In case you missed it, the governor was on "This Week With George Stephanopoulos" yesterday.
On taxes...
STEPHANOPOULOS: Yet, your critics say that this one-and-a-half- cent
sales tax is the most regressive form of tax. It's going to hit the
people who are going through the toughest times right
now the hardest.
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, no one should be that worried about any
of that, because remember, the way it works is that
the governor puts
up a proposal, and then the legislative leaders go
and start debating
over that and looking into it, if they maybe have a
better idea or a
different idea. So we have a very collaborative kind of approach to
the whole thing. So they may come up with different
type of taxes.
I totally agree with you. It is very hard when you
have to increase taxes, no matter when you have to
increase taxes...
STEPHANOPOULOS: You don't want to do it.
SCHWARZENEGGER: I don't want to do it. I hate taxes. I hate the
word "taxes" and all of those things. But there's certain times when
you have to forget about the ideology, and, you know,
all of this, and
fix problems...
On Proposition 8...
STEPHANOPOULOS: Proposition 8 here in California, it passed, defining marriage as
exclusively for men and women. I know you've said you hope the court overturns it. Will you join
Democrats who are filing a challenge in the court?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No. I mean, I have been asked to join this fight,
and I had my own fight with Proposition 11, and that's what I've focused on.
But I made it very clear. I personally am -- for me, marriage is between a man and a woman. But
I don't want to ever force my will on anyone.
I think that the Supreme Court was right by saying
that it's unconstitutional. And that everyone should have the
right, just like we had the battle in 1948 and the Supreme Court decision came down, that, you
know, it was unconstitutional for blacks and whites
not to be able to get married with each other, and
they overturned that. And since then, that has been
taken care of."
On the Obama appointment rumor...
STEPHANOPOULOS: You're not going to go to Washington?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, I made it very clear that I want to stay in
California for the next two years and finish my term
here, because
there's still a lot of things that I want to accomplish.
This is a
great state.
And there's wonderful things -- we want to still get the health
care reform done. We want to continue fighting on environmental
issues
that is important in creating the renewable portfolio
of creating
renewables 20 percent by the year 2010, and then, of course, 33 percent
by the year 2020; and bringing our budget system back in
place where it belongs, and then start working on career
education
and in other educational areas.
Continuing his return to the national stage, the governor
is hosting an international climate change photo op,
er we mean, summit tomorrow in Beverly Hils.
The U-T's Michael Gardner writes: "'The goal is very simple: to form a broad international alliance,' Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said when he called for
the summit, the first of its kind in the United States."
Got to give it to him...he'll never be able to be president, but he sure plays
a good one on teevee.
"The lineup includes high-ranking government officials from Australia, Brazil,
Canada, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico and the United
States. Among the attendees will be governors, directors
of environmental programs, business executives and
environmentalists. The United Nations is sending one
of its top climate change officials.
"'This summit brings together leaders who are in the
true hot spots around the world,' said Carter Roberts, president of the World Wildlife Fund."
Dan Walters looks at gubernatorial aspirants and wonders why anyone
would want the job.
"U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein could probably have the
governorship for the asking, the Field Poll indicates,
but she enjoys new power in a Democrat-dominated national government and will be 77 years old in 2010. Without her in the picture – and she's playing it very coy – Attorney General Jerry Brown, a former two-term governor, appears to hold the strongest hand among
Democrats, even though he's viewed favorably by less than half of them.
"Trailing behind are Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who must win re-election next year; Lt. Gov. John Garamendi, a perpetual aspirant; San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, whose overall approval rating is just 25 percent and whose advocacy of gay marriage has made
him a lightning rod; and Jack O'Connell, the affable but little-known state schools superintendent.
"The three Republicans who want to run, however, are
even less visible to the public, with Field finding
that roughly three-quarters of voters have no opinion about them. They
are Steve Poizner, a Silicon Valley billionaire and state insurance
commissioner; former U.S. Rep. Tom Campbell; and Meg Whitman, the very wealthy former head of eBay, the online
auction house.
"Perhaps all of them should undergo mental evaluation
for even thinking about governing California."
And if they fail, they can all become journalists!
The Bee's Carlos Alcala writes that Sacramento's gay leaders are not pushing for boycotts of businesses that supported Proposition 8.
"Lester Neblett, executive director of the Sacramento Gay & Lesbian Center, advocates spending with businesses
that support gay rights, as opposed to the kind of
protests that targeted the Music Circus and Leatherby's ice cream.
"'The gay community has a lot of discretionary money
available to them. They can use this wisely,' he said. 'We're continuing to encourage people to support people
who support us. That's been the word that we've tried to get out to the community all the time.'
"While acknowledging the pain and anger caused by the
proposition's ban, Outword publisher Fred Palmer said he was against boycotting a business because
of an individual's contribution.
"Positive spending, he said, is more effective. "That's when we can speak the loudest," said Palmer, who is president of the Rainbow Chamber
of Commerce."
On this, the 30th anniversary of Jonestown, Rep. Jackie Speier recounts her story for her hometown paper.
"I was curled up behind the wheel of an airplane on
a jungle airstrip
in Guyana, South America. This isn't what I expected when I signed on
to work for a United States congressman. Our fact-finding trip to
investigate the Peoples Temple in Jonestown had gone
horribly wrong. I
lay as still as I could, pretending to be dead, as
an unknown gunman
pumped five bullets into me at close range. Pop-pop. Pop. Pop-pop.
"When the shooting stopped, I looked around and saw
bodies, including
that of my boss and mentor, Congressman Leo Ryan. Was
he, too,
pretending to be dead? I called his name, but he didn't respond.
Looking down, I saw what appeared to be a bone. It
was my own, and it
was sticking out of my shattered right arm.
"The thought raced through my mind: 'I'm 28 years old, and I am about to die. This isn't how it's supposed to happen.'
And from our Florida Files, "Authorities say an 11-year-old boy hit his mother in the head with a saw and then
offered her $5 not to call police. The St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office
reported that the boy and his 41-year-old mother got into an argument
Wednesday when she was trying to get him to take his
medication.
"The
boy left and went to another home, where he began hitting
a tree with a
saw. When the mother finally caught up with the boy,
authorities say he
hit her in the head with the saw, causing a minor laceration.
A
sheriff's report said that's when the boy began pleading with his
mother not to call police and offered her a $5 bill.
"The boy is facing an aggravated battery charge."
And the mother is healing up nicely while sipping on
a free venti frappucino...
