Former California GOP governor George Deukmejian dies at 89

[left-of-center2012]

Former California Gov. George Deukmejian, a Republican who garnered a reputation as an advocate for law and order during his two terms in the governor's mansion, died on Tuesday. He was 89. Deukmejian passed away at his home in Long Beach, Calif., the Los Angeles Times reported.

In his two terms in the California governor's mansion from 1983 until 1991, Deukmejian was known as an anti-spending, budget hardliner, and earned himself the nickname the "Iron Duke."

The former governor also expanded the state prison system, appointed a number of conservative judges to lower courts throughout the state and remade the left-leaning California Supreme Court.

Deukmejian's tenure was defined by a staunch anti-spending stance and tough fiscal management. When he took office, he inherited a $1.5 billion deficit – a shortfall that he was eventually able to erase. But an economic downturn toward the end of his time in office eliminated the gains his administration had made, and he left his successor, former Gov. Pete Wilson, with an even larger deficit than the one he inherited.

http://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/386829-former-california-gop-governor-george-deukmejian-dies-at-89

[regnaD kciN]

1. Good. F*ucking. Riddance.

I remember well how he won his "upset victory" against L.A. mayor Tom Bradley, an African-American, with a campaign that focused on fear of crime (i.e. Scary Black Men!!!) with the implication that Bradley (a former police chief) was Letting The Thugs Run Rampant in Los Angeles because they were "his kind."