Oh Yes, Let This Come True: Recall Schwarzenegger

Mary Carey (above), Gary Coleman and Arianna Huffington, start raising some cash: We could have another California recall election, if the California Correctional Peace Officers Assn. has its way.

And why not? Arnold Schwarzenegger stormed into office by promising to solve the state's economic woes. Instead, we're in worse shape now than we were when Gray Davis was in office.

The L.A. Times writes:

The state's well-financed prison guards union, the California Correctional Peace Officers Assn., is initiating a recall effort against Schwarzenegger, a union spokesman said today. The governor and the union have been at odds for years; they have been unable to agree to a new contract for the guards, whose labor agreement expired in the middle of 2006.

The governor last fall invoked a rare provision of state law allowing him to unilaterally impose new working conditions on the union in the absence of a deal.

Lance Corcoran, a spokesman for the union, today said the contract dispute has nothing to do with the recall effort.

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

Schwarzenegger, a Republican, won office in 2003 in the recall of Democrat Gray Davis, partly on promises that he would get state finances under control and rein in its heavy borrowing. The state now has a projected $15.2-billion deficit.

The governor's popularity has been sinking this year. His approval ratings, however, are still above 40%, according to recent polls.

"I think people recognize that this is a guy that spent his life posing," Corcoran said. "That's what he did as a bodybuilder, he posed, and that's what he's done as governor."

The union has been one of the state's most influential political players by spending more than $3 million in dues it collects each year from 34,000 members. Corcoran did not specify how much the union would contribute to a recall campaign. He said, "CCPOA's never been shy about spending whatever it takes to get the job done."

We had a lot of fun with the recall here at Franklin Avenue five years ago. Let's do it again! Although this time, I really want to raise the money and get the signatures to run myself.