Schwarzenegger Prepares for Limelight in Meeting With Fellow Governors

Making a debut of sorts before his fellow governors, Arnold Schwarzenegger on Sunday begins a four-day swing through Washington and New York for a national governor’s conference, coupled with meetings with the Bush administration and fundraising dinners.

Dividing his time between the two cities, Schwarzenegger will keep a frenetic pace. On Sunday, he will tape an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” At noon he will join his fellow governors for a luncheon, then attend a series of conference seminars before meeting with Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson at 4 p.m.

That night, Schwarzenegger and his wife, Maria Shriver, will dine with President Bush and other governors at the White House.

“This is an opportunity for him to meet many of his colleagues for the first time,” said Rob Stutzman, the governor’s communications director. “Some, he’s acquainted with. But it’s an opportunity to compare notes. What are other governors dealing with in other states? What solutions are they proposing? It’s an opportunity for him to coalesce with his fellow governors and show support on state-federal issues.”

Schwarzenegger skipped a Republican Governors Assn. meeting in Florida the week of his inauguration, though he addressed the governors for a few minutes by phone.

“I, of course would have loved coming down to Florida and party with you guys, and get a little bit more knowledge about all of this,” he said at the time. “But I couldn’t do it because of course I’m in the middle of a fiscal crisis that we have here in California.”

In the meeting with Thompson, Schwarzenegger will talk about Medi-Cal, the healthcare program for poor families. The governor is preparing to ask the federal government for a waiver permitting California to cut costs in Medi-Cal by imposing fees and higher premiums.

The governor will meet Monday with Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He is also expected to drop in on Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), his wife’s uncle.

Schwarzenegger is expected to be a marquee attraction at the National Governors Assn.’s winter meeting in downtown Washington. People magazine has asked about press credentials, and the association is putting in an extra press riser for a Sunday afternoon session that Schwarzenegger will attend devoted to telecommunications policy -- typically not a magnet for cameras, said Christine LaPaille, the association’s communications director.

A goal of the Washington trip is to get more federal money for California. Schwarzenegger has called himself the “Collectinator,” determined to reel in aid from Washington with machine-like intensity. He will make the case that California deserves more money from the federal government for incarcerating illegal immigrants, according to aides.

Though Schwarzenegger’s relations with the Bush White House are cordial, his election has not yet proved a bonanza for California.

Bush’s budget did not include money that the governor had wanted for homeland security and immigration costs. Schwarzenegger also put together a working group to develop suggestions for the Pentagon to incorporate into its criteria for closing military bases. But the criteria the Pentagon published two weeks ago left out suggestions from California officials.

On Tuesday afternoon, the governor is scheduled to fly to New York City, where he has been invited to ring the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange.

The governor will attend two fundraisers in New York -- one his own; the other for the New York County Republican Committee.

Schwarzenegger’s event is at the home of Robert Wood Johnson IV. Aides originally sent out letters asking for donations of up to $500,000. The scale of the event produced sharp criticism. In a later round of invitations, the ticket price was dropped to $25,000 per person.

At the Manhattan GOP dinner, Schwarzenegger has agreed to pose for pictures with donors paying $1,000 per plate.

Ticket sales have swelled since word circulated that Schwarzenegger would attend, said James Ortenzio, chairman of Manhattan’s Republican Committee.

“I think it would have been a good, average dinner, but young people have heard Schwarzenegger is coming. So there’s kind of a magic to it,” he said. “It’s a very good vibration. They like him, so I think that really added to the interest.”

On Wednesday, the governor will meet with a Wall Street investment group and billionaire investor Warren E. Buffett, an economic advisor.

The trip comes one week before a statewide election that will decide the fate of two ballot measures that Schwarzenegger hopes to pass -- a balanced budget amendment and a $15-billion bond issue.

Schwarzenegger has been airing TV commercials and campaigning relentlessly for weeks in hopes of overcoming public skepticism toward taking on more debt. Asked if it was wise for the governor to leave the state so close to the election, one of Schwarzenegger’s allies in the campaign, Controller Steve Westly, said he was not worried.

“Look, we’re both working hard on this,” Westly said. “We have a full agenda next week, right through election day. These things are going to pass. It’s wholly appropriate for him to go.”