"Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he is 'through with the acting' for now and remains committed to being a public servant, possibly even in a future role as 'energy and environment czar' for Barack Obama should the Illinois senator become president, according
to an ABC News interview that aired Sunday," reports the Bee's Kevin Yamamura.
"The Republican governor has endorsed GOP candidate
John McCain and praised him in the interview for his bipartisan
cooperation and for his policies on the environment
and Iraq. But Schwarzenegger did not rule out working
for Obama as energy and environment czar when the governor
was asked about speculation that he could serve in
the Democrat's future Cabinet.
"'I don't think about taking on a national role because there
are so many challenges we have here in California,' Schwarzenegger said. 'It's a hypothetical. I am always ready to help in any
way I can, the United States. Because as you know,
I've committed myself to being a public servant … so this is my time now. I'm through with the acting and all of those things that
I have done, the bodybuilding, even though I love all
of those things still.'
"Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear said the governor plans to serve out his term and
was discussing his options once he leaves office in
January 2011. Schwarzenegger said regardless of what he does in
the future, he plans to promote environmental causes
and clean energy.
"'No matter if I have this position or not, I will be
traveling around the world and I will be promoting
the energy (independence), renewables, solar, windmills and all of those kinds
of things, protecting the environment, protecting our
oceans.'"
Dan Wenitraub reports on how a slow news day can lead to the dissemination of a rumor.
"The story went from an item in Newsweek saying Obama was interested in Schwarzenegger, to Schwarzenegger saying he was not interested in a job but would talk to Obama about anything, anytime, to Allen saying he was "open" to taking the energy job to Frank saying Schwarzenegger "would" take the energy job."
Weintraub has an actual transcript of what the govenror said to George Stephanopolous.
Meanwhile, Nancy Vogel tries to use the budget to create marital strive in the Schwarzenegger household. "Faced with a $15.2-billion state deficit, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is proposing to cut roughly $7 million from the very state programs that his wife planned to rely on for her cause -- the state-supported, nonprofit agencies that not only find jobs for developmentally disabled adults, but also coach them at work until they have mastered their duties," reports Nancy Vogel in the Times.
"The reduction, key leaders in these organizations said,
will prevent them from taking on more work helping
those with autism, mental retardation, cerebral palsy
and other disabilities.
"The inconsistency within California's first couple is not lost on these social service
advocates.
"'What the first lady wants to do, we're all for,' said Will Sanford, interim executive director of the California Disability
Services Assn., which represents 110 organizations that use a combination of state, private
and charity funds to provide services to people with
developmental disabilities.
"'We just don't know how to make it happen given the flip side, which
is taking money out of the system that is designed
to make it happen."
"Daniel Zingale, Shriver's chief of staff, said the state's cash-strapped budget was no reason to stop setting ambitious
goals.
"'In the toughest of times you can't just become immersed in the cuts or the struggle
to stay afloat,' Zingale said."
George Skelton looks at Karen Bass' plans for reviewing the state's tax system.
"The volatility of the tax system keeps getting worse,
making it increasingly difficult for policymakers to
plan ahead.
"New Assembly Speaker Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) has taken up the cause and is bent on creating an
independent blue-ribbon commission to overhaul the tax code.
"'The economic crisis is national, but not every state
is having the problems we are,' she lamented last week over a blackened salmon salad.
'How have other states managed to weather this, and
why can't California figure out how to do it?'
"She wants the commission to study other states' tax codes and find out.
"'I'd expect it to come up with more stable ways to generate
revenue so we are not completely dependent upon the
upper income brackets. Also, I envision the commission
coming up with ways to incentivize the economy.'
"OK, is this a plot to raise taxes? That's what some Republicans fear.
"Not directly, Bass responds, but the effort could result
in a bigger take if the economy is stimulated by tax
incentives.
