Governor Urges Seniors to Back Ballot Measures

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. —  Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger urged senior citizens to seize control of state spending from Sacramento politicians and enlist in his campaign for Propositions 57 and 58 on the March 2 ballot.

The remarks marked the beginning of an effort by Schwarzenegger to use the populist rhetoric of his recall campaign to persuade voters to pass the ballot measures, which for the next five weeks will be the focus of his office.

Proposition 57 is a $15-billion general obligation bond to cover the state’s budget deficit; Proposition 58 is a balanced budget amendment to the state Constitution. The measures are linked; if either one fails, both fail. Each requires a majority vote for passage. Critics say that more state borrowing would be irresponsible and that the proposition provides no guarantee of a balanced budget.

Thursday’s event at the sprawling Rossmoor retirement community in this East Bay city took place in front of a roaring fire in a cozy meeting room. It was the third major campaign event conducted by the Republican governor and his Democratic co-chairman for the two propositions, state Controller Steve Westly. But it represented a distinct softening of rhetoric and a new, more targeted phase in the bipartisan effort to pass the two measures.

Speaking to 160 seniors, including members of Rossmoor’s Democratic and Republican clubs, Schwarzenegger and Westly dropped their earlier warnings that the state would face “Armageddon” and spark “world recession” if the measures did not pass. They instead emphasized again and again that the two propositions offered voters an opportunity to decide the state’s budget direction. The governor added a new slide to his visual presentation criticizing the “politicians in Sacramento.”

“Sacramento has created this mess,” Schwarzenegger said, “and I need your help to get us out of this.”

Westly added: “I just want to see you be empowered, get involved in making California a better state ... to make democracy work just a little bit better.”

Political advisors to both men acknowledged that such a message is unusual for a bond issue campaign, but they said extensive polling showed that senior citizens respond strongly to the directly populist appeal.

The governor also briefly noted the stakes for seniors, allowing for the possibility of tax increases as well as cuts to social services and healthcare if the measures fail.

The campaign will devote considerable energy to turning out older voters, in part because polls show seniors to be more supportive of the measures than the public as a whole, the governor’s strategists say. On Thursday, however, many of those in attendance said they had come away impressed with the governor, but still uncertain how they would vote.

Dina Melamed, a retired nurse and medical technician who said she was a political conservative, joked with the governor during the event about whether he would move to Rossmoor. But she said afterward: “I am allergic to the borrowing.... I need to look at more of the details.”

Hugh Grey, a retired educator who heads Rossmoor’s Democratic club, said Schwarzenegger had “presented it skillfully, but it’s hard to tell how much he persuaded people.”

Political advisors to the governor said the senior event was the first of several appearances the governor would make to reach particular voter groups. Among the targeted demographics will be teachers and members of minority groups. An advisor said such groups often vote with Democrats, and Propositions 57 and 58 are doing better with Republicans than Democrats in private and public polls.

“It is clear that the persuasion effort has to focus on Democrats,” Darry Sragow, the campaign’s Democratic consultant, said in an interview this week. “Targeting is inevitable.”

“This is not going to look like any bond campaign this state has ever seen before,” said Todd Harris, the campaign’s communications director.

Massive rallies are planned for the conclusion, including one on the steps of the Capitol. “The end of this campaign will look much more like the end of the recall campaign than a bond campaign,” Harris said.

As the governor pushed his bond package, his finance director revised her estimate of how much more state borrowing would be required if voters rejected the March 2 bond.

Donna Arduin told lawmakers that the state would have to find $5 billion in unanticipated cuts to government programs. That’s because the state would be forced to rely on a smaller amount of debt that was approved by the Legislature last year.

Even that backup plan, however, is being challenged in court.

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Times staff writer Evan Halper in Sacramento contributed to this report.