Politics

Dueling Economic Visions In Calif.

August 21, 2003 / 2:40 PM EDT / CBS/AP

Republican recall candidate Arnold Schwarzenegger is promising to take action - and do it quickly - if he's elected to California's top job.

The actor and governor candidate met with his high-profile advisers Wednesday, saying they would discuss how to make California's economy "a powerful job-creating machine."

"Everyone agrees the economy is one of the most pressing issues facing California," Schwarzenegger said as he convened the meeting. "How do we turn California's economy back to a powerful job-creating machine that it once was?"

Schwarzenegger spoke to reporters after meeting behind closed doors with advisers - billionaire investor Warren Buffett and former Secretary of State George Shultz. They were joined by business and government leaders.

Schwarzenegger is pledging to appoint an outside auditing group to take a look at the state's budget. He says lawmakers haven't been clear about how much is being spent or where the money is going.

He's pledging to make budget cuts - but not to raise taxes. He says Californians are taxed from the moment they wake up to when they go to bed -and that more taxes are the last thing they need.

He also says he'll call a special legislative session to work on reforming the workers compensation system. He says the system imposes unaffordable costs on employers without decent benefits to injured workers.

Buffett, who lives in Nebraska, said he wants to help California to pull out of its economic nosedive.

"If California prospers, the country prospers," he said.

In other developments:

A federal judge on Wednesday refused to delay the Oct. 7 recall election, rejecting arguments by the ACLU that punch-card voting machines used in at least six counties won't accurately tally votes. U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson said he would not rule against the will of the people by delaying the recall vote, as requested by the ACLU.

Also Wednesday, former baseball commissioner Peter Ueberroth kicked off his campaign with a press conference in Los Angeles to detail parts of his economic recovery plan — one of several in the works this week as major candidates finally begin to address the issues in detail.

On Tuesday, embattled Calif. Gov. Gray Davis denounced the upcoming Oct. 7 recall as a Republican power grab in his first major remarks since the election was approved. The Democratic governor acknowledged he was slow to act on California's energy crisis and that no one was happy with the budget he just signed. But he sought to place the state's troubles in the perspective of an American economy that has "tanked."

Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante, the most prominent Democrat on the recall ballot, on Tuesday released his own plan to turn around the state's economy, further complicating Davis' fight to remain in office. Davis had sought to keep other Democrats off the ballot so he could focus on defeating the recall. Bustamante, who says he opposes the recall but wants to replace Davis if the governor is ousted, proposed nearly $8 billion in new taxes or fees and $4.5 billion in cuts or savings.

Campaign correspondents noted that Schwarzenegger has promoted several products on the campaign trail: his movie, "Terminator 3," his Lifecycle exerciser, Indian Chief motorcycles and Hummer sport utility vehicles.

Porn star candidate Mary Carey pledged a dinner date with any donor contributing $5,000 or more to her campaign. The adult entertainer promised to talk about whatever is important to the contributor, and said she needs the money for advertising, political rallies and momentum.

Davis is the first California governor to face a recall election and if the recall is successful he would be only the second governor in the nation to be removed from office.

"For the next seven weeks, my highest priority is to do the job you elected me to do, but make no mistake ... I will fight this recall and the right-wing forces behind it," Davis said.

"This recall is bigger than California," Davis said. "What's happening here is part of an ongoing national effort by Republicans to steal elections they cannot win."

Last week, a slate of 135 candidates was certified by the secretary of state, and the Oct. 7 recall election is just seven weeks away.

In Washington, Democratic party leaders were closely watching the polls Wednesday to see if Davis' address succeeded in reversing the governor's declining support.

Democrats are united against the recall but split on whether to back an alternative candidate. The top choice would likely be Bustamante, who recent polls show neck-and-neck with Schwarzenegger as the leading replacement candidates.

A senior party official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Davis has until shortly after Labor Day to shore up his support. Otherwise, Democratic leaders will begin signaling their support for Bustamante. Another party official said Davis is having trouble raising money.

Democratic Party chairman Terry McAuliffe is sending former Clinton White House spokeswoman Ann Lewis to California this week to head up the party's communications strategy for the recall.

Hours before Davis addressed supporters at the University of California, Los Angeles, Bustamante released his plan, calling for raising taxes on cigarettes and higher taxes on high-income residents.

Ueberroth, another of Davis' Republican rivals, offered broad proposals on measures to close California's anticipated $8 billion budget gap but provided scant details.

The centerpiece of his plan is a one-time tax amnesty, which he said could raise up to $6 billion. He also proposed a state government hiring freeze and review of employee salaries, cuts in spending, renegotiated state labor contracts and an assault on fraud in the Medi-Cal system.