 Hands down, California has got to be considered the wackiest state in the nation when it comes to politics. The only other state that could possibly hold a candle to our lunacy is Minnesota, whose citizens in 1998 elected Jesse "The Body" Ventura—a former world wrestler—as their governor.
But hold on. We have a machine-killing actor, a car-alarm tycoon, a pornography publisher, a progressive columnist and a welcome mat out for anyone with $3,500 and 65 signatures to run as a candidate in the upcoming recall.
No doubt about it—this recall has definitely sunk our image as the Golden State. Even Wall Street has thrown up its hands in disgust and dropped our bond rating to BBB, two levels above "junk" bond status, which puts us at the bottom of the 50-state credit barrel.
Once again, for better or worse, we have become a national trendsetter through progressive behavior we initiated 92 years ago. It began under the leadership of reformist Gov. Hiram Johnson in 1911, when we amended our state constitution to allow initiatives, referendums and recalls.
Sixty-seven years later we found ourselves once again gloating over our behavior when we triggered a national tax revolt with the passage of Proposition 13. It was such a major coup that Californians remained quiet for almost two decades, until we got antsy for action and erupted in the 1990s with a slew of propositions.
We passed Proposition 209, which has pretty much dismantled the state's affirmative action program. Proposition 36 changed prison sentences for first-time drug offenders, placing many in recovery homes. Proposition 225 legalized medical marijuana use at the state level but made the federal government crazy. Proposition 21 reduced the legal age a juvenile could be tried as an adult to 14. Proposition 187 denied health care and services to illegal immigrants but was ruled unconstitutional.
So with all these propositions is it any wonder that when we began bleeding red from an energy crisis, a dot-com blowout and a $67 billion deficit that one man, Rep. Darrell Issa, decided to bankroll the recall effort with $1.7 million of his own money?
But that's pennies compared to what it's going to cost the state—an estimated $67 million, a cost that will be borne by California's 58 counties, as ballots are printed in four different languages and government manpower and time are redirected toward this unplanned special election on Oct. 7.
Adding to the groundswell and chaos are the number of candidates running. Already more than 200 would-be politicos have taken out the necessary papers to run. Just how many file by the Aug. 9 deadline remains to be seen. But one thing is certain: The recall ballot has the potential to look like our local Yellow Pages at the rate things are going.
Besides the number of candidates, which already seems to be running into the double digits, we also have an 18-year-old high school student, a motorcycle biker who wants to legalize pet ferrets, a Cigarette Cheaper chain owner who wants to overturn the state's tobacco tax, and a 26-year-old programmer who has a website where supporters can buy thong underwear with the slogan "Georgy for Governor."
How can anyone take this recall seriously? And yet we'd better—the outcome is no joke. To elect a new governor and administration that steps in the very next day without a transition, an administration that may have no experience in politics, should make us all uncomfortable.
Even with all our problems, if our state was an independent country we would have the sixth-largest economy in the world. So whether Davis survives or a new governor is chosen, life as we know it can't change that quickly. The state will still have a rotten bond rating; the budget will still roll a $7.8 billion deficit into fiscal year 200405; and state and local programs are still going to be sliced and diced.
Davis may be inept, but it takes more than one person to swamp a government. The state Assembly is also guilty for its glut and lack of foresight.
It we really want to revolt, we should vote in legislators that will step up and amend our constitution to require a simple majority to pass a budget—not a two-thirds vote. We should require the government to balance its budget like any small business in order to survive. And we should stop wasting taxpayers' money on recalls and use the money for restoring educational programs and social services.
Come to think of it, maybe we should vote in that 18-year-old San Bruno high school student, William Pratt. He plans to go on to college and can't spend all his money on campaigning because he needs to buy a laptop. So you've got to figure that if he's elected, his priority will be to restore all the cuts made to the UC and Cal State universities in the recent budget cuts. At least that would be a start in the right direction.
Moryt Milo is the editor of The Willow Glen Resident. She can be contacted at 400.200.1051 or mmilo@svcn.com.
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