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The Recall and the Economy: Arnold Schwarzenegger in the WSJ

As part of our continuing coverage of the business and economic aspects of the California recall, we note that tomorrow's WSJ will include an op-ed by Arnold Schwarzenegger in which he does quite a nice job of diagnosing what's wrong with the California economy (available online now, but subscription required):

Over the past five years our state budget has grown nearly three times the pace of inflation. Our debt burden has risen by more than the other 49 states combined. The matrix of onerous regulations we impose on property owners and businesses has made the cost of doing business in California almost twice as high as in neighboring states. Our tax rates have become among the highest in the nation.

And perhaps worst of all our governor, Gray Davis, has created a counterproductive culture in Sacramento where businesses and entrepreneurs that dare make a profit are treated as if they are enemies of the state. Mr. Davis says he wants jobs, but he has done everything possible to chase away job creators. Thanks to the economic policies of this administration, for the first time in California history more native-born Americans are leaving this state than are moving here. No one would confuse the destructive economic policies of Gov. Davis and Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante with the pro-growth ideas of Milton Friedman or Adam Smith.

Exactly. But can he -- or Cruz or Tom -- do anything about it? With a set of die-hard Republicans in the legislature whose only platform seems to be standing athwart the tracks of history shouting no and a set of Democrats more than happy to run the nanny state locomotive right down their throats (with apologies to WFB, Jr.), I have become increasingly dubious that anything good can come out of Sacramento. But the right governor could at least keep things from getting worse by vetoing the most blatantly anti-business legislation, holding the line on taxes, and making the right bureaucratic appointments.