CNN/AP: Schwarzenegger writes $1.25M check to redistricting campaign

[DeepModem Mom]

Schwarzenegger writes $1.25 million check to redistricting campaign
Tuesday, September 27, 2005


SACRAMENTO, California (AP) -- California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has contributed $1.25 million of his own money to a committee pushing a bill that would change how legislative districts are redrawn.

The measure, which Schwarzenegger helped qualify for the November 8 special election ballot, would strip redistricting authority from the Legislature and turn it over to a panel of retired judges.

Steve Poizner, a Silicon Valley billionaire, said Tuesday he donated another $1.25 million to the effort after Schwarzenegger asked him to serve as chairman of the Yes on Proposition 77 committee.

Poizner, who also is running for the Republican nomination for insurance commissioner next year, said he thinks lawmakers have too much of a vested interest to continue to be allowed to draw the boundaries of their own districts.

Opponents charge that the measure is an effort by Schwarzenegger and the Republican Party to simply pick up more seats....


http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/09/27/Schwarzenegger.redistricting.ap/index.html

[rsmith6621]

1. $$$$$ is their style of democracy

If it cant be bought then its stolen.

[olddad56]

4. It isn't democracy, that is dead, it is corporate fascism....

The wealthy corporations run the puppet government so they can steal from the taxpaying middle. Democracy was stolen out from under us in 2000. It will never return. Corporate Fascism is here to stay. They will rule through fear and intimidation.

[Vektor]

2. Fucking corrupt scoundrels.

Grrrr. :grr:

[raysr]

3. Are Californians

out of their fucking minds? Nevermind, 0f course they are, look who they put in for Gov!

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[valerief]

7. You're right. We don't vote anymore. Diebold votes.

[goclark]

30. Don't put all of us in THAT bag !

We worked like hell to keep him out.
Diebold and the lies put him in.

[obxhead]

5. It takes 1.25 million to draw lines on a map?

No wonder we are so screwed up.

[Castilleja]

8. Wow, that seems a little "not quite right"

Isn't that a conflict of interest on the part of Schwartzenegger? Or at least unseemly??????

[dusty64]

26. One would think, but

in todays world ethics and the law ONLY apply to nonrethugs.

[Lindacooks]

9. I am SO glad I have NEVER seen one of his movies, so not a penny of

that money he sits on came from me.

[Tiggeroshii]

10. It seems as though I'm the only one who's remotely happy about this.

Prop 77 is the only one of the initiatives he endorsed which I support, and it's the only one that deserves to pass. We have a self interested legislature that cares more about maintainging power than they do serving the people. They don't deserve to draw their own district lines. It doesn't matter who it is that draws it for them, the bottom line is that they WON'T draw them. Too many folk call themselves hardcore Democrats like they want equal representation and all that shnazz, but once one bill comes along that remotely gives them that chance, they shoot it down. Can you imagine what our Democracy would be like if all the voices were heard and represented in a legislator?

Well, for one you'll have a higher voter turnout...

[PSPS]

11. You're buying a "bill of goods"

Look at what they did in Texas. They redrew the congressional lines so that a republican majority was guaranteed in perpetuity.

[flyarm]

19. not to mention what redistricting did to fla!!!!!!!!

we are now in the process of trying to get 7 million on a petition to get the rethug redistricting over turned...and that is a chunk of petitions...do not even think that rethug redistricting isn't for anything other than contempt and destruction of democracy!

you are only kidding yourself if you think so!!

redistricting by rethugs is the end of your state as you have known it!
fly

[wiley]

13. Republicans have burned this country so many times over

that it is very difficult to see this as anything but another way Democracy will get a raw deal. So, who would appoint these retired judges? I would feel better if Delay and his thugs were imprisoned first.

:patriot:

[Tiggeroshii]

14. The judges will be appointed by a bipartisan legislative committee

And they will be the product of a bipartisan panel of 212 Dem and 12 Republican judges. Thrugh a process of elimination, the three judges will become evident. This obviously isn't perfect, but it takes the poer of redistricting out of the hands of the legilature, and that's the bottom line.

[wiley]

15. Thanks. Would the Supreme Court go for that?

[Tiggeroshii]

34. We'll find out.

I'll betcha I'll start lacking appeal for it as the election nears, so I'll start focusing on the fine pritn and see how reasonable all this really is...

[democracyindanger]

16. So politicians get unaccountable judges

to do the work for them. Same difference. It's a power grab, plain and simple.

[flyarm]

20. and cows jump over the moon...just ask those of us in states that have

suffered the rethug bullshit!

fly

[AndyTiedye]

18. Yes, It Does Matter

It doesn't matter who it is that draws it for them, the bottom line is that they WON'T draw them.

