Phil's Follies

Karen Hanretty, communications director for the CA GOP –

Stop the presses! State Treasurer Phil Angelides spoke out today against Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger – again. Having wrapped up January’s anti- Schwarzenegger education tour, Angelides kicked off the month of February with ... [a] tour to criticize the governor’s efforts to reform public employee pensions. It’s obvious why Angelides and today’s fraternity of likeminded officials from around the country fear pension reform. It would take away their microphone.

“It’s becoming increasingly clear that Angelides and CalPERS’ leadership have other motives that are just as self-serving as the corporate governance practices they decry. ... What's happening with CalPERS ... is part of a larger, nationwide effort by labor unions to gain leverage with corporations by wielding the investment power of public pension funds. For Angelides, who is positioning himself to run for governor in 2006, the crusade is a twofer. He can simultaneously burnish his credentials as a corporate reformer, thus exploiting public dismay over the recent spate of accounting scandals, and build relationships with the unions that wield huge influence within the Democratic Party.” (Dan Walters, Sacramento Bee, May 5, 2004)

Today’s song-and-dance routine by Angelides & Co. was typical: blame Enron, defend the status quo, protect the unions. What’s interesting is how Angelides likes to play the guardian angel of corporate reform when in fact it was he and the CalPERS board who sat by and allowed Enron to bedevil shareholders.

“But in the case of the Enron Corporation, Calpers was the watchdog that did not bark. Records from its files show that it was alerted by its advisers in December 2000 about the serious and potentially embarrassing conflicts inherent in one of a web of private partnerships set up by Enron’s chief financial officer, Andrew S. Fastow. ... But Calpers – which was a substantial Enron shareholder and a partner in some of Enron’s earlier deals – did not confront Enron’s board over its approval of the arrangement, in which Mr. Fastow ran partnerships that did business with the company. Nor did Calpers publicize its concerns that Mr. Fastow could not protect both parties’ interests between the partnership and Enron.” (NY Times, Feb. 5, 2002)

Here’s a sneak peek into next month’s anti- Schwarzenegger tour: Angelides and his marauding band of union apologists hold a press conference to announce that they oppose the governor’s picks in the March Madness college basketball pool.