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Bustamante says he's an 'alternative' for Calif. voters
(CNN) -- The Democratic unity that California Gov. Gray Davis had counted on to defeat the recall effort crumbled when Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante decided to put his name on the October 7 ballot. Bustamante has said that he opposes the recall but that voters need a Democratic alternative should Davis be removed from office. (Full story) If voters do recall Davis, the top choice to replace him would be Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger, followed by Bustamante, according to a CNN, USA Today and Gallup Poll released Sunday. According to the poll, 22 percent of respondents said there is a good chance they would vote for Bustamante, the first Latino to serve as California state Assembly speaker. Bustamante spoke Monday with CNN Anchor Bill Hemmer about the recall race. HEMMER: If you pick up a copy of Newsweek magazine and Time magazine [which feature Schwarzenegger on their covers], Arnold Schwarzenegger did not drop a dime for any of this publicity. How do you stop what appears to be a runaway political train right now? BUSTAMANTE: Well, I don't think it is a runaway political train. I think Arnold Schwarzenegger has a tremendous number of fans as an actor, and clearly people are excited about his announcement and that kind of a thing. And I think it's going to wear for a while, and then I think we're going to get back to a real campaign, and I think Arnold knows that as well. We're going to have to start talking about issues, and people are going to have to figure out whether or not one group or one person is the best candidate and base that on the issues. HEMMER: ... We go back to the poll numbers right now. According to our numbers anyway, you're trailing Schwarzenegger by about 20 points. If you consider what some are saying right now, a moderate Republican, a moderate conservative who may be able to steal Democratic votes -- what do you say to Democrats in your state who may favor his position and may be drawn toward him? BUSTAMANTE: Well, clearly, there's a group of folk, especially within the Democratic Party, who are going to be opposed to Arnold's campaign. They're going to be opposed because I think that they believe clearly that the more progressive side of the agenda, the more progressive groups are going to be within the Democratic Party. I mean if you really believe in trying to make sure that admissions for every talented kid, regardless of race, are going to make sure that they're going to be maintained; if you are going to make sure that the coastal legacy that we've all been fighting for for many, many years is going to be maintained; if you're going to make sure that we're going to protect the most vulnerable people among us, you're going to have to make sure that you're going to identify someone who can not only articulate and make sure that they can just say the words, but people who have been able to do it and fight and make sure that they understand how to do those kinds of things in California. A perfect example is the issue of the car tax and also student fees in the colleges and universities. It is short-sighted and it is lax vision when you're increasing the amount of tuition for students who are trying to go to our universities and colleges. You're mortgaging our future by having what will probably end up being 60,000 students who won't be able to go and putting an unfair burden on working-class and middle-class families. HEMMER: The poll numbers show 54 percent of those surveyed think Gray Davis should leave office and be recalled. As his right-hand man, sitting on top of a $38 billion deficit, how do you tell people in California, "You know what -- You can trust me, follow me. My policy will be different, and it will work." BUSTAMANTE: Well, first of all, they have already done that. The voters of this state have already voted for me twice. And they voted for me twice, statewide and successfully, specifically to be able to take care of the position should the governor not be able to carry out his duties. The voters know that I am an independent person, and they have voted for me independently, and as a result they expect me to be able to step in, and I have had the chance for the last five years to prepare myself for that eventuality. HEMMER: ... [In another poll], 50 percent of those surveyed recently say you have no chance in terms of getting a vote from California voters. Your reaction to that? BUSTAMANTE: You know, I have always been told, whether I was going to run for office from the Central Valley -- I came from a little tiny town in the Central Valley -- people said maybe I shouldn't go to college either, I shouldn't run for office, I couldn't be the speaker, I couldn't win statewide as lieutenant governor. If I would have listened to all the naysayers a long time ago, I wouldn't be here today. So the way I look at it, I'm an average guy trying to do an above-average job, and the voters have voted for me several times now to be able to do that, and I think I'm presenting myself as a viable second option, that I have opposed the recall. However, you're going to have a second vote. Vote for Bustamante just in case. HEMMER: Would you rather be governor, or would you rather see Gray Davis keep the job? BUSTAMANTE: You know, I'm here as an alternative. I'm here to be a positive second option. I'm here to make sure the voters have an opportunity to be able to use that second vote, and I hope that they will. HEMMER: ... How do you keep a cohesive message when you're taking a two-pronged approach? BUSTAMANTE: ... I think that if you look at it very clearly, you have two issues: You have the vote of the recall, and then you have the vote of somebody that you'd like to replace in the event that it should be successful. They're going to be voting, and I don't think that you've asked the same question of any of the other candidates. In fact, I think there's a clear distinction between me and many other candidates. First of all, I'm the only Democrat in the race, and if you look at the top folks at the other side of the aisle, the other candidates, I'm probably the only nonmillionaire in the race. I think people are going to have a chance to choose clearly between my candidacy and the others.
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