Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who rode into power on a wave of voter angst in the first recall of a California governor, now finds himself a target for removal as his own popularity is declining.

The state's well-financed prison guards union, the California Correctional Peace Officers Assn., is bankrolling a recall effort against Schwarzenegger.


"This is a governor that has done absolutely nothing," union spokesman Lance Corcoran said in an interview Monday. "We have the largest budget deficit in the history of California. We have one of the longest budget stalemates."

Schwarzenegger and the union known as CCPOA have been at odds for years, unable to agree on a new contract for the guards. Last fall, the governor invoked a rarely used provision of state law allowing him to unilaterally impose new working conditions on the union in the absence of a deal.

Corcoran said the dispute has nothing to do with the recall effort, but the governor believes otherwise.

"I'm not going to get intimidated by those guys," Schwarzenegger told reporters in the Capitol on Monday after a ceremony honoring California's Olympic medalists. "The state should not spend more money than we take in, and their intimidation tactics will not make me change my mind whatsoever, because I happen to not represent the CCPOA. I represent the people of California."

The perception that the guards' campaign is self-serving could limit their ability to garner support, said Allan Hoffenblum, a Republican political analyst. He said they would need a broader movement like the one that destroyed former Gov. Gray Davis, the Democrat recalled on Oct. 7, 2003, amid anger over higher vehicle license fees, immigration issues and the energy crisis. - See Schwarzenegger target of recall effort for the full report.

It cannot be denied that Barack Obama is a well reasoned, thoughtful and ultimately powerful orator. When speaking to supporter's young and old he can be very inspirational. His appeal has been called messiah-like, by the likes of Rush Limbaugh with a surge in popularity has been nothing short of extraordinary. He is the most, win or lose, successful African American politician in American history.

Senator Obama's record of achievement has fully prepared him to lead us; to help us achieve the American Dream. Or has it?

The issues facing the next president are vast; economic slowdowns and possible recession, wars in foreign nations with no end in sight, and education system where great teachers aren't rewarded and ultimately a health care system that needs to be reworked. Let us not forget about our porous southern border, unprotected with crime rates sky rocketing in border states. Our next president will have to address these issues, especially if they campaign for "change."

Once we get passed the flowered rhetoric who really is the Senator who hopes to be President of the United States? The purpose here is to understand his plan for America that literally lacks specifics and presents a model for the future that brings down the heavy hand of government, limiting our choices and our freedoms.

Senator Obama proclaims that under his America, his changed America that all our health care needs will be met by forcing insurers to issue "fair" policies. These fair policies would include a national plan that pays for all your health care costs. These fair plans "force" private industry to provide coverage at accessible prices whether you, in your current economic state, could afford it or not. These fair policies would automatically garnish payroll budgets for employers not wishing to or able to pay for the coverage Obama deems necessary. Small businesses are obviously exempt for now; that is until another entitlement or victim is popularized by the media.

Are we supposed to so quickly forget that the government so eager to take care of health care needs is the one who has bankrupted Medicare, Medicaid and every other social program in America?

The issue of choice looms large as well. Obama promotes "proven methods" as the means to take care of things like diabetes, heart disease among many chronic diseases. Who defines what "proven methods" work with chronic diseases? What is the definition of a "proven method" when human beings react differently to different medications treating the same illnesses? When such an entitlement, which would nominally be in the hundreds of billions of dollars yearly, is running low on funds what should these patients expect as far as care? Simply put the cheapest alternative to keep you alive but not healthy.

Obama, of course has a plan for schools as well. According to his campaign site he will provide high quality care and education with his "zero to five" plan aiding all those who need assistance. His K-12 initiatives are yet another tax and spend fantasy providing expansion for after school, summer and expanding No Child Left Behind by furthering the financial reward to both failing schools and improving schools. While the Senator does astutely address teacher training with mentoring programs and residency requirements to help build a better foundation for future educators, he fails on the critical question: financing.

Our current public school system spends on average up to 10,000 per student per year and the system continues to fail. Are we to believe that throwing more money at the problem is the solution? How should those whose children do not attend public school react when their taxes are increased to meet these demands? If parents are not given the option to take their child to an improving school or given the breaks necessary to place their child in private education then the freedom of the child and the parents are imperiled. It is important to note that the Illinois Senator does not offer choice in his education plan only edicts and check writing.

