Even though President George W. Bush is keeping a wary distance from the recall, the Republican Leadership Council, a Washington, D.C., political-action committee that supported Bush in 2000, has endorsed Schwarzenegger and last week began making plans to buy air time for ads supporting him. Schwarzenegger’s path got easier Saturday, when conservative rival Bill Simon quit the race. The Bushies denied any direct role. But Bush political guru Karl Rove is known to favor Schwarzenegger, and GOP Rep. David Dreier–who has close ties to Bush–let it be known that should Simon make a Senate run down the road, he’d get lots of help from the RNC and the White House.
Davis, meanwhile, is relying on advice from Bill Clinton, who has urged him to portray the recall as a “Republican power grab.” But with the state’s Democratic congressional delegation and powerful labor unions lining up behind Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante, the leading Democrat on the ballot to replace Davis, that strategy already needs tinkering. Clinton is now likely to campaign for both Davis and Bustamante when he visits California next month. “It’s becoming a two-step dance,” says a source close to Clinton. " ‘No’ on the recall, but ‘yes’ on Bustamante." But if neither Davis nor Bustamante can beat Arnold, Democrats say California will become their rallying cry. Already they have set up a Web site, www.Bushrecall.org. If the going gets tough in 2004, Bush may need a helping hand from Governor Schwarzenegger.
