Prison Guards Move to Recall Schwarzenegger

[tekisui]

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/09/08/BAL512Q96A.DTL&tsp=1

09-08) 15:12 PDT SACRAMENTO -- The state's powerful prison guards' union launched a recall campaign today against Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, charging that his "catastrophic leadership failings" have left the state "in far worse shape" than before his election.

The petition drive by the California Correctional Peace Officers Association is the latest political challenge for Schwarzenegger, who faces a political, legal and administrative battles over his efforts to close a $17.2 billion budget gap and enact a budget that is now 70 days late.

Schwarzenegger was elected in 2003 when voters recalled then-Gov. Gray Davis, who also was mired in a budget mess.

Union officials planned to deliver the petition to Schwarzenegger later today or Tuesday. The governor has seven days to respond, after which the union will file the petition with the Secretary of State to begin a signature drive for a special recall election, said Lance Corcoran, a spokesman for the union. The recall drive would eventually need 1,041,530 valid signatures to qualify for a statewide ballot.

Adam Mendelsohn, a senior adviser to Schwarzenegger, charged in a written statement that the union is trying to use an intimidation tactic to "extract a huge pay raise out of the Legislature and the governor."

Members of the prison guard's union have been working without a long-term contract since 2006. Last year, when state lawmakers tried to approve a pay raise for prison guards near the end of the legislative session, the governor accused the move as a "backroom deal."

But Corcoran said the recall drive is not about getting a new contract.

"This failed administration is finally being held accountable," he said, adding the governor has not lived up to his promises and has mismanaged the state's finances so badly that vital services are being threatened.

The union gathered 82 signatures in downtown Sacramento this morning for a petition for a notice of intent to recall Schwarzenegger. According to the state law, such a petition requires a minimum of 65 signatures. "It was real easy to get 'em," said union president Mike Jimenez.

[tularetom]

1. The prison guards union is a bunch of assholes

but the enemy of my enemy is my friend. I will gladly sign their petition. And I hope the next governator slaps them down worse than this piece a shit has done.