Rescue California

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Transcript of gubernatorial recall debate

September 24, 2003

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we just assess commercial properties fairly, that would be $2 billion. If we just close the loopholes when it comes to tax shelters -- both domestic and offshore tax shelters -- that would be another $2 billion. And what I find amazing is that Republicans really do not believe that morality applies to businesses. You know really for them it's just sexual morality. And I think it's time. You know, Arnold mentioned the three strikes and you're out law. I'd like a three strikes and you're out when it comes to corporate spenders. And right now we have something like that right in front of the Legislature, and it should pass because it should be absolutely unacceptable that companies defraud the California public and then the state continues to do business with them. Is this the kind of business climate that we want to bring to the state? The same kind of business climate that brought us Enron and Global Crossing and Adelphia? And it's cost millions of jobs and we're still paying the price? And one more thing Arnold, you know you talk about ...

SCHWARZENEGGER: I love it. Arianna, let me say one thing. Your personal income tax has the biggest loophole -- I can drive my Hummers through it. That's how big your loophole is. Let me tell you something. I don't know what you're talking about. I cannot believe you.

HUFFINGTON: We've got advanced notice in the New York Times that you're going to say that. And you know very well that I pay $115,000 in property taxes and payroll tax. And you know what? I'm a writer. In these two years, I was writing and researching a book and I wasn't making $20 million violent movies. I'm sorry.

MODERATOR: We need to move, we need to move.

HUFFINGTON: Let me finish, because we're talking about something very, very (unintelligible).

MODERATOR: Can you do it 30 seconds?

HUFFINGTON: Yes, I can do it in 16 because the truth is that small businesses sometimes make losses, sometimes make profits. When my book (unintelligible) was published in 2003, it became a best seller. That was a great year, and I'm going to be paying a lot of taxes. There was no loophole. And instead of focusing on distorted information, you should be focusing on the huge loopholes that the Bush administration and other Republicans around the country have allowed that have defrauded us of billions of dollars.

MODERATOR: Thank you, and before we get to the lieutenant governor, I'd like to admonish the candidates very politely. Because we're supposed to stay on topic, I don't know how Ms. Huffington got to Republican sexual morality and balancing the budget, but she managed to do so.

SCHWARZENEGGER: That's our Arianna.

MODERATOR: Let's get to the lieutenant governor. He's been around for some time, and he just came from being speaker of the Assembly before that. Mr. Bustamante, how are you going to balance the budget?