A Way Out for Wilson

So what can Pete Wilson do to dig out of his mess?

It was never supposed to be this way.

He came to Sacramento two years ago with great promise as a refreshingly pragmatic governor who could work congenially with the Legislature to solve California’s burgeoning problems. Reelection in 1994 was a given, and then it would be time to plot a 1996 presidential race.

But instead, Californians got partisan posturing from both Wilson and the Legislature and more government gridlock. As a new legislative session begins today, there is little fondness for the governor among returning lawmakers and the feeling is mutual. He has a lower job rating among voters than any of his modern predecessors. Reelection will be an uphill battle. And nobody dreams any longer of the White House.

Disappointing is the word most often used around the Capitol to describe the Wilson Administration. And, in fact, the governor seems to share that feeling.

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Much of Wilson’s demise can be blamed on a national recession that has reduced state revenues by more than $20 billion and forced him to cut services while raising taxes. Economic recovery therefore would be a great political tonic. But the recession is not all that ails the governor. Indeed, it may be possible for him to recover even if the economy doesn’t.

Here’s how:

First, by being a politician in the most productive sense. This means compromising, a concept that often seems alien to Wilson. It also means more. It means cutting deals, as the most effective chief executives quietly do, using their powers to sign and veto bills, convey judgeships, appoint members of commissions and dangle pet projects. Wilson hates this, as did predecessor George Deukmejian. But to get things done in the Democratic-dominated Legislature, he needs to compromise and deal, especially with wily Assembly Speaker Willie Brown (D-San Francisco).

The goal is bragging points. Ask the average voter today what Wilson has done as governor, and the answer likely would be that he raised taxes, cut funding for schools and the poor and got into a nasty dogfight with Democrats. He needs real accomplishments, like passage this year of a major economic development plan.

That should start with reform of the fraud-ridden workers’ compensation system. Wilson loudly raised the issue and seemed close last fall to a settlement with legislators. But he opted to turn the debate into anti-Democrat election rhetoric that voters virtually ignored. Now he needs to produce legislation.

Meanwhile, he could bypass the Legislature and take steps on his own to improve the business climate. Using his executive powers, the governor could streamline state regulations--preserving environmental standards, for instance, but with less red tape.

One thing Wilson cannot afford is another budget stalemate that again drags state government into issuing IOUs. Voters want government to work. But this is tricky. The governor needs to fix the state’s fiscal situation this year, once and for all, so he can avoid drastically cutting services and raising taxes in 1994 as he stands for reelection. And to do this he will need the help of his biggest nemesis, Speaker Brown.

Wilson also needs to make peace with the Republican right, the most active faction of his party. It doesn’t trust him. The best way to do this and maintain political credibility is to emphasize similarities--fiscal conservatism, tough on crime, pro-business--while not giving in to the religious right’s social agenda. But neither should he further inflame these zealots.

He should suppress his old Marine combat instincts and act more like the policy-wonk mayor that he was; be less feisty and more facilitative. Veteran political consultant Stu Spencer, a longtime Wilson friend, once aptly described the governor as “a guy who runs around looking for bullets to bite . . . tackling every problem and getting into every fight.”

Wilson needs to concentrate on just two or three fights. He also should be less hands-on and delegate more. He is a notorious nit-picker who must focus more broadly on California’s future and being a leader.

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In the end, Wilson needs a simple, succinct message for voters. It cannot be just, “the Democrats won’t let me do what I want.” That didn’t work for George Bush. The theme has to be more like, “I get it and am doing my damnedest to get California moving again.”

Then maybe he ought to climb on a bus and go sell the story at town halls. That worked for Bill Clinton.