The speech that I want to hear from Governor Schwarzenegger tonight at the GOP convention would have as its central theme a return to fiscal conservatism. It would include an emphasis on 
infrastructure, with a public adoption of the proposal introduced by EVERY Assembly Republican to finance infrastructure by paying-as-we-go instead of through massive borrowing. The speech would go on to talk about the need to have pension reform, and the importance of finishing what the Governor started, by putting and end to deficit spending in Sacramento.
Other highlights of the speech would include his decision to replace Rob Reiner as Chairman of California’s ‘Tobacco Tax Spending Committee’ with attorney Hugh Hewitt, the unveiling of a new Republican Chief of Staff (I’m okay with anyone at this point who is registered as a Republican), a commitment to find and appoint qualified Republican judges to the bench, and an embrace of a statewide measure to fight eminent domain abuses.
As a Republican who was an outspoken supporter of the Governor in the recall, and who has supported him in his endeavors including speaking publicly many times on behalf of his special election ballot issues, this kind of a speech would bring me back to where I probably need to be — excited about the fiscal conservatism of my Republican Governor — so much so that I am able to set aside the fact that his views on social issues (especially abortion) are far from my own. This will help me to stomach that despite being a student of economist Milton Friedman, the government has a penchant for pro-environment social engineering.
As retired State Senate Leader Jim Brulte told me in a conversation earlier this year – the Governor’s success in California comes from the fact that he is where the voters are — he is socially liberal, environmentally moderate, and fiscally conservative. Give me back that Governor.
This is the very ‘unique’ mix that allowed for the creation of an amazing coalition that brought this Republican Governor to a state that is dominated by Democrats and a growing cadre of decline-to-state voters.
However, since the beginning of the year, there has been a change from the formula described by FR friend Brulte — that fiscal conservative is in hiatus, and speaking as a Republican leader and as a former Executive Director of the California Republican Party, our mission of helping to provide a strong GOP vote this November is a message that will resonate with Republican base voters. We need at least one leg of the Governor’s ‘stool’ to be real "red meat" fiscal conservatism. The theme of borrowing and deficit spending will make our jobs so difficult going into the fall.
Will I get the speech I am looking for tonight? Likely I won’t. But along with the other 1400 members of the State GOP Committee, we will be listening for some policy goals and ideas that we can use to excite the folks we need to in order to push up our GOP turnout.
There will be a lot of applause tonight, because we are all proud of having a Republican Governor. And to put everything in context, even a Governor who isn’t as fiscally conservative in 2005 as he promised he would be in 2003 is better than the alternatives of Angelides and Westly. But this speech isn’t about gaining the support of the 1400 people at the convention – he already has OUR support. It is about sending a message to Republicans statewide that he does not take their votes for granted. It is about giving us a positive message of economic sanity and fiscal restraint that we can use to positively motivate GOP voters, rather than having to spur them to action out of fear of a Democrat in the corner office.
I’ll look forward to writing to the thousands of FR loyal readers, and giving you a post-speech update tomorrow morning!
February 24th, 2006 at 12:00 am
Jon-
Are you SURE he has the support of the 1400 state central committee members? Were not a decent number at least open to the idea of revoking the pre-primary endorsement? And what about borrowing and spending can he talk about to energize the demoralized base? How does he spin abandoning fiscal conservatism, the one plank of being a Republican he had left in common with conservatives?
Don’t get me wrong, I never supported revoking the endorsemnt, I still back him fully for re-election.
I also never expected him to be a conservative governor, even fiscally.
I never expected him to appoint 100% Republican judges.
I never expected him to cut spending and borrowing.
I never expected him to be Tom McClintock – that’s why I voted for Tom in the recall. I find it amusing that so many conservatives were perfectly willing to abandon their principles and their standard bearer in 2003 for the sake of winning at any cost, now they’re hand-wringing and bemoaning after what they will do to keep GOP voters from sitting out elections over the governor’s centrism.
California and the GOP got the governor that you paid for, now we all have to live with it, and that’s better than Angelides or Westly, no matter how weak a Republican he may now be.