Oops...Arnold was misquoted...congrats to Dan Walters of the Sacramento Bee...

This is what Schwarzenegger said in the transcript of the interview, which was conducted in English: "I think that right now the Republican Party is all the way from the right to the center. And the Democratic Party is all the way from the left to the center. And I like the Republican Party to cross that center line. Keep it to the right where it is, but I mean cross over that center line a little bit, because that would take immediately away 5 percent from the Democrats and be home free for good. That's the trick."

Hujer's German-language story, including that passage, was published in his newspaper on Saturday. International news agencies picked up the quotation, translating it back into English. The version that the Associated Press distributed quoted Schwarzenegger, inaccurately, as saying he wanted Republicans to move "a little to the left."

"I would like the Republican Party to cross this line, move a little further left and place more weight on the center. This would immediately give the party 5 percent more votes without it losing anything elsewhere," read the AP version, which was also distributed Saturday.

In an otherwise slow period for political news, the AP's story sparked a little action on the television talk show circuit, with two Fox News shows using it as a lead item Monday to generate talking-head filler and extract some ain't-it-awful comments from right-wing commentators.

Notice the phrase - "Keep it to the right where it is, but I mean cross over that center line a little bit, because that would take immediately away 5 percent from the Democrats and be home free for good."

I'll say it again...let's grow the party and win the majority.

BTW, my good friend "JP" (Joe Pursch from KFIA 710) will be guest hosting for me Thursday morning. I'm sure JP will have more to say on this topic - as we have discussed (debated) it personally, sharing our different perspectives on the quote and the issue itself.

He has my permission to let it rip in the morning, enjoy the conversation!

I'm off until January 3rd, have a Merry CHRISTmas and a very Happy New Year from the "Hogue Show".

Hogue Show on 1380 KTKZ and heard on 103.3 KCEE in Grass Valley and Nevada City.

Two quick thoughts on why Arnold's advice to the California GOP to "move a little to the Left" is causing some problems:

1. The impression he left, intentionally or not, is that convictions should be based on polling points, not deeply settled values. That makes veteran members of the party of Lincoln uncomfortable. Especially people who have fought in the trenches for moral issues. He "missed" the heart of the deeply conservative GOP voter on this one. Sadly, it's not the first time.

2. Even though he didn't mention moral values, we all assume that is the ground of compromise he was referring to. He couldn't be talking about moving to the Left on economic policy, or he'd be breaking the image he's built for himself as a strong fiscal conservative and a moral moderate.

No, he has to be referring to the social issues, and on this, he's now established a first year track record that truly telegraphs bad news ahead for moral conservatives in California. Signing bills that continue to strengthen the Gay Left, personally empowering the most radical embryonic stem cell measure imaginable, and leaving a barn door open in his public comments about same-sex-marriage, all of these actions create strong aversion in the majority of the Republican base. Who could blame these people for reacting strongly to his comments?

With all due respect to my more moderate GOP friends, moving to the center is alot easier when it involves fiscal policy than when it concerns moral values. Those stakes to "the big tent" come up slowly, and they sting when you pull on them.

I'd like to suggest that the Governor develope a more respectful tone and thoughtful approach on these issues. It would be extremely encouraging if he would actually engage in some dialogue with moral conservatives in the California GOP this next year. It's hard for me to remember any instances of this happening in his first year as Governor (no, circle dancing under the Capitol dome at Hannukah doesn't count).

If he doesn't begin to do some bridge building with moral conservatives, he may lose in double digits what his leftward shift would gain.


Joe Pursch
Host of Real Talk
Heard weeknights 5-7 PM
in greater
Northern California on
AM 710 KFIA

It is a MUST that you read this blog by a Chaplain in the Mosul. His blog entry following the 'rocket attack' today is called "Training for Eternity".

Please read this blog and pass along a comment of encouragement for this chaplain and his fellow liberty fighters.

1380 KTKZ
Eric Hogue Show
Hugh Hewitt Show

We all need to relax about Arnold's 'move to the left' comments. I've had two organizations release two statements today, answering Arnold Schwarzenegger's comments made to a Germany news organization last week.

Here is a statement from Karen England of CRI (Capital Resource Institute):

"Schwarzenegger's statements that the GOP party would not lose its base if it embraces gay marriage and abortion rights show extreme arrogance and total ignorance concerning the values and dedication of the party's core constituents," said Karen England of the Capitol Resource Institute, a pro-family public policy organization in California. "Schwarzenegger has spent too much time in Hollywood. He needs to start mingling more with mainstream Californians."

"We are outraged that Schwarzenegger has the audacity to misspeak for the millions of Republicans in this country who believe that abortion is murder and that the life of a child should come before the mere convenience of a woman," said England. "We are outraged that Schwarzenegger would turn his back on two-thirds of Californians (many Democrats included) who voted just four short years ago to protect traditional marriage in this state. By embracing gay marriage, Schwarzenegger shows that he is not simply in the 'center' on this social issue - he is, actually, far to the left."

"If Schwarzenegger thinks that the majority of the GOP base will stick with the Republican Party on fiscal issues alone, then he has a lot to learn about the makeup of his own party."

Then there is Randy Thomasson of Campaign for California Children and Families:

"This was not a smart statement," said Randy Thomasson, president of Campaign for Children and Families. "The Republican Party needs to strengthen its conservative, pro-family values, not water them down. Likewise, the liberal Democrat Party needs to change direction and go right."

