Arnold Lost; Status Quo Won

Arnold suffered a big setback last night. No doubt about that. When he was elected in 2003, the nation was just rebounding from a recession. Governor Gray Davis had botched the energy crisis and implemented an extremely unpopular car tax. Arnold represented a change against that status quo.

Two years later, the economy has been expanding for over 3 years. Tax revenues are once again surpassing estimates. The car tax is gone.

People went to the polls yesterday and voted to maintain the status quo. They're complacent. They're content with the political process in CA. They're not wildly upset about energy prices.

People rarely change course when they're content.

Arnold's "year of reform" might've played well in 2003, but not after 3 years of economic expansion.

Yesterday was a huge win for the status quo in CA.

(Even with Prop 75 failing, I imagine union members now know they can opt out of the political fees. I don't think this was common knowledge before. I imagine lots of state workers and other union members are filling out their "opt out" forms today. I found this on a quick Google search, for those looking for more info: How do I cut off the use of my dues for politics and other nonbargaining activities?)