Our Turkey of the Year Award Goes To…

Well, it will come as no surprise to you that we at the California Democratic Majority have selected Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger as the recipient of our first ever “Turkey of the Year” award.

Appearances by the Governator in California have been few and far between since his failed special election (and no, running off to Red China with your big business allies doesn’t count) With the Thanksgiving holiday coming up, we thought we’d give you a few reminders of what makes this “Turkey” so special.

The Man Without a Plan – On Saturday, it was reported that the Schwarzenegger Administration “has failed to comply with a law requiring it to submit a five-year plan on the state's building needs… After taking office in November 2003, Schwarzenegger's office did not submit a plan for 2004, and it has not yet submitted one this year. The plan was supposed to be included with the governor's budget Jan. 10.” (San Jose Mercury News, November 19, 2005)

Anybody who has been paying attention knows that the SS Schwarzenegger is a rudderless ship. The Governor has no plan to deal with education; no plan to deal with healthcare; and the plan to deal with infrastructure consists of nothing more than trial balloons. In any event, the Administration’s continual flaunting of the law, as though it doesn’t apply to them, continues to amaze Capitol observers.

The Stone Wall – During the recall campaign, Governor Schwarzenegger pledged to make his the most open administration in history. Yet his attorneys continue to rebuff attempts from news organizations and others for the most basic of information.

“A free-speech group and two newspapers sued Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday to try to force him to reveal who was meeting with two of his top aides while he was considering the fate of hundreds of bills last year.” (Associated Press, November 21, 2005)

This suit should be unnecessary given the Governor’s campaign promises with respect to transparency. Another broken promise for the Governor equals another reason for Turkey of the Year.

The Blame Game – Last week, the Capitol Weekly reported the Governor’s chief campaign strategist recused himself and the Governor from any responsibility in the derailment of the “Reform” Express and instead placed the fault entirely on big business.

“Two days after the special election, the California Chamber of Commerce held its post-election powwow in the former Four Seasons hotel in Newport Beach. The talk of the two-day affair was the keynote speech from campaign strategist Mike Murphy, who told the room full of business leaders that they were to blame for the governor's defeat. Numerous sources in attendance said Murphy chided the business community for not matching the spending by labor unions during the election. And because of the governor's defeat, Murphy warned the room that they should prepare for some uncomfortable moments in the year ahead.” (Capitol Weekly, November 17, 2005)

Hmm… How much do you want to bet the folks at the Chamber feel like they’re the ones being stuffed this Thanksgiving?