Our southern border is another matter of pressing national importance. Illegal immigration, which has caused there to be anywhere between 12-20 million undocumented people within our borders, is a problem not only affecting our national identity but our national security. Some, like Pat Buchanan, see it as an invasion from Mexico. Pat Buchanan's assertion aside it is causing this nation many problems.

Illegal immigration is a burden on our school system and our health care system, not to mention many of our entitlement programs like the aforementioned Medicare, Medicaid, et al. Senator Obama on paper appears to support border enforcement and working with Mexico to curb their peoples incursions into our nation. Employer penalties are also part of the plan to eliminate the illegal alien migration.

His actions would say otherwise. Romantically and personally beholden to the immigrant story of success in a new land; Obama goes against the popular opinions about our immigration situation.

He is a vocal supporter of driver's licenses for illegal immigrants and comprehensive reform which has been labeled as a code word for "amnesty." On the floor of the Senate in 2006 he applauded the legislation that would reform our current laws instead of enforcing them. President Reagan also supported a comprehensive package known back then as Simpson-Mazzoli, that reformed our immigration laws and put an emphasis on enforcement. Here we are 22 years later facing the same issue.

Economic woes are preventing most from achieving their goals. The subprime mortgage lenders, growing numbers of bankruptcies and foreclosures have put a strain on millions. He is quick to blame the credit card companies and lenders for the financial troubles of the nation. He would rather give a fish than teach people how to fish. Instead of promoting financial education at the earliest stages of our educational lives he would rather cut a check and create funds to protect those who are either foolish or to easily swayed to spend money they don't have. The problem is not the companies that issue the credit but person who uses that credit.

As far as jobs are concerned, it can't be denied that high paying jobs are being taken overseas and that many of "the jobs Americans won't do," are being taken up by undocumented low skilled workers. Instead of promoting growth in all industries and providing incentive for corporations to retain their headquarters in the United States, Obama along with the other Democrat candidates, plan to impose tax hikes on the wealthy. He claims that investment and promotion of green technologies will create jobs while punishing companies that charge for internet services will promote growth. More likely than not tax hikes, green policies and the lack of positive job creation will lead to higher unemployment as employers cover the cost of these initiatives. That of course excludes the cost of government mandated low cost health care initiatives.

The Iraq war has been the greatest foreign policy blunder in American history. Some argue that the numbers of deaths in other wars easily trump this one with their losses of blood and treasure. Thus, Iraq is only a show of our force instead of a misguided act of ignorance. Obama rightly, smartly seeks to end this catastrophe and bring some semblance of sanity to our foreign policy initiatives.

Still there is a naiveté about his first major endeavor into changing America's presence in the world. He believes that talking to the worlds greatest dictators, heck according to reports he admires Marxist revolutionary Che Guevarra, will somehow absolve one another of our differences. He also believes that letting the world know that we will be out of Iraq in 16 months but retaining troops in the region will placate those that hate us. If he truly sought change then he would abandon all our posts worldwide and bring our boys home. Should we retire from our stations worldwide? Pat Buchanan and Ron Paul, classical conservatives and philosophical enemies of our current Military Industrial Complex, think so; then again Barack Obama may be left of Hugo Chavez. It is doubtful he would seek their advice.

Senator Obama is a man of unrivaled style and charisma. I have to admit I was moved by his speeches and I have been somewhere between a classical conservative and a neocon my entire life. Still, the prospects for our nation over the next 4 and possibly 8 years are dire. Barack Obama may be a rock star to his followers but no amount of speech making skills make up for a flawed and destructive domestic policy that is traditional tax and spend, with a touch of Marx. Our country needs help its unfortunate there are no leaders or cowboy diplomats worth their weight to assist us in regaining our national pride.

