Schwarzenegger Bus Tour Hits Bump

(LA Times) A campaign appearance by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger today quickly turned into a bitter complaint session, with conservative voters visibly angry at him over illegal immigration and the parole of convicted murderers.

The San Diego County event, at a community park, was tightly controlled by Schwarzenegger campaign aides. But some members of the invited audience turned on the governor, while others alternately booed and cheered some tense exchanges.

An El Cajon woman, who said she had been a Republican since the mid-1960s, chastised the governor for failing to secure the California-Mexico border and stopping illegal immigrants who come here and "get everything free."

"I voted for you, and right now I don't see much difference between you and Phil Angelides," said the woman, Sally Plata, 66, referring to Schwarzenegger's Democratic opponent for governor. "I don't see that you are standing up for the citizens of California."

In the absence of a serious conservative challenger on the ballot, this is a non-issue. A small minority of conservatives might stay home or vote for a dark horse, but I can't see this changing the landscape in November by more than a hair. What happened to the massive people-powered movement of roughly this time last year? You couldn't open a news site without hearing about a well-coordinated, anti-Arnold protest. Did this movement lose its motivation, its organizers, or just its teeth?