Arnold Hires A Conservative
ShareThe Hotline can confirm that Steve Schmidt, the WH aide responsible for managing Sam Alito's confirmation process, in February will join Team Arnold as campaign manager.
Schmidt, a deputy assistant to the president and counselor to Vice President Cheney, brings several immediate assets to Schwarzenegger's re-election effort.
First -- Schmidt's a conservative. And he's known as a conservative. And Schwarzenegger desperately needs a vote of confidence from a prominent conservative after hiring a liberal Dem as his gubernatorial chief of staff. It's an obvious point: if Schwarzenegger can't excite California conservatives, he can't win. (See how CA GOPers respond to tomorrow's State of the State address.)
Second -- Schmidt is a trusted confidant of WH DCoS Karl Rove and RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman and knows just about every important Republican in Washington. If Team Arnold needs help, or if they need certain prominent Republicans to stay away, Schmidt can make it happen.
Third -- Schmidt's a Californian. He helped run Matt Fong's unsuccessful campaign for Senate in 1998. He knows how to sell California's version of a conservative to voters. He knows the geography of California -- the three basic regional divisions and the dozen or so important media markets. He knows the ins and outs of the perpetual news cycle from his work as rapid response guru on the Bush re-election campaign.
To be sure: Arnold Schwarzenegger is a unique creature, and CA today is not the CA of '98.
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