The Appreciator

There is something quaint about Arnold Schwarzenegger’s devotion to his adopted home state of California and his desire to give something back to the land that he rightly says made him the celebrity he is today. Now that he has been elected governor, the Austrian born former bodybuilder and movie icon must turn that debt of gratitude into action to erase California’s massive debt and other looming problems.

During a quick campaign in which he ducked most debates, Mr. Schwarzenegger avoided giving many specific details about how he’d fix California’s many woes, chief among them an $38 billion budget deficit. Now that he has the job – after 54 percent of voters supported the recall of second-term Democrat Gray Davis and then 48 percent chose Mr. Schwarzenegger, a Republican, as his replacement – the man best known as “The Terminator” must quickly come up with some answers.

He has said his first task when he takes office, probably early next month, will be to repeal a recently enacted tripling of the state’s car tax. The average bill to register a car now runs about $230. The problem is that the state constitution says such a tax can’t be undone unless an alternative source of funding can be found. The tax will raise more than $4 billion this year for county and government services including police, fire and health programs. Mr. Schwarzenegger has said he does not favor raising taxes but has also pledged to not cut education funding, which accounts for roughly half the state’s budget.

Fiscal issues aside, the governor-elect has also not specified how he will rejuvenate the state’s economy, address long-standing immigration issues or work with a liberal Democratic Legislature that gave Gov. Davis fits. It is a good first step that the newly elected governor plans to immediately meet with legislative leaders.

Thanking California voters for putting their trust in him yesterday, Mr. Schwarzenegger said: “I will do everything I can to live up to that trust. I will not fail you. I will not disappoint you and I will not let you down.” A tall order, even for a man of his stature.