© Copyright-Alejandro Rodriguez III All Rights Reserved Worldwide

By: Alejandro Rodriguez III
Alejandro Rodriguez III is a political scientist and social philosopher. Dabbling in conservative politics and outright brazen thought he can be reached at alejandro_r_3@yahoo.com

Well the California primary and special elections are over and our good buddy Gov. Schwarzenegger and his Democrat cronies have put yet another one over on the good but not very well informed citiczens of California. The man that I (Oh, what an idiot I was) and the majority of California voters elected as our Governor made a very sweet deal, with the backing of his cronies in the Democratic Party, with four very wealthy Indian Tribes that would allow them to add thousands of slot machines to their 'gaming' casinos while paying the State of California virtually nothing for the privilege.

When they got caught making this deal, which they tried to slip through without a vote by the people of California, Propositions 94,95,96,97 ended up on the ballot. The four Indian tribes immeaditly began a advertising propaganda campaign spending between $100 and $200 million. The Governator and his buddies starting promoting the passing of these propositions and tons of misinformation and vague half truths filled the airwaves and the print media.

The biggest piece of misinformation put out was that the needy state of California would recieve through this deal a much needed $9 billion dollars. No one ever said how anyone came up with this figure of $9 billion dollars which by the way was to have been recieved over the next twenty years (something barely mentioned by the Tribes or the politicians) or how much more should have been recieved with other deals. No one mentioned that according to the State Of California, we would be lucky to recieve $250 million over the next four years which was not much more that we would have recieved if these propositions had not been passed. No one mentioned the added costs of allowing these thousands of extra slot machines to be put in play, such as additional road work and repairs, additional police, fire and other service costs to the cities and counties around where these casinos are situated. These costs will have to be spent in order to handle the problems that come up when tens of thousands of additional people invade the area in order to play those additional seventeen thousand slot machines.

I could go on and on, but let's just face it. The people of the State of California got taken once again by it's elected representatives.

Some people ask, why would our representatives to this to us. I don't know, could it be the $150 million in contributions already given to these representatives and their favorite projects. Or could it be the $100s of millions more that these representatives hope to recieve from those four Indian Tribes. And maybe it could be the $100s of millions in contributions they hope to recieve in the future from other Indian Tribes that will want the same sweetheart deals.

All I know is that it is our fault that we got taken. Too many California voters trusted our politicians (how gullible can we be?) and, as usual, too many California voters did not bother to do research before they voted. Will the voters of California ever learn? Probably not!

David G. Hallstrom, Sr.
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According to Official California Voter Information Guide Prop 93 is an initiative Constitutional amendment that

Reduces the total amount of time a person may serve in the state legislature from 14 years to 12 years.

Allows a person to serve a total of 12 years either in the Assembly, the Senate, or a combination of both.

Provides a transition period to allow current members to serve a total of 12 consecutive years in the house in which they are currently serving, regardless of any prior service in another house.

Right now a politician's service is restricted to six years in the Assembly (three two-year terms) and eight years in the Senate (two four-year terms).

Under Prop 93 a politician could serve six two-year terms in the Assembly, three four-year terms in the Senate, or some combination of terms in both houses.

In my opinion Proposition 93 is not a new term limits proposition. Instead it is a way around current term limits. This new proposition would allow politicians to hold on to their seats of power in each house for a much longer period. It allows parties that controll certain areas to keep their control for longer periods and it allows committee chairmen to hold on to those chairmanships for longer periods.

While I am sure that lobbiests and special interest groups love Prop 93, I don't. I urge a no vote on Prop 93.

David G. Hallstrom, Sr.
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There are a lot of liberals out there vying for the Presidency in 2008. Some have that little "D" for Democrat next to their name while others have an "R" for Republican. And we haven't even gotten into discussing other parties infested with liberals like the Greens, Socialists and Communists; the latter of which will probably just throw support behind the Democratic Party nominee anyway when all is said and done.

All these candidates have their eyes set on the Presidency and the role of "Commander in Chief" because liberals see their roles in government as one of "commanding" America how to act. Someone should tell them however that is not what the founders meant by the President being "Commander in Chief".

Liberals want to be the "commander" of our lives, institute "command" economies and all the wonderfully failed policies of the past. They want to "command" us all how to save for our retirements, to "command" that we must provide for the retirement of others at gun point and under penalty of imprisonment, to "command" that we must have government run health care, to "command" that we must pay for the health care of others that might not even want it, to "command" how many miles to the gallon our cars get, to "command" how many gallons of water our toilets can hold, and so on. They want to "command" us right down the road already traveled by so many into oblivion.

