a pivotal role in the formation of policy,' said Rep.
Dennis Cardoza, D-Merced. 'Clearly, you're going to need moderate votes to get anything passed.'"
"Cardoza co-chairs the Blue Dog coalition, which currently has 37 members who pledge fidelity to "centrist, fiscally responsible" policies. It will grow to 44 next January, with members including Rep.
Jim Costa, D-Fresno."
Our
Lead of the Day comes from the AP's Natasha Elkington, via the Toronto bureau. "The use of medical marijuana has given two Toronto professors the right to something that many students could only dream of -- access to specially ventilated rooms where they can indulge in peace."
Well done, Natasha!