The apocalypse . . . Armageddon . . . the California recall. Well, that’s one down. And I feel good about it. The recall was called all manner of wild and crazy names by elitist bipartisan hipsters. However, it turned out to be just another example of the American-as-apple-pie process of petitioning our government, scheduling an election, and then voting. What’s not to like?
In fact, after all the predictions that the winner would get just a tiny percentage of the total certainly less votes than Governor Gray Davis received just a year ago it turned out that Arnold Schwarzenegger’s percentage and vote total bested Davis. Arnold terminated the guy. In 2002, Davis got 47 percent of the vote in an election with very low turnout and with 60 percent of voters expressing disgust for their choices.
I feel good knowing that a clear majority of Californians got what they wanted: an end to Davis’s corrupt and incompetent tenure and a new governor with more support and a chance to do better. Isn’t that what we all hope our political process will deliver? The recall even peeled off plenty of votes from standard Democratic constituencies.
If this was a Republican plot, Republicans have gotten smarter. Some said the process would be too confusing. But voters, said to be too stupid to walk and chew gum at the same time, went through 135 candidates on the ballot like a knife through butter. Elections, the rule of law, democracy, citizen control . . . Bring it on.
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.