Executive Dominance and Legislative Capitulation: ?The Schwarzenegger Model? and His Return to Power in California.

This research is the second part of a larger research project begun in 2004 to evaluate the ever-changing relationship between the executive and legislative branches in California in the post-recall era. The conclusions of the 2004 research suggested Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger had begun a bold campaign to alter the politics-as-usual attitude in Sacramento with little regard for traditional deal-making and compromise. Schwarzenegger's assault on the legislature was unrelenting and, for the most part, quite successful. Using the literature on legislative-executive relations as a guide (Clarke, 1998; Abney and Lauth, 1998; Morehouse, 1998; Bernick and Wiggins, 1991; and Beyle, 2004) it was determined that the governor had successfully used executive orders and the direct democracy approach to circumvent the California legislature and bring into question parts of the conventional divided government thesis. At the same time it was suggested that other governors around the country might begin to use this 'Schwarzenegger model.' All of this took a set-back in late 2005; however, as the governor took the political capital gained the previous two years and squandered nearly all of it in an ill-fated attempt to pass a self-proclaimed reform package that November. The package failed completely, Schwarzenegger's poll numbers tanked and it looked as if legislative dominance would return to the Golden State. Within a year the governor's status returned and the legislature was back to playing catch-up with a governor appearing destined for a second term. This project expands on events from 2004 and reviews the key events of 2005 and 2006 through the lens of the executive-legislative literature. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]