Better the Legislature draw the lines than Arnie, Ken Lay, Michael Milken, and Pete Wilson.

They would gerrymander the districts to give most of the seats to Republicans in our blue state.

This is a Republican power-grab, plain and simple, and I don't see how any Democrat can support it.

[flyarm]

21. you bet it is..and the naive fell for it in fla and other states

as well...do not buy the hard sell..this is the end of calif forever if you vote for this redistricitng shit!

a gerrymandered fla voter!

it sucks and don't buy it or it will be your peril!!

fly

[Baconfoot]

23. Did you know that voters can only REJECT a plan AFTER it has been used?

and that individuals elected under the redistricting plan will serve out their full term instead of being brought into compliance with a redistricting scheme that WASN'T rejected by the voters?


As is the case with all these propositions - look at the fine print. It is worse than you think. This one seemed tempting to me too... that is until I read more than the blurbs.

[cascadiance]

12. Damn! We need Clean Elections legislation statewide NOW!

To keep rich bums trying to corrupt our system away!

That also would do FAR MORE to help us kick corrupt bums out of office to get them replaced with ones that care than any redistricting plan would, no matter how "fair" it might be! The fundamental problem is the corruption, not the district lines!

[flyarm]

22. the district lines are where the corruption begins and ends...

wake up see what we and texas and colorado are suffering!!

stop being foolish..the end of your democratic state begins and ends with redistricting!!

do some homework look how hard we in fla are working to stop the redistricting that the bushcos did to fla!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

wake up!!

fly

[cascadiance]

33. You misunderstand my comment here...

I'm completely agreeing with you that we should prevent these redistricting measures from going through. There is actually a case that might go before the supreme court that would try to limit "off season" redistricting for political purposes. Not sure if it will be heard yet, but was seeing this on ACLU's court preview session on CSPAN.

No, I'm trying to tell the proponents (which we have a number of them here on DU) of this Arnold measure, that clean elections is a BETTER way of trying to get decent reps in that aren't corruptable, which should help GOOD (that would be non-DLC, but also possibly moderate) Democrats to get elected.

I'm completely in agreement that measures like Colorado and Texas are raping this country. I'm trying to help direct the emotional fervor that is herded to support this measure to be better directed towards "clean elections" legislation, which I think ultimately will be more satisfying in results for those who want some sort of change that these sorts of measures are being championed to accomplish.

[AlGore-08.com]

31. Ballot initiatives have become a joke. They should be the way we influence

the state Government, not the way that the super wealthy get their pet legislation passed.

I'm with you 100% on needing clean elections - - including strict controls on who can fund ballot initiatives and how much individuals can contribute to them.

[rumpel]

17. asshole! use it to help the homeless in our state

[wakeme2008]

24. Hey Gropinator -- Florida needs a million

for it's redistricting.

I just love it, Jebbie is FOR redistricting in Calf but is fighting it in Florida. I just can not wait for the ads of Gropinator and Jebbie telling the ppl how great redistricting is, to counter Jebbie parties ads in Florida on how bad redistricting is. :evilgrin:

[Dogmudgeon]

25. I don't understand it

If Ahnold wants to guarantee Republican hegemony forever, why can't his California GOP just do it the easy and direct way -- by stealing the elections outright -- ?

Well, it's his money to spend, I guess.

--p!

[pinniped]

27. How sad, the POS is using his wealth to influence his stupid...

ballot measures.

What charge? Isn't this what they want? Why the hell do they always make things sound like they're some crazy accusations?

--Opponents charge that the measure is an effort by Schwarzenegger and the Republican Party to simply pick up more seats....--

[leesa]

28. Our schools and medical system could have dearly used that money.

What an opportunistic scumbag!

It IS heartening to know that it has so little support he has to buy it himself.

[yellowcanine]

29. Is that legal? If it is it shouldn't be. Herr gropinator must be getting

a trifle worried about the outcome.

[AlCzervik]

32. Gropenfuher and my gop rep did a photo-op in my neighborhood to show

how screwed up the district lines are---the problem for them is that they were both wrong so my rep has no idea who he represents.

[DemoTex]

35. Hey Gropinator, study Tom Delay and the Texas redistricting model.

Maybe you guys could share a cell? Delay has such a purty mouth.


Not good in Texas or California. Offer expires 8/31/2005. Certain restrictions apply.

[zann725]

36. "HIS" money? Really? He did save CA a lot of Workers Comp claim $$'s

That's what he was brought in for specifically.

Noe worked over Ohio's Workers Comp money. No correlation, I'm sure...