Petulance. That’s the only word to describe the behavior of Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger since he’s discovered he can’t have his way
on absolutely everything in state government.
Petulance. That’s the only word to describe the behavior of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger since he’s discovered he can’t have his way on absolutely everything in state government.
As he travels the state lambasting state legislators over their refusal to rubber-stamp his budget, he accuses them of “acting like children.”
Some psychiatrists see the shoe on the other foot. “Petulant is a good word for how he’s acting'” said Dr. Martin Greenberg of San Diego. “When he calls the legislators names, it means he’s upset and wants to put them down.”
Adds Dr. Bernard Kirzner of Los Angeles, “He’s a bit arrogant. He’s used to being a tough guy who gets what he wants. Now he’s angry and trying to throw his weight around. He was used to being the boss when he was making movies in Hollywood. I think he’s learning that being governor is not as easy as he thought.”
In fact, being governor was simple for Schwarzenegger for many months. No California governor in modern history enjoyed so long a honeymoon and such coddling from the Legislature.
No one protested when he unilaterally rolled back a $4 billion per year part of the vehicle license fee. Lawmakers quickly reversed an earlier action and rescinded a law letting illegal immigrants get drivers licenses. He won passage of workers compensation reforms that don’t compel insurance companies to pass their savings along to businesses buying coverage. It was one seemingly effortless victory after another.
That emboldened Schwarzenegger to the point where he agreed to several springtime budget deals with major interest groups like state universities and local governments. He made promises as if he could automatically deliver legislative approval, because it had been easy for him up ’til then.
And when the Democrats who control both the state Senate and Assembly wouldn’t go along with some of those deals and his other demands, he seemed shocked.
That’s when he took to the hustings, visiting places like Dixon, Long Beach, Folsom, Ontario and Stockton, walking through restaurants filled with sycophantic fans and threatening before adoring crowds to “terminate” legislators who won’t, to borrow a phrase from his deposed predecessor, implement his vision.
So infuriated was Schwarzenegger when legislators didn’t act as if he was the producer-director of a film and they were mere extras just along for the ride that he called those who disagree with him “Girlie Men.”
Yes, that was a joking put-down, based on an old “Saturday Night Live” satire of himself, where two comics portraying Austrian musclemen insulted anyone without an imposing physique.
But Democrats took it as an affront, as did most of the 33 women in the Legislature and the smallish gay caucus, which saw the remark as homophobic.
But in his anger, Schwarzenegger may have revealed more about his priorities than he intended. “We will stop (the legislators) from catering to the trial lawyers instead of catering to the businesses'” he declared in Stockton.
“Is anyone in Sacramento catering to regular citizens?” wondered one longtime voter after hearing Schwarzenegger’s promise.
For sure, Schwarzenegger caters to big businesses, especially those that have helped his various political committees raise a record $18 million in after-election funds. He campaigned vocally against politicians taking campaign contributions during the budget-writing process, but has accepted money from firms like the Ameriquest mortgage company and others as the budget dispute dragged on. His workers comp reforms were exactly what his insurance company contributors wanted. His opposition to cell phone regulation is just what his cell phone provider donors want. His pushing for electric deregulation is precisely what other business donors want.
Schwarzenegger blasted legislative Democrats for catering to “special interests” like labor unions and trial lawyers. He used to include casino Indian tribes on that list, but now that he’s reached one of his unilateral deals with some tribes and might be getting contributions from them, they’re apparently no longer a special interest.
Meanwhile, anyone who points out his inconsistencies or disagrees with his priorities is a “girlie-man.”
Only time will tell whether Schwarzenegger’s boasts about “terminating” legislators will come true. But most legislative districts in this state were carefully drawn by both major parties to assure continuation of the party balance, circa 2001. There are only a few places where even a powerful campaigner like Schwarzenegger figures to swing the vote any other way.
That makes Schwarzenegger’s adolescent threats and insults dangerous and potentially self-destructive for him. For one thing, they are already clouding the sunny climate that prevailed in state politics after his election. For another, they may make it much more difficult for him to build the kind of coalitions he so often says are needed to make state government work.
Elias is author of the current book “The Burzynski Breakthrough: The Most Promising Cancer Treatment and the Government’s Campaign to Squelch It'” now available in an updated third edition. His email address is td*****@*ol.com.
