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Schwarzenegger offers voters some substance
From the Wolf Blitzer Reports staff in Washington: WASHINGTON (CNN) -- In California, a recall election looms to decide who should be governor. Californians want answers to the state's economic and energy problems. They want substance from their candidates. So far, they haven't gotten much. Until today -- when the best-known candidate met with his brain trust, and addressed the media. "We have everything we need, except leadership," Republican candidate Arnold Schwarzenegger said today at a press conference. Schwarzenegger is perhaps under the most pressure from voters and the media to lay out his positions on issues. At a so-called 'economic summit' today he was flanked by his top advisers: On his right, former Secretary of State George Shultz -- on his left, investor Warren Buffett. "California needs to solve its economic problems, and Arnold Schwarzenegger is the engine that will solve those problems," Buffet said today. "You're a new and constructive force on the scene," Shultz said, addressing Schwarzenegger. Afterward, the bodybuilder-turned-actor-turned candidate finally gave voters the substance they're looking for on how he'd fix the state's projected $8 billion budget deficit for next year: "We must never again permit Sacramento to mortgage our children's future to unconstitutional deficit spending. We must immediately attack the operating deficit head on. Now, does this mean that we are going to make cuts? Yes. Does this mean education is on the table? No. Does this mean I'm willing to raise taxes? No." Democratic Gov. Gray Davis -- fighting for his political life -- is holding a series of town meetings, beginning tonight in Hollywood. Davis's message: He's inherited the economic and energy crises. He claims he's fixing them. He's also turning this into a battle of pure politics, with a Clintonian refrain: "The Republicans behind this recall say they want you to oust me for past mistakes. My friends, they don't give a rip about past mistakes. This is all about control in the future," Davis said Tuesday. Republican Peter Ueberroth also came out with a plan today. "California has got to wake up and start problem-solving," he said. This served as a formal campaign kickoff for Ueberroth, the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics chairman and former baseball commissioner. To cut the state's deficit, he proposes spending cuts and a tax amnesty, allowing people behind on taxes to pay them before they're prosecuted. Also on the move today, Arianna Huffington, antagonist to Davis and Schwarzenegger, who spoke to students on education reform. A fast-paced day of campaign events ... On substance, a slow start.
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