Angelides will cater to California

We all remember the recall election of 2003. Then-Gov. Gray
Davis, re-elected just one year earlier, had become very unpopular,
weighed down by an energy crisis and obstructionist Republicans in
state government. In a historic recall election, he was swept out
of office by an angry California electorate.

In came Arnold Schwarzenegger, who rose to power with the
promise of a new kind of bipartisan politics. Three years later, we
can see that Schwarzenegger has abandoned that promise. He has sold
out the people of California and it is time for him to go.

Take immigration, for example. In 2005, the governor went on the
record praising the Minutemen, the vigilante group patrolling the
Mexican-American border with shotguns. Realizing how unpopular his
comments were, he quickly changed his mind and backed away from the
group.

His stance on gay marriage tells a similar story. He has said
all along that he supports full and equal rights for gays and
lesbians, yet when given the opportunity to give them marriage
equality, he vetoed the bill.

It’s not hard to understand Schwarzenegger’s game.
He wants to be re-elected, which requires him to appear to be
moderate. At the same time, he is beholden to the far right within
the Republican Party.

Perhaps nothing illustrates this better than his
special-election debacle of last year. He thought his bipartisan
popularity and movie-star image would allow him to attack
education, along with the teachers, firefighters and nurses of our
state.

About the only promise

Schwarzenegger can say he’s kept is his steadfast refusal
to raise taxes, even on the richest of the rich. This foolish
adherence to the Republican anti-tax dogma has had dire
consequences.

Schwarzenegger’s tuition hikes have taken thousands of
dollars from the pockets of UCLA students. Instead of asking the
wealthy to pay their fair share, he has turned to college students
and working-class families.

Schwarzenegger’s re-election campaign this year reminds me
of a bad rerun movie. Just like in 2003, the Terminator is on TV,
doing his best impression of a Democrat. But we know how the movie
will end ““ we have already seen what will happen once he is
actually elected.

It is time for a new governor, one who will stand up for the
people of California; who will give tax cuts to the middle class
and ask the rich to pay their fair share; who will roll back our
ridiculous tuition hikes.

It is time for Phil Angelides.

Rose is president of Bruin Democrats. He is a third-year
political science and communication studies student.