This is just stupid:
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger traveled to a quiet San Jose neighborhood Thursday, and — dogged by protesters — filled a pothole dug by city crews just a few hours before, as part of an attempt to dramatize his efforts to increase money for transportation projects.
The choreographed press opportunity — at least the governor’s fourth recent event involving transportation issues — seemed aimed as much at thwarting the demonstrators who have followed Schwarzenegger for weeks as grabbing new attention for his proposal.
I don’t get out to California much, but am I to believe they don’t have pre-existing potholes that could be used in photo ops? No wonder everyone wants to live there- we have potholes that can eat your damned car.
(via Sploid)
JonBuck
For a while I had actually started to like Arnie. But he’s starting to resemble Jessie Ventura.
ppgaz
Does this mean that I can stop worrying about the constitutional amendment to let foerign-born persons be president?
But seriously, I am surprised he lasted this long.
KC
About a month ago, while walking to work, I saw guys from the police union circling the capitol in a truck pulling a billboard with a big ugly picture of the Gov.’s face on it (probably from Terminator). Next to his face was a badge and words to the effect of “he took his word back on us, he’ll do it to you.” At any rate, I thought he was pretty much screwed when I saw that. I mean, when you’ve got the cops protesting you like that . . .
Japan Air Lines
As a resident of California I can state that not only do we have plenty of pre-existing potholes, we have the worst roads in the country.
I guess he just wanted a pothole that wasn’t too big, and was in an atractive neighborhood.
JoshA
Yeah, I live in LA, he can fix some of the potholes in my neighborhood if he wants. He doesn’t have to dig new ones. There’s plenty around here.
Although nice job by the reporter to work that little nugget in. I’m guessing most of them would have just mentioned the fact that he filled up the pothole without pointing out it was specially dug just for him.
Kimmitt
That’d be an interesting campaign.
foolishmortal
“we have the worst roads in the country”
Lived anywhere else? Before I moved away from CA I used to bitch all the time about roadwork or lack thereof. Having lived in Ohio and MA, I now realize CalTrans are gods.
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Da critics don gif mee enuff credit foah my ahchtink! It vass Met’ud ahchtink I vass doink!
I didn’t chust need *any* pothole — I needed *Ahnuld’s* pothole, to vork on!
opit
It may have been method acting with madness the method. Asinine hole filling….. oh,resist,resist…
Bob
Arnold ran for governor in the recall election, promising to balance the state budget which in a few short years had gone from running a huge surplus to going deep in the hole, thanks to Kenny Boy and Enron’s frauds and Pete Wilson’s deregulation of energy earlier in the 90’s.
Of course, he couldn’t balance the budget. He borrowed more, robbed from money specifically earmarked for schools and has been taking about $1.5-2 billion a year from gas taxes that is supposed to go to the roads to pay down the debt.
California roads used to be the best in the country. \Now the bigger roads, the truck routes that get torn up and have to be fixed up regularly, are falling apart. Since the state is not sending much of the collected taxes back to the municipalities, town roads are falling apart.
Japan Air Lines
Foolishmortal:
Yeah, I’ve lived a few other places, and based on personal experience I would probably say that Georgia has worse roads, but every study done puts CA at the very bottom or maybe third worst. Look around. Since at least 2000 we’ve been in the bottom.
tim
Gotta agree with foolishmortal – I’ve lived in San Francsico, Tennessee, Ohio, and now New York. California, comparatively, has great roads. Ohio doesn’t have to make potholes (and the rhythmic ‘kathump, kathump’ thing drives one to distraction), Tennessee has yet to pave much (and I love how many roads get narrower on sharp bends, where you can’t see anything), and I simply refuse to drive in NY.
Libertine
Maybe he is trying to give all the Reps in Congress cover for adding all the highway pork to Bush’s budget. I am thinking Cali has much bigger problems then potholes…
Ken Hahn
I don’t believe the public employee’s unions allow you to fill a pothole without paying them to dig one ( and paying them for filling the one you filled).
neil
Urban California does actually have extremely good roads, by the standards of everywhere else I’ve ever lived. In Santa Cruz where I lived, a pothole big enough to see wouldn’t last a week most of the time. I imagine San Jose is about the same way.
Where I live now, a pothole big enough to fit your car in is just another road hazard. The thing about California drivers is that they assume that all roads were born paved.
I think that anybody who hires a Hollywood governor shouldn’t be surprised when he stages road repair. Gee whiz, you think he might actually be saying things that aren’t true, too? An actor and a politician, but he would never LIE to us, would he?