SchwartzenWatcher Redux: Stuck in the Middle With You

You know how after the Very Special Election Governor Arnie was saying he got the message loud and clear and was going back to being a centrist and ixnaying the hard-core conservatism? It looks like he's actually doing it. It's all out with the old and in with the new.

This week he got rid of his previous Chief of Staff, a Republican, and brought in one of Gray Davis' old aides, Susan Kennedy. The move has gotten conservative's panties all in a bunch. Not necessarily because Kennedy is an old Davis aide, but because she's been actively involved in abortion rights causes. And is lesbian who married her longtime partner. Yep, the Governor just put his administration in the hands of an abortion-loving lesbian and we know how much the Republican Party loves them.

But why Kennedy? She apparently has earned praise from both sides of the aisle for her ability to get stuff done. Among the people who praise her is ex-Governor Pete Wilson. She's also not quite as liberal as her identity would make her seem. In fact, somebody called her a "radical pragmatist" whose pro-business stance has drawn scorn from organizations such as the Consumers' Action Network.

Both she and Arnie have denied that her hiring will mean a more liberal-leaning Governator but it does appear to mean that the Governor intends to reach out more. As for Kennedy, who does something rarely anybody does in politics and switched teams; she's saying it's worth the risk if it'll help California.

Also in political news, P.J. Corkery is once again saying that Orange County Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez is tossing her hat into next year's Governor's race. Don't know much about her, but just from her Web site, we can tell she's way more attractive than Phil Angelides. We also know she was the one who defeated Republican Loon Bob Dornan in 1996, for which she has earned SFist's eternal thanks.