Ahnuld is learning:
"Schwarzenegger to Name Democrat as Top Aide
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R), "launching an overhaul of his administration as he prepares for a re-election bid, is poised to hire a former Democratic Party activist and high-ranking aide to Gray Davis, the Democrat whom Schwarzenegger replaced, as his new chief of staff," the Los Angeles Times reports.
"The hiring of Susan P. Kennedy -- a former executive director of the California Democratic Party, longtime abortion rights activist and Cabinet secretary to Davis, the Democrat whom Schwarzenegger replaced -- would signal a shift in direction for the Republican governor."
The Sacramento Bee confirms the news and notes that in an interview with the governor "he said his wife, Maria Shriver, a Democrat who is deeply involved in most decisions Schwarzenegger makes, has been in on this one, too."
Capitol Weekly has good color: "Kennedy's hiring was the culmination of a five-hour meeting, sources said, at which Kennedy demanded -- and got -- sole authority over hiring and firing the executive staff. That provision spread anger among Republican insiders, who said they feared a major purge of GOP staffers among the governor's inner circle." |
