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Monday, March 29, 2010

Deja Ew: Meg Whitman's Rhetoric Re-runs the Recall that Foisted Schwarzenegger on California

San Francisco Chronicle
A tale of two campaigns from first-time candidates for California governor:

Arnold Schwarzenegger, 2003: "Join Arnold"

In Schwarzenegger's first ads, the movie star railed against the political establishment, saying he could bring "big change," fresh perspective and business sense to the state Capitol: "We see an education system that is last in the country. We just see things declining and declining and declining. I will go to Sacramento and I will clean house."

Meg Whitman, 2010: "A New Kind of Leader for a New California"

In her first ads, the former eBay CEO promises that "we can fix California, no question about it. It's going to take a different style of leadership, it's going to take a different approach, but we can make California great again."

On politicians:

Arnold: "The people are doing the job, the people are raising their families, but the politicians are not doing their job."

Meg: "The professional politicians have been fighting in Sacramento for years, and the state is in the worst shape that I've seen in the many years that I have lived in California." She adds, "The professional politicians in Sacramento can't see past their differences long enough to save the state they love."

On spending:

Arnold: "We don't have a revenue problem. We have a spending problem."

Meg: "We have a spending problem of epic proportions."

Secret weapon:

Arnold: "It all comes back to discipline."

Meg: "I am a big believer in focus."

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