ShareThisTuesday, November 14, 2006
An ebullient Arnold Schwarzenegger, after being re-elected governor in a landslide Tuesday night, proclaimed, "I love doing sequels." It's good that he also loves challenges.
The harmonic convergence of political and policy interests that allowed the Republican governor to work so effectively with the Democratic Legislature is likely to be tested in 2007. For starters, there isn't going to be enough money to go around _ assuming the Democrats fight for their favored programs and Schwarzenegger clings to his no-tax pledge. The state could be looking at a $5 billion budget deficit.
Also, to his credit, Schwarzenegger is eager to risk his new bounty of political capital by taking on one of the toughest and most important challenges around: Finding a way to provide basic health care to all. It will take creativity and fortitude to get anything done on an issue that is impossible to touch without alarming a special interest. It's properly placed as his No. 1 priority.
But Schwarzenegger must not forget the bold reforms he promised as a citizen-politician in the 2003 recall: overhauling a budget structure that produces perpetual shortfalls and ending legislative and congressional redistricting by politicians.
Those boxes still await his detonation.
