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Arnold Almost Fails His First Big Test
By Doug Patton
February 23, 2004

Last week, emboldened by a recent Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruling and aided by San Francisco city officials, lawlessness in California reached epidemic proportions. Newly installed San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom announced that the city would issue marriage licenses to homosexuals. This, of course, caused a stampede to City Hall, as thousands of misguided souls lined up to validate their same-sex relationships, and judges participated in the spectacle by actually performing the "ceremonies."

Never mind that the voters of California have overwhelmingly voted through their state's referendum process to codify marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Never mind that when he took his oath of office, Newsom swore to enforce that law, along with all the others he may or may not like. Apparently, the baby-faced mayor believes he can pick and choose which laws he will enforce and which ones he will flout.

It was the first real test of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's commitment to the rule of law. Those of us who have had our doubts about Schwarzenegger waited to see what would emanate from Sacramento.

For the first few days, what emanated was pure silence. Then Schwarzenegger issued a weak statement saying he supported same-sex civil unions rather than marriages, and "urged" city officials in San Francisco to stop issuing the licenses. This, of course, was met with open defiance from Newsom, who simply ignored the governor's tepid pleas.

Later, under pressure, Arnold postulated that it was the governor's job "to administer the law, not to enforce the law."

By week's end, thousands of San Franciscans had been illegally "married" to others of the same sex, and a judge had ruled that the spree could continue. Meanwhile, the lawlessness had spread to New Mexico, where officials also began issuing marriage licenses.

Finally, after sticking his finger into the political wind, Arnold discovered that his duties do involve enforcing the law after all. Addressing a cheering crowd at California's Republican State Convention, the governor announced that he had ordered California's attorney general to "take immediate steps" to stop the issuance of any further marriage licenses.

"It's time for the city to stop traveling down this dangerous path of ignoring the rule of law. That's my message to San Francisco." To which the GOP response to him should be, "It's about time!"

For those who think I am being too hard on the governor, consider the following:

Mayor Newsom has said that denying "equal rights" to homosexuals violates the state constitution, which is "a higher law" than a law passed by an overwhelming majority of the voters of California.

Imagine for a moment what would happen if the mayor of the little town of Clipper Mills, tucked away in the California foothills, suddenly announced that the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is, in fact, a "higher law" than California's tangled morass of gun control laws. Imagine further that the mayor then proceeded to order city officials to issue a permit to carry a concealed weapon to any law-abiding citizen who wanted one.

Or imagine if San Diego city officials suddenly decided they were going to close every abortion clinic in town because the right of unborn babies to be born trumped the right of their mothers to snuff out their lives.

Can you imagine in your wildest dreams that Arnold Schwarzenegger would have waited a week to act? Neither can I.

We have seen what happens when conservative officials act on their consciences based on a "higher law." Attorney General John Ashcroft, during his confirmation hearings, was grilled by Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, who demanded to know if he would "enforce the law of the land." And Roy Moore was not only overruled in his attempt to continue to display the Ten Commandments, he lost his job as the Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court.

The people of California - and of the United States - have a right to demand the same level of commitment to the rule of law from the duly elected governor of our nation's largest state.

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Doug Patton is a freelance columnist who has served as a speechwriter and policy advisor for federal, state and local candidates, elected officials and public policy organizations. His weekly columns are published in newspapers across the country, and on selected Internet web sites, including www.GOPUSA.com, where he serves as the Nebraska Editor. He also writes for Talon News Service (www.TalonNews.com). Readers can e-mail him at Doug.Patton@GOPUSA.com.

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Note -- The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, views, and/or philosophy of GOPUSA.