An excellent opinion piece in the Dallas Morning News from Columnist Ruben Navarrette, Jr:
*Californians weren't fooled by political theater
During an election day Mass, the now ex-governor of California felt the urge to say a prayer to St. Jude. He needn't have bothered. Even the patron saint of lost causes can spot political careers that are beyond salvation. And an incumbent governor with a 72 percent disapproval rating qualifies.
OK, gang, the fun's over. California voters aren't to be pitied or mocked. Rather, they should be admired and praised. They deserve enormous credit for ignoring last-minute mudslinging and those ridiculous charges about how the recall was part of some vast right-wing conspiracy to overturn elections. Luckily, they saw it for what it really was: a no-confidence vote on a career politician who built a career out of scaring people away from the alternatives.
That was always Gray Davis' MO. It's what led Mr. Davis to cross the line last year and buy TV ads that influenced the outcome of the Republican primary, essentially choosing his opponent. The recall was a creature of Mr. Davis' making. Put simply: People who spend their lives trying to manipulate the system run the risk of someday having the system turn against them.
Seems the Latino community isn't quite as captive or stupid as Bob Mulholland
and Terry McAuliff believe, Navarrette continues:
In doling out credit, let's not forget Latino voters who showed their independence by not toeing the line dictated by their leaders. From former Los Angeles mayoral candidate Antonio Villaraigosa to members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the shepherds pleaded with the flock to vote "no" on the recall. But the majority of Latino voters were smart enough to do otherwise, perhaps realizing that keeping Mr. Davis in office would only extend the political life of someone who knew only two ways to interact with them – ignore or pander.
According to an ABC News exit poll, 53 percent of California Latino voters supported the recall. Only 47 percent voted to retain Mr. Davis.
...How on earth did Mr. Davis get the idea that Mexican-American voters, who make up the majority of Latino voters in the state, make their decisions based on what giveaways are handed out to Mexican immigrants?
They don't. Sure, in the 1990s, California Gov. Pete Wilson learned that one sure way to lose Mexican-American support was to pick on Mexican immigrants. But no one ever claimed the opposite was true – that one could gain that support by pandering to immigrants.
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