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July 25, 2005
Strong-Man Governor Finds Politics is Very Heavy
Governor Arnold is finding that politics is a lot harder than he probably ever imagined. His troubles in the country's most populous state show a real lack of experience. I think many people assume that politics is a simple job. They probably feel the hardest part is getting elected. It is easy to stand on a pulpit of some sort and attack political leaders as ineffective, stupid, lazy, and paid for by various lobbyists. As a famous movie star Arnold could stand on his pulpit, scream about the idiots in the state capital, and people would listen. He was going to save the day, solve the states problems instantly and show those incompetent politicians a thing or two. However, now he finds that the people of California have serious doubts about his agenda and methods of tackling pressing issues, most specifically the budget. His unwillingness to compromise and work with the opposition has quickly created enemies. Many view his methods as arrogant. His poll numbers are way down. The political opposition smells weakness and ineffective leadership. They will be reluctant to bend to his will.
I wonder why so many people think that politics is so simple. It is rather difficult to navigate between the never-ending need for money, the desires of constituents, the intent of moving the country in a more responsible direction, and everything else that comes at you from lobbyists, your colleagues and political leaders. The simplistic arguments don't hold well when confronted with the reality of the political arena. Perhaps this sort of thing happens because, we so wish that the answers to all our problems were simple. If and when someone offers easy solutions we want to believe them. The "Just Say No" of Nancy Reagan, abstinence to solve the world's AIDs problems or any of the other quick fix solutions to massive social problems are not effective solutions, though we wish that it were so. I suppose that is why so many of us continue to vote for people like Arnold.
Posted by Chip Spear at July 25, 2005 9:36 AM
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