Disgraced former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger plans on making a return to the big screen. Sure to be as successful as Norma Desmond's Salome, his latest effort, titled, Last Stand, will be shot in New Mexico. According to Associated Press, "The movie is a modern day Western about convicts making their way to the Mexican border through New Mexico after escaping from a prison in Las Vegas, Nev." Exciting. more ›

Hello Magazine snagged the first shot of Arnold Schwarzenegger's secret son, Joseph, 13, and an exclusive interview his former housekeeper/mistress, Mildred Baena. It is, of course, most sensational. And here's our favorite part of the interview: "When his grandmother sat him down one year ago to explain that Arnold Schwarzenegger was his father, he exclaimed: 'Cool!'" more ›

The same day that the world learned that her husband the former Governator had fathered a child with an employee, Maria Shriver hopped over to Chicago to appear on one of Oprah Winfrey's last shows, in blue sequins. The appearance was clearly scheduled long before Shriver knew her husband's philandering was going to be a huge national headline yesterday, and as the AP reports, the topic didn't really come up. more ›

After news broke today that Arnold Schwarzenegger fathered a child with a household employee in 2003, which prompted the break up for his and Maria Shriver's marriage, the former California Governor's 17-year-old son, Patrick, announced that he changed his last name to Shriver. The Schwarzenegger's third child went on to send out the following Twitter message, "Some days you feel like shit, some days you want to quit and just be normal for a bit, yet i love my family till death do us apart." more ›

You know that not-so crazy plastic bag ban spearheaded by San Francisco Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi? Well, openly Republican (heh) Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger now also supports the eco-intelligent ban. So, you know, kudos to you, Mirkarimi. more ›

In a bold move to stem the inappropriate use of state welfare funds, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has issued a letter to county welfare directors that state-issued welfare debit cards will no longer work in psychic parlors, tattoo parlors, pot dispensaries, bail bond establishments, or bingo halls. He says these uses of the funds are "inconsistent with the intent" of the welfare program (no!), and that ATMs and point-of-sale systems in these establishments will be removed from the roster of places the cards can be used. This follows on a similar recent ban on the use of the welfare cards in casinos. more ›

Where has Gov. Schwarzenegger been during the San Bruno fire disaster, you ask? In China! The former movie star cum California politico headed East to sign part of the East Span of the Bay Bridge, check out the high-speed rail train in Shanghai, hawk California pistachios and wine, and meet with Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan... more ›

In an "extraordinary" court filing today, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger asked for same-sex marriage to be "allowed to resume immediately in California after a federal ruling that the state's voter-approved ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional," reports Sacto Bee. more ›

After laying off 200,000 state workers in June, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger revisited the policy, which will go into effect on Sunday. While the much-loathed Republican governor's order "requires employees take three unpaid days off per month," it has no termination date. "Furloughs will end when lawmakers pass a 2010-11 budget," which could be "weeks or months" after the Legislature meets on Monday. [Sacto Bee] more ›

In effort to "deter drug trafficking and illegal immigration along the border with Mexico," Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ordered up a large serving of National Guard troops (224 Guard members, to be exact) to oversee the Mexico-California line. CBS 5 reports, "His order on Friday supports President Barack Obama's plan to have 1,200 National Guard troops support federal border protection, customs and immigration agents." The last time Schwarzenegger sent National Guard troops to the border was back in 2006. This comes on the heels of Arizona cracking down on illegal immigration. more ›

Sacramento Bee reports that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger "withdrew his support Monday for a controversial new offshore oil drilling project off the Santa Barbara coast in the wake of a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico." The Tranquillon Ridge project, which was one of Schwarzenegger's preferred way "to raise money for California's strapped budget," proved too great a risk. "[I] I have a choice between the $100 million and what I see in the Gulf of Mexico, I'd rather just figure out how to make up for that $100 million," chirped Arnold. [via Sacto Bee] more ›

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday said the national health care plan could cost California billions. Gubernatorial hopeful and current Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner also chimed in with similar sentiments, followed by his Republican opponent Meg Whitman. And so are the three Republicans seeking to replace Senator Barbara Boxer in the November election. more ›

Possibly suffering from senioritis, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger confused Sen. Barbara Boxer with Sen. Dianne Feinstein. Oops. more ›

In the NYT today, California is once again front and center in a piece about cash-strapped states entering the new year with nothing but swaths of red on the books. The Governator is expected to continue shaking his tin cup at President Obama when he makes his State of the State address at 10 a.m. today, saying that when the new fiscal year begins in July, California will be unable to pay for any social services without aid from the federal government. The stimulus funds of last year are going to start running out, and it's about to get really ugly, with Medicaid patients here already being denied dental benefits and unemployment funds teetering in the balance as well. Happy New Year! more ›

After the Governor tried to raid public transit funds and was stopped by the courts, he's after the money again, but with a different shell game. As pointed out by Damien Newton at Streestblog LA, the LA Times reports that "the governor would eliminate the sales tax on gas and, at the same time, impose a new per-gallon excise tax. Drivers would pay about 5 cents less per gallon at the pump. The excise tax would not be subject to voter-approved spending requirements for public transit." Ouch. more ›

The fine folks over at SFBG did a little sleuthing over Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's recent vetoing of Assemblymember Tom Ammiano's AB 1176, a simple bill that involved the Port of San Francisco and some sort of financing issues. Basic stuff, really. According to SFBG Editor Tim Redmond, "It’s the kind of bill that legislators offer on behalf of their cities all the time," the kind of bill that is routinely passed. more ›

