Should Gray Davis Resign

[DemocratSinceBirth]

Fist of all , let's get Bill Clinton out of the way. Bill Clinton was able to fight impeachment or the Republican putsch as I prefer to call it because he was presiding over a smoking economy and had approval ratings in the 70's.If he had an approval rating of 22% like Gray Davis he would have been toast.

Supporting Gray Davis might be the noble thing to do but it might also result in a victory for the Radical Republicans and their reputed leader, Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Willie Brown, famed Dem and CA power broker believes if Davis resigns the recall becomes moot. The Sec. of State thinks differently.

I'm not a constitutional lawyer but I don't see how you can recall a man who resigned from office. I come to that conclusion by the same reasoning that you can't impeach a president who resigned from office.
How can you recall or impeach someone to remove them from office if they have resigned and effectively removed themselves.

If the Democratic street fighter Toricelli could fall on his sword and hand the mantle to his nemesis , Frank Lautenberg for the good of the party why can't Gray Davis fall on his sword and hand power to his lieutenant governor, Cruz Bustamante.

I am sure the California Democrats can find Gray a nice sinecure somewhere.

[neuvocat]

1. I put up a post about this days ago.

And some idiot had the gall to question whether or not I even lived here (in CA) or cared about what was happening. The same idiot didn't even read the details of my post. Must have been a troll.

That aside, I think that Davis should do his best to fight this first, and then if it looks like he will be recalled, should step aside. Should Bustamente' take over he would energize the latino vote nationwide and strengthen the democrats in the process.

[onehandle]

2. The recall would still go on....

Followed by the selection of a new Governor on the ballot.

Davis would have had to resign before the recall was certified.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

7. If He Resigns

how can you recall a man who removed himself from office

[Terwilliger]

12. DSB...I guess you haven't been around DU the last 2 weeks

there have been UMPTEEN explanations...

If Davis resigns it makes no difference...the recall still goes forward.

[Shrek]

3. Remember that it's a two-part ballot.

If Davis resigns, it only renders moot the first question by effectively "recalling" him ahead of the election.

The other part of the ballot is to pick his replacement, and his resignation would have no effect on that question.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

6. The California Constutution

clearly says that the Lieutentant Governor shall assume the office of Governor if the Governor is unable to fulfill his duties.

So, if Gray Davis wants to resign, the CA constitution provides for his lieutenant governor to succeed him.

[Melinda]

9. His resignation will not stop the election.

Even if he resigns and Bustamante assumes office and moots the first half of the ballot, the second half of the ballot/election continues with all 195 candidates, one of whom will be elected Gov.

In order for the recall to have failed, Davis needed to have resigned PRIOR to certification of the recall petitions - and he chose to stay and fight, and it's too late to stop the Oct. 7th election.

[Terwilliger]

13. and then the Lt. Gov becomes the focus of the recall

why is that hard to understand?

[DemocratSinceBirth]

14. Why Does Willie Brown,Former Speaker of the CA House

say if Davis resigns, the recall becomes moot.

[Terwilliger]

15. he wants it to be true

and it serves Dem purposes to say that if Davis resigns, Bustamante takes over and that's that

[Emboldened Chimp]

4. Davis had his chance to resign

before the recall. If he did, I believe Bustamante could have stepped in and become governor. If the right-wing persisted in the recall, they would have exposed this for what it truly is: a coup.

IMO, Davis screwed us by not resigning. Though the recall itself is bs and not based on anything legit, he should have seen the writing on the wall. He knows he's not popular here, and he sure as hell should have known that he might not be able to fight this off. By staying on, he let us know that he puts himself ahead of both the Democratic Party and the People of California.

[barbaraann]

5. I would guess that if he resigned the CA GOP would

do something like have John Ashcroft use the RICO statute to prosecute Davis and Bustamonte or petition the US or CA Supreme Court to order CA to proceed with the recall.

They would definitely do something. They will do whatever it takes to put a Republican in the CA State House.

[CMT]

8. No

for one thing it wouldn't stop the recall election.

[Brotherjohn]

10. How popular is Bustamente? Can he win? It IS a Dem state.

Even if most people think the recall is a done deal, with even former supporters voting to recall, California DOES lean Democratic. I don't think the recall changes that.

Besides, there are only 2-3 major Dems on the ticket, and I would think most Dems would stick with the Lt. Gov. even if they recall Davis.

Yet there are a slew of major Repubs and independents, and I think that's got to split the vote up, no matter how well-known Arnold is. I'm not counting the "joke" candidates from both parties (Gallagher, Gary Coleman, Father Guido Sarducci, Angelyne, Richard Lewis, and porn stars and magnates alike).

It seems to me that unless most other major Repubs drop out of the race, the Repub vote is going to be split between Arnold, Bill Simon, state Sen. Tom McClintock, former L.A. Mayor Richard Riordan, former baseball commissioner Peter Ueberroth, and perhaps even independent Arianna Huffington. She's a former Republican, and very much along the lines of moderate Repubs in CA.

I could easily see Bustamente getting 30-35% of the vote, Arnold getting 20-30%, and the rest being split between the others.

However, is there going to be a run-off?

ON EDIT:
The CA Secretary of State web page says the following:
"If a majority of the voters vote “yes” on the first question, then the recall is successful, and the replacement candidate who gets the most votes is elected for the unexpired term of office."

That seems to say that there will be no run-off. I think unless most of the well-known (i.e. legitimate) major Republican candidates drop out and put all their effort behind one candidate, Bustamente will win. I don't want to give them any ideas, however.

[dfong63]

11. yes, and the sooner the better

as long as Davis is in office, Cruz Bustamante can't effectively campaign on a platform of change, without seeming to be disloyal. Davis is an albatross around Cruz's neck, while at the same time Cruz has to swim like crazy to catch up with Arnie the groper's huge name recognition.

resign now, Gray, and at least people will remember that you sacrificed for the good of the party. instead of sacrificing the party for your own selfish good.