"Why are the majority of Democrat politicians trashing marriage, forcing taxpayers to pay for unlimited abortions, attacking the Boy Scouts, promoting homosexuality and transsexuality ad nauseam, and undermining religious freedom and parental rights at every turn?" asked Thomasson. "Arnold says 'move left'? That's a very bad idea.

If the Republican Party abandons family values and moves to the left, it will quickly become indistinguishable from the anti-family Democrat Party."

Here is what Arnold was reported as saying:

"I would like the Republican Party to cross this line, move a little further left and place more weight on the center," he was quoted as saying. "This would immediately give the party 5% more votes without it losing anything elsewhere."

First, I don't read where Governor Schwarzenegger is encouraging the Republican Party to support homosexual lifestyles or same-sex marriage. Yes, Arnold is a Hollywood Governor, but even he understands the radical (politically immoral) nature of such an idea for the GOP.

Second, the truth still hurts...California is a very liberal state. For the Republican Party to 'win elections' and have the opportunity to lead and legislate, there must be some movement to the 'center' - but this does NOT mean you have to move the entire party to the left.

Why can't we just pull up those stakes to the left of the 'big tent' and stretch them out toward the 'center' a tad...bringing in some of the 'center-right' voters in California.

We don't have to move the core values, or the party platform...just grow the tent and stretch it left to bring more into the party.

Simply controlling our "tone and tenor" when it comes to issues like 'illegal immigration' can invite more to the GOP. Stop the 'knuckle dragging' parades and charades, stop beating the 'pots and pans' so we can have a real dialogue on solutions rather than initiatives that easily label us racist.

Grow the population in the GOP and stretch the tent...why is this so bad?

Hogue Show on 1380 KTKZ and heard on 103.3 KCEE in Grass Valley and Nevada City.

Let me take a try at discussing the news story that nobody wanted to talk about this Christmas. It was a nativity story, but one so ghastly and disturbing that many newspapers never ran a headline on it. It was splashed for twenty four hours on Drudge and the cable news outlets because, well, they had to. They are, after all, occasional captives of the momentary and the sensational. It's a price they pay for the tabloid tastes of the Internet. But even they let this one fade in a hurry.



The story I'm referring to, of course, is this horrible murder-fetal kidnapping in Missouri. In mercy to us all, I'll only lightly cover the details. Bobbie Jo Stinnett, a 23 year old expectant mother and wife in a small town in Missouri was stalked on the Internet by Lisa Montgomery, a surely deranged middle aged mother of two who had a bizarre drive to replace a child she had recently lost through a miscarriage. Montgomery strangled the young mother on the floor in front of her television and then cut the woman's 8 month term baby out of her womb, taking the child back to Kansas and showing it off to people in town and yes, even in her church, as her own.

Thankfully, the FBI broke the case quickly and the child, now named Victoria Jo, is recovering well. The rest of the people in the two families may never recover from this dark experience. But, as repulsive as the narrative is , there are some lessons here that may give some value to this episode of madness. I have been pondering several:



1. Lisa Montgomery will almost certainly be found to be insane, at least to a degree. There is a small measure of comfort in this. I would find it hard to soldier on in this life if we found relatively "normal" people committing these kinds of acts. But Montgomery was not that crazy. She was deliberate to some degree, and as such, she decided to become evil. So she should be both medicated and incarcerated, for life.

What's the lesson of value here? Simply that a frumpy, wicked "housewive next door" like Lisa Montgomery gives the lie to the humanistic idea that human beings are essentially good. No, people are inherently selfish, and they can walk down some very dark alleys if that selfishness is not confronted.



2. We were deeply horrified by this story. So much so that we don't want to talk about it or even think about it. This is good. It means we're still in touch with some of the protective reflexes that God built into us about innocence, vulnerability, and motherhood.

I'm sure I'm not the only one that sensed a tragic Christmas parallel in this story. Zeb and Bobbie Jo Stinnett stood in my mind as a modern Joseph and Mary. Newly married, flushed with happiness and hope, and suddenly swept in upon by a selfish evil that targeted their unborn child. Remember King Herod in the Bible story, insane with rage, ordering the murder of all the children in Bethlehem in order to kill the Christ? Jesus was the miracle survivor of that onslaught. Little Victoria Jo is a similar "miracle child" today. I wonder what special plan may unfold for her life? Maybe the first step will be that her dangerous beginning reminded us all that we still have a chord of humanity within us. We were sure all rooting for her that day.



3. At the time that her life was threatened, Victoria Jo was the same age as Conner Peterson was when his life was ended. I find that confirming. Confirming that "murder in the second degree" in Conner's death was a good call. Confirming that "murder in the first degree" would have been a better one. If you disagree, imagine trying to win that argument with Victoria Jo's Dad.



4. The only difference between the violation of Victoria Jo's safety in the womb that bloody afternoon and the late-term and partial birth abortions performed many times each year in America is one simple thing: consent. That's right. If Bobbie Jo Stinnett had decided last Thursday afternoon that having her baby was just too much for her, she might easily have fallen within the "health of the mother" clause and had Victoria Jo aborted in St Louis, without husband Zeb even knowing. If you're a member of that segment of America that insists that late term abortion continue as a woman's right, you have to face that fact. What you were too horriied to talk about in this "fetal kidnapping" from Missouri is exactly what happens in every late term abortion. A child is torn from her mother's womb due to the deceived decision of another. Only in those cases, it's not some psychotic housewife from Kansas who's taking a life. It's a calm and collected doctor and a mother. Tell you what. You want something to feel really horrified about? Try that.



Joe Pursch

Host of Real Talk
Heard weeknights in greater
Northern California on
AM 710 KFIA