Far from Gray

San Diego Union-Tribune

No 'pay for play' stench over this governor

Arizona Sen. John McCain's arrival in California on Monday to campaign for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's reform initiatives triggered the "gotcha" instinct among some reporters covering the visit. The thrust of their questions to McCain: Given that you ripped former Gov. Gray Davis for his fundraising and are a foe of big-money politics, aren't you a hypocrite for doing anything to help master fundraiser Schwarzenegger?

This is a parody of responsible journalism, so lacking in context and nuance that it borders on intellectual dishonesty. But what makes this particular bit of shoddy reporting worth citing is that the idea at its core – that Schwarzenegger's money-grubbing makes him just a corrupt right-wing version of Davis – appears to be a key reason his initiative campaign hasn't caught fire the way his recall campaign did. Our action-hero governor, the argument goes, not only isn't a reformer, he's on the take.

Bunk. The distinctions between the fundraising methods and purposes of the last governor and the current governor are plain.

Gov. Davis was the poster child for sordid cash politics, over and over bestowing favors on groups or individuals – the prison guards union, building trade unions, a software company, power companies, Coastal Commission petitioners, etc. – who came through with donations. Davis famously directly asked the president of the California Teachers Association for $1 million when the official came to lobby for budget changes. By the time of his 2003 recall, even his allies were appalled at his "pay for play" administration.

Davis used his tens of millions for political self-preservation. He didn't build his huge war chest just to scare off a serious challenger in the 2002 Democratic gubernatorial primary. He went to the extreme of advertising against Richard Riordan in the Republicans' 2002 primary to ensure he would face hapless Bill Simon in the general election.

In contrast, Gov. Schwarzenegger has no record of breaking with a previously stated position after a big donation. The reason he's harvesting extraordinary amounts of money from business leaders is because he's extremely pro-business and always has been.

What is this money being used for? For ambitious reforms that can only be enacted through expensive initiatives – not to meddle in another party's primary or to intimidate potential primary opponents from his own party.

And what Schwarzenegger's critics never bring up is that as much cash as he has raised – $35 million for his special election push – it's dwarfed by the bankroll of the unions opposing him. They have raised at least $70 million – and word came Tuesday that the CTA is thinking of borrowing $40 million more. Who's David and who's Goliath here?

As Sen. McCain noted when questioned about his supposed hypocrisy, "the governor has played by the rules of the game. "That's infinitely more insightful than insinuating there's something corrupt about raising money to fight for reform – or pretending the "pay for play" sign is still on plain view in the Governor's Office.