"'Some states have revised their tax codes in a revenue-neutral manner, but wind up producing more revenue
in the long run,' she says, sounding somewhat like a conservative supply-sider. 'I definitely want to see more revenue. But that doesn't mean it can't be revenue-neutral in the short term and -- especially if the economy is incentivized -- produce more revenue in the long term.'"
Dan Walters cuts through some of the hyperbole over the state budget.
"Whether the state extracts a larger portion of the
personal revenue stream and spends it or the money
remains in private hands and is spent makes little
economic difference. The money still circulates in
the economy. Furthermore, the $8.2 billion is a tiny fraction of the eighth-largest economy in the world, only about one-half of 1 percent of Californians' personal income.
"Would it then lead, as critics contend, to high-income Californians fleeing to states with lower or
zero income taxes, such as Nevada, rather than pay
their new levies? A few might, but those affected are
a tiny number of very high-income taxpayers, and the new state taxes would be
deductible on their federal income tax returns, reducing
the net bite by about one-third.
"There is a legitimate criticism of raising income taxes
on the wealthy – that it increases the state's dependence on a relatively volatile revenue source,
which is deadly when combined with very rigid spending
formulae.
"But the notion that a relatively small package of taxes
would have big economic impacts is pure sophistry – or cynical propaganda."
"The University of California, which hasn't opened a medical school in more than 40 years, is preparing to open two new medical schools to help train more physicians for underserved rural
and minority communities," writes the Chron's Tanya Schevitz.
"While the schools at UC Merced and UC Riverside won't be open for four or five years, they are intended
to help fill a growing shortage of physicians in the
state, officials say.
"In addition to planning the new schools, UC is working
to add slots at its existing medical schools in San
Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Davis and Irvine,
which now enroll about 2,540 students.
"'It is a little unusual for a university system to open
two medical schools at once,' said Edward Salsberg, director of the Center for Workforce Studies of the
Association of American Medical Colleges. 'But UC's decision-making has been good, looking at what areas of the
state have needs.'
"California, with a rapidly growing and aging population,
has less than half the national average of students
enrolled in such programs, according to the Association
of American Medical Colleges. Meanwhile, California
sends more students out of state for medical school
than any other state. "
Speaking of UC and medicine, "Some union employees at UC Riverside's student health center plan to defy a court order and go on strike for five days beginning today.
"The AFL-CIO affiliate and the UC system have been at an impasse over wage levels since April.
"The five-day walkout might affect everything from the cleaning
of common areas at UC campuses to hospital food and
janitorial
services, union leaders said.
"Medical services provided by
support staff will be handled by supervisors or non-union workers,
according to a statement from the UC system.
"A judge in San
Francisco said Friday the threatened walkout would
irreparably harm UC
patients, faculty and students, and banned the strike
until the union
gave adequate notice. But union leaders said that serving
formal notice
of the strike last Thursday fulfilled that requirement.
And in one last medical note, a big Roundup Get Well Soon to Jack Kavanagh, who was admitted to the hospital this weekend, and being treated for what he calls "a nasty stomach flu."
Hope you're feeling better, Jack.
You've heard of the running of the bulls. But New Orleans has taken the Spanish tradition and made it their own.
AP reports, "It's the running of the bulls, New Orleans style.
"Hundreds of men, women and children, most in white with red scarves around their waists and red bandannas around their necks, gathered outside a French Quarter bar Saturday morning to be chased down Bourbon Street by members of New Orleans' roller derby league.
"Roller skates and a stampede through the Quarter — what could possibly go wrong?" said accountant Jason Medonia.
"The run, in its second year, featured 33 roller girls in horned helmets from teams with names like Confederacy of Punches and Crescent Wenches.
"This year's crowd included Russ Schlievert, who came from Montana to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina and loved New Orleans so much he and his wife retired here.
"He will miss the annual "Running of the Sheep," an event he organized in 1989 in Reed Point, Mont., but said he was impressed with Saturday's event.
"I was surprised at the turnout," he said. "I was surprised that everybody dressed. But this is New Orleans."
