Arnold is on the run

Recently, Sasha reported about cracks in Schwarzenegger's facade. In an interview with Chris Matthews on Hardball, Schwarzenegger had the gall to argue that calling a Special Election, an event that would cost the state $70 million dollars, would create jobs and justified his contracting out jobs to India.

MATTHEWS: What is the--some of your critics have raised the issue that, in your campaigns to raise support for your reforms, you're contracting out jobs to India, those people that once worked in the boiling rooms. How do you defend that?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, you know something? Those critics should create the jobs that I've created.
And by calling a special election, which we're going to do very soon...
MATTHEWS: Right.
SCHWARZENEGGER: ... we have created a whole industry in California.
People are out there gathering signatures.
MATTHEWS: But why would you...
SCHWARZENEGGER: There's hundreds of millions of dollars, hundreds of millions of dollars are being spent on television. It stimulates our economy. All this creates jobs. What are they talking about contracting out to India?

His comments in the interview smacked of desperation and many are predicting that Schwarzenegger is looking for an exit strategy. A new poll shows they are right. Schwarzenegger has dropped dramatically in two new polls. One shows the governor dropping to a 42 percent approval rating and another shows him dropping to a 46 percent approval rating.

Last week, Schwarzenegger won "the right to do unlimited fundraising" on behalf of his initiatives, but he simply strengthened the perception that he is a just another cash register politician--leaving the door open for a real reformer to become governor.

Will he abandon a strategy that is clearly hurting his chances of re-election? Or will he continue to get hammered by a widening network of opposition? I predict he folds. But in the meantime, Arnold will be in town next week. He has a major fundraiser on April 5th at the Ritz Carlton, 600 Stockton Street, 6PM. We should at least make him go in the back door, don't you think?