Campus
opinions vary on California recall
election
By
Melinda McCrady
Summer Forty-Niner
Among
members of the Cal State Long Beach community,
like the rest of the state, Gov. Gray Davis
seems to have few supporters. But CSULB
people hold no consensus as to who should
replace him.
A
number of college students actively support
Arnold Schwarzenegger, an actor-turned Republican
with socially liberal views. Robert Elam,
director of the Young Voters for Arnold,
said that his group includes many people
that have not been involved in the political
process.
The
28-year-old Elam, a law school graduate,
is a registered Republican who describes
himself as Libertarian. Of all the viable
candidates, Schwarze-negger is "the
closest I've ever seen to a Libertarian
voice," Elam said.
Elam's
group includes members from USC, UCLA, UCSD,
Chapman University and CSULB. Meghan Kearney
is one such student at CSULB who joined
the Young Voters for Arnold. Though Kearney
is a member of the College Republicans,
her club members differ in opinion about
the best candidate.
College
Republican John Hrabe supports Tom McClintock.
"Senator McClintock has been fighting
for over two decades for accountability
in government. He has the budget expertise
to cut wasteful spending in Sacramento and
stop the illegal increase in the car tax."
George
Kuck, a professor in the physics and astronomy
department, is ambivalent about his Republican
choice. "Arnold is correct when he
said the business climate must be turned
around if people expect to have jobs in
this state," Kuck said. "I am
really for Tom McClintock or Bill Simon
because of my social conservative background.
However, I will take half a loaf as being
better than none."
Kuck
is positive about the recall. He said, "Governor
Davis was supported by the CFA and some
of us take umbrage that union funds were
used to have this disaster elected."
David
Murray, a political science major, is also
unhappy about Davis. "If he is
recalled," said Murray, "I wouldn't
be sad about it." Murray said Davis
is, "cynical, opportunistic, and doesn't
seem to have a backbone."
However,
Murray said, "Davis does not deserve
to be blamed for the power crisis."
That, Murray said, resulted from collusion
between the Bush administration and Enron.
Murray,
a founding member of the Campus Progressives,
isn't for Schwarzenegger but said, "If
Arnold is the worst case scenario, the recall
isn't the end of the world. Either way the
Christian right loses."
Murray
likes Schwarze-negger's personality and
shares some of his political views, with
the exception of those regarding economics
and labor. However, Murray said "I'm
not going to vote for a Republican."
Murray said he'll either vote for columnist
Arianna Huffington, an independent, or Green
party candidate Peter Camejo.
Another
Campus Progressive, Sé Reed, also
likes Huffington. "It'd be nice if
Arianna Huffington could win because she
might actually be able to figure a way out
of the quagmire California is in,"
Reed said. "A lot of people in California
will vote for him simply so they can have
the terminator for their governor."
Jorge
Javier Izquierdo, a computer science major,
is among the few that still support the
governor. "I'm voting for Davis again,"
said Izquierdo, "he won the election
a year back because the voters wanted him
in and I'm one of those voters."
"There
are other states that have the same economic
problems as California," said Izquierdo,
"but we don't hear about it."
Izquierdo thinks the recall is a ploy
by the Republicans to take over the state
in order to help President Bush win his
reelection bid.
When
asked who his alternate choice would be
if the recall succeeds, Izuierdo takes time
to think about it. "They're all not
really good because I'm looking for a candidate
with experience."
Finally
deciding on Democratic candidate Cruz Bustamante,
he said, "He'll grow into the position."
There
are exceptions to such deep thinking about
the recall. With its plethora of wacky candidates,
many are enjoying the sheer spectacle of
it all. "It's great," said Svavar
Svavarson, a computer science major and
Kappa Sigma treasurer. As an Icelandic citizen,
Svavarson can't vote.
But
if he could vote, "I'd vote for Mary
Carey, the porn star," Svavarson said
with a wide grin. "She's got some innovative
ideas, like taxing breast implants."
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