Arnie takes office as US governor

In stark contrast to his Hollywood image and the usual inauguration festivities, California Governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger planned to take office today with a quick, low-key ceremony and then get to work.

Mindful of the bitterness that still surrounds California’s first gubernatorial recall election, not to mention the state’s fiscal troubles, the Republican has shied away from black-tie celebrations that normally enliven the beginning of new administrations.

Schwarzenegger was expected to deliver a brief speech, attend three ceremonial receptions and return to the Capitol in Sacramento by mid-afternoon for his first hours of work as governor.

He was expected to call a special session of the Legislature to consider issues including imposing mid-year spending cuts to help reduce next year’s expected $10bn (€8.48bn) deficit, reforming the state’s workers’ compensation system, and repealing a new law that will allow undocumented immigrants to get driver’s licences.

He also has promised a balanced budget that does not include any new taxes or any significant cuts in funding for education and local governments.

That goal became more daunting during the weekend with a projection from his chief financial deputy that the state budget deficit stands at $25bn (€21.2bn) – far more than other recent estimates.

But while the actor-turned-politician promised to focus on state business, Sacramento braced for a frenzy.

Requests for press credentials for Schwarzenegger’s swearing-in ceremony were filed by TV crews and print journalists from around the globe. Nearly 650 journalists planned to cover the event.

“Sacramento has never seen anything like this before – it is astonishing,” said Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, a political scientist at the University of Southern California. “There has never been this kind of intense media attention on the governor at anytime in the state.”

Besides the press corps, 7,500 guests were invited to the ceremony on the Capitol steps.

Security will be tight and the area will be fenced off, said California Highway Patrol spokesman Steve Kohler. In addition, some streets will be closed to accommodate approximately 50 TV satellite trucks.

“I think that people who just show up downtown hoping to watch will be badly disappointed,” he said. “You’d be better off staying home and watching it on TV.”

California Supreme Court Justice Ronald George was scheduled to administer the oath of office, and Schwarzenegger’s wife, Maria Shiver, was expected to hold the Bible.

The ceremony was supposed to take only about an hour. After that, the governor and his wife then were to be hosts at a luncheon in the Capitol rotunda for state and federal officials, hold a private family gathering across the street, and later attend an invitation-only reception sponsored by the state Chamber of Commerce at the convention centre.

No gala balls were planned, unlike most past inaugurals, when the new governors have thrown extravagant, celebrity-studded celebrations.