Although he uses fresh fruit to fashion smiley faces in his oatmeal, Gov. Schwarzenegger approval rating has, not-so inexplicably, dropped to its lowest point ever. According to CBS 5/AP, "a Field Poll released Tuesday finds the Republican governor with his lowest approval rating ever. Just 27 percent of voters approve of his performance, while 65 percent disapprove." more ›

This is our last chance to make the Harvey Milk Day bill law. Now that the Assembly has approved Mark Leno's bill to make Harvey Milk Day a state holiday, it will be on the Governor’s desk by next week. The far (and often effective) right, however, wants you to know that homosexuals indoctrinate children, and that Milk was a raging pedophile -- both of which are lies. more ›

From the weekend answering machine of Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, after helping deliver the finalized state budget: more ›

California State Parks director Ruth Coleman said that the agency faces a total of about $39 million in cuts after the new budget, which directly states a $14.2 million cut, was signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today. Additionally, $2.4 million was siphoned from a cigarette tax fund because less people are smoking. Furloughs and salary cuts round out the large number (Note: a full budget fact sheet is embedded below). more ›

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger finally signed California's budget today, making additional cuts to fill a $1.1 billion gap left by legislators in their approved package. An additional $6.2 million was cut from state parks after an $8 million cut was proposed last week. That makes a total of $14.2 million, a number the Schwarzenegger's office predicts "will result in the closure of probably more than 100 parks." more ›

The cruel, cruel Governator is expected today to use his line-item veto power to make further cuts to social programs--particularly those serving the poor--as he signs off on the State of California's latest budget. To highlight his cruelty, local news stations have concentrated on possible cuts to in-home care for people with cerebral palsy, and to insurance for poor families with cute little children like Jacob in the video above. As KCBS reports, even these cuts are not expected to improve the state's shitty credit rating (currently a BBB while most states have AAA or AA), because the budget is "filled with accounting tricks" too. more ›

Oversized wristwatch connoisseur, former Hollywood thespian, and Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, has some news: "@Schwarzenegger: Budget passed. Thanks to the legislature for the hard work last night and today. Plan to sign next week." But wait, there's more! "@Schwarzenegger: I will be going live @ www.gov.ca.gov in a few minutes to discuss the budget. Tune in!" more ›

So. The MSM has been atwitter this morning about the above video, which shows Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger holding a Crocodile Dundee-esque knife (in his unusually youthful hands) before launching into a diatribe about the state budget. (Get it?) His point, aside form the clever cutting signifier, is that he wants to hear more of your ideas on how to save the state of California from financial ruin. (Hint: you can't). Or whatever. more ›

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and your legislative leaders came to a tentative agreement this evening to (finally!) "balance California's $26 billion deficit by cutting broadly across state government, shifting costs into the future and capturing funds from cities and counties." According to goes on to explain, "includes spending cuts to programs ranging from schools to welfare-to-work to prisons. It takes money from local governments, including borrowing $2 billion that the state will repay starting in 2013 and taking gas taxes that normally go toward local road projects." By the numbers: 6 billion in cuts to education, 3 billion slashed to higher education, and 1.2 billion pruned from prisons. (Cuts to prison funding, however, will not mean that prisoners would get released early.) Some things that were spared? Cal Grants and most state parks. Please standby for fallout. more ›

It seems the National Park Service doesn't want to take control of state parks, but will take six of them, including the nearby Angel Island, if Gov. Schwarzenegger's proposal to close 80%, or 220, of them goes through under a Federal land transfer agreement. If the parks do close, they will stay open through at least labor day. "It's important to note that nobody is proposing to close these parks permanently. This is a temporary suspension until budget times are better," a State Parks spokesman told the . "We have no intention of giving them away or selling them. There's an interest in finding a way to preserve and protect them. It could be temporary federal control. We would hope they can come back to state parks." A proposal to pay for state parks via an annual $15 fee on vehicle registrations will be vetoed by Schwarzenegger if it hits his desk. Last month, LAist exposed a letter--currently making the media rounds--from the National Park Service to the Governor alerting him to the legal consequences. more ›

In this clip from Russia Today, an English-language news program based in Moscow, the suave and accented anchorman speaks with an American correspondent about the fiscal crisis in California and the "meaningless pieces of paper" the state is now issuing to vendors in lieu of cash. Is it just us, or does this dude have a certain smirky, bemused attitude toward the idea that this state with the 8th largest economy in the world is bankrupt? more ›

Not sure how much this budget-by-ballot blitz just cost us, but with 17% of precincts reporting, five of the six ballot measures in today's special election appear to have failed, with 60%+ of voters saying NO to propositions 1A through E. more ›

John Myers at KQED's California Report did a report about this very unspecial Special Election we're having today, in which some TBD tiny percentage of the state's population is going to arrive at polling stations and probably vote down the Governator's budget balancing ballot measures. Whether or not any of the ballot proposals are valid, it appears people are tired enough of special elections, and tired enough of everyone losing all their money that "No, no, no, no, no," is the most natural response. Regardless, no one knows what the hell they're voting on anyway. more ›

Sad news, California state employees. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has asked his administration to "send 5,000 layoff notices to state workers Friday," according to an unnamed source close to Arnold's budget plan. The workers, according to (which is one publication we will truly be sad to see go if things are going the way they are in the print world), "will be among the 20,000 state workers who received layoff warnings earlier this year." Said 5,000 employees will have to have their desks cleaned out by the end of June. Also, for even more depressing news, be sure to check out live coverage of today's California budget crisis. (Pst, better get on the "California, the Weed Dealer State" thing right-quick, governor.) more ›