They do this, of course, because they claim to believe in compassion. But they have no real compassion for those that they saddle with the yoke of government and enslave into the service of others. Benjamin Franklin wisely said, "When the people find that they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic." By that standard our republic ended long ago.

But then again, what did he know right? He was just some old white guy of European decent that helped form a nation that enslaved poor black people and suppress the rights of women. Well, one can also argue that he helped form a nation that fought long and hard to free the slaves and give women equal rights too. But that wouldn't fit the template. So we'll just ignore that.

Freedom isn't easy. And it sure as heck isn't perfect. But it works pretty darn well when it is embraced.

Today, contrary to Franklin's admonitions, we've become a nation full of people voting themselves money and requiring that others pay the tab. We have become a nation all too willing to accept a "Commander" in Chief, or even Chiefs when you consider all the would-be "commanders" in Congress.

We have bastardized what were once grand ideas and a sound blue print, save a few blemishes, and departed from the principles of liberty while seeking out our next "commander" to lead us. We have ditched the concept of a confined and limited scope of federal government to tax and spend clearly described by James Madison in Federalist 41:


"It has been urged and echoed, that the power "to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, to pay the debts, and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States," amounts to an unlimited commission to exercise every power which may be alleged to be necessary for the common defense or general welfare. No stronger proof could be given of the distress under which these writers labor for objections, than their stooping to such a misconstruction.

"Had no other enumeration or definition of the powers of the Congress been found in the Constitution, than the general expressions just cited, the authors of the objection might have had some color for it; though it would have been difficult to find a reason for so awkward a form of describing an authority to legislate in all possible cases. A power to destroy the freedom of the press, the trial by jury, or even to regulate the course of descents, or the forms of conveyances, must be very singularly expressed by the terms "to raise money for the general welfare."

"But what color can the objection have, when a specification of the objects alluded to by these general terms immediately follows, and is not even separated by a longer pause than a semicolon?"


We, as Americans, are all in this, the great and continuing experiment of America, together. And if you listen to the carefully worded rhetoric of would-be "commanders" seeking our votes in 2008 you might be lulled into a sense of believing that they are right there with us. Like when Hillary Clinton says, "I prefer a 'we're all in it together' society".

That is a pretty broad and perfectly couched statement and it is a sentiment that, without looking at her proposals, and proposals by other liberals, anyone would tend to agree with. But the devil, as they say, is always in the details. Her idea of being "in this together" is having government confiscate the wealth of others who have worked for it and which has been freely given in exchange for services. Or as Hillary puts it, "We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good." How nice. But I already have a mommy and I have grown up and don't really need another.

This is also the same woman who proclaimed that she wanted to seize oil company profits so the federal government could better use. Bet that makes all of you out there with 401ks, union retirements, pensions and IRAs invested in the oil companies happy right?

It is not just Hillary Clinton that desires to be our "commander". Barack Obama, once you wade through all his similar "we're in this together" speak designed to lull Americans to sleep has the same desires and goals stating "Effective federal programs are necessary to protect the rural economy." (Obamaforillinois.com May 2, 2004) and dictating ("commanding" through government force what wages must be paid: "Obama voted to increase the minimum wage to $6.50 an hour" (Press Release, "Creating Jobs in America" Jun 21, 2004)

When did we stop believing in freedom? When did we stop believing that people making their choices and rising and falling by the virtue of those choices was so bad? And when did we start looking for someone to "command" us from on high?

Have we not seen how poorly that works? Have we not seen the utter collapse of "command" economies and nations like the former Soviet Union and even Castro's Cuba? Have we been so blind to the havoc wreaked by Hugo Chavez in Venezuela in the past months? Have we not witnessed the anemic growth of even just soft socialist nations in Europe?

Have we really degraded so much as a culture where a "Commander" in Chief is more preferable to the blessings of liberty?

By: J.J. Jackson
J.J. Jackson is a libertarian conservative and the owner and Lead Editor of American Conservative Politics - The Land of the Free and American Infidel T-shirts. His weekly articles can be read at Liberty Reborn.

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