Schwarzenegger apologizes for 'close the borders' remark

San Francisco Chronicle
Schwarzenegger apologizes for 'close the borders' remark
Critics deride his explanation of 'language problem'

Carla Marinucci, Chronicle Political Writer

Thursday, April 21, 2005

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger publicly apologized Wednesday for his earlier statements that California should "close the borders" with Mexico to control illegal immigration, saying he had misspoken because of a "language problem.''

"The bottom line is, I misspoke, and I'm sorry if I offended anyone," Schwarzenegger said about his comments Tuesday to a newspaper publishers' group in San Francisco. "I meant 'securing' our borders, not 'closing' them.

"We have a great trade agreement with Mexico; we are good friends,'' the governor said Wednesday to reporters, adding "we are benefiting from these talented workers, so we have got to come up with a policy'' on immigration.

He later joked to journalists that he should "go back to school and study" his English again.

But Schwarzenegger's retreat over a volatile issue of illegal immigration -- which came less than 24 hours after his statements to the Newspaper Association of America in San Francisco -- failed to mollify the governor's opponents. They insisted that Schwarzenegger's recent statements reflected a wider pattern of appealing to a more conservative GOP base and stepping to the right on issues ranging from immigration to union political activity.

"You can say you don't understand the language -- but in a conversation about immigrant rights, to have your press secretary translate? Give me a break,'' scoffed Gale Kaufman, a Democratic consultant working with the Alliance for a Better California, the labor coalition opposing Schwarzenegger's proposed initiatives. "Here's a guy who claimed to be a moderate, and who is increasingly supporting and touting ... (a) right-wing agenda.''

Maria Blanco, the executive director of the San Francisco-based Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights, an immigrant rights organization, said that "the apology is great -- but this is what moderate Republicans end up doing when they lose support; they think about seeking support from more extreme Republicans.''

Margita Thompson, the governor's press secretary, said Wednesday that Schwarzenegger's critics "are experts at diverting attention away from California's true problems -- which is where the governor is focused.''

She said Schwarzenegger wasn't the only political leader to publicly admit errors, and "it's one of the reasons why people can relate to him, and they love him, because he's human.''

With Schwarzenegger still considering whether to call a special election for November, the flap dramatizes an increasingly partisan divide in the state.

As Schwarzenegger pushes what he labels a reform agenda -- merit pay and tenure changes for teachers, a budget cap and legislative redistricting -- critics say he has tacked to the right to fire up the conservative base, in part to bolster his falling poll numbers.

"The governor knows what he's saying. He knows what his words mean,'' said state Treasurer Phil Angelides, a declared 2006 Democratic candidate for governor. "The visual image of closing the border is a clear image ... and it's not the first time he's done this.''

Angelides noted that Schwarzenegger had drawn cheers before the state Republican convention in Burlingame by denouncing gay marriages in San Francisco's City Hall, and later said he had ordered Attorney General Bill Lockyer to halt the weddings because "we see riots, we see protests, we see people clashing.''

"There's a pattern here,'' Angelides said. "You speak like (President) Bush does, with the language of compassion, but at the big moments, you throw red meat to the right wing.''

Democrats and labor activists point to the governor's hints of support for another hot-button issue for conservatives -- paycheck protection, an initiative that would ban unions from using dues for political purposes without the specific consent of members.

In Auburn (Placer County) recently, Schwarzenegger handed out flyers printed by the initiative committee Citizens to Save California that touted issues including the Public Employee Voluntary Political Contributions Act, which is the paycheck protection effort.

Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman, in an interview last week, vowed the national party would strongly support paycheck protection.

"Think about the arrogance of saying because you work for a union, you shouldn't be able to decide if your hard-earned money is spent on politics,'' Mehlman said.

Mehlman also signaled that national Republicans would work with the governor on a roster of issues: "If you care about children and education, and you care about whether union workers have the choice of whether they want to give money to politics, and you care about budget reform ... then you are probably going to support a GOP governor -- because Arnold Schwarzenegger is working to accomplish all those things.''

But Barbara Kerr, president of the powerful California Teachers Association, said Mehlman's words showed "the national chair of the Republican Party is giving an answer to ... (the question): What happened to the governor that people elected who said he was going to work with everyone and make California strong?''

"It's just hard for me to take that the governor is turned from working with everyone, to working with no one,'' she said.

But former Republican state Sen. Jim Brulte of Rancho Cucamonga (San Bernardino County), now a consultant, cautions that while "nobody hits every ball out of the park,'' Schwarzenegger can't be underestimated.

"This is a governor who is incredibly popular with his own party, got pretty good support with independents and still has a reservoir of support from Democrats,'' he said.

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