Cruz Bustamante is on Tavis Smiley today.

Cruz says talking about taxes isn't going to hurt him because people are more upset about the government not being able to get things down. He's for tough love. We've done the easy things. Can't borrow any more money. Now it's time to do the hard stuff.

and, tough love, now we're going to ask them to pay their fair share.

Voters want to know what we're going to do, and nobody is going to get a pass.

Tavis asks, if people are sick and tired of people in Sacremento for not doing their jobs, how are they going to be happy being asked to foot the bill for that failure.

Cruz says, we're only asking the top 4% who got such a huge break from Bush to pay their fair share.

Also says that the low proper taxes on commercial propert, which rarely turns over, like residential property does, there's never a reassesment, and they pay a lower and lower percentage of property tax revenues. That's got to end (YEAH!).

Also, Cruz is going to start closing loopholes so that the regular families don't have to have trippled car tax. First 20,000 value of car will be exempt. No increase in car tax at all if your car is worth less than 20K and you only pay increase on value over 20K.

Tavis asks about relationship with Gray Davis.

Cruz says, no difference from past. Tavis says, you were his partner, now you're running against him. Cruz says, we're both democrats, but in CA you don't run as a team. He was elected to step in for Cruz. He says that he's giving Dems a chance to win on the No vote, and win on second half of ballot too.

Cruz says he's going to bring latino and black voters to the polls. Tavis says, what about that time you used N-word. Cruz says, most embarassing moment of his life, but he was not making a joke. He said he was in front of a black trade union talking about black issues, and he garbled the words. He said that he didn't argue about what he said, and that he appologized to everyone he could and didn't run from it.

Tavis said, that you did, and he appreciated that Cruz came on to his show to talk about it.

Final words: lower car tax, lower community college fees, put money back in education.

Tavis says he got major endorsements and campaign is rolling. Cruz says, yes, he's teeming up with major black groups and Cruz is making sure Democrats HAVE TWO CHANCES TO WIN.

Tavis: are you going t win.

Cruz: I believe I'm running against Arnold and I can win.

i believe that is a strong message from Cruz. if it doesn't get drowned out by Arnold-glitter, then Cruz can win.

...and i don't know what i'd do without Tavis).

The conservative NPR station in SF is running stories about how Arnold has to have a little Democrat in him because he spends all that time in Hyannis Port. It's crazy. People are being lied to. It's frightening.

I wouldn't be too sure about that.

I still want to get the entire story, but Cruz used the "N" word in a conference by mistake last year. He apologized repeatedly for it.

I dont really get it though. People said it was taken out of context - how does one do that unless you are purposely using the word for some specific explanatory reason, in this case it sounds as though it was a slip, an accident. There are many words we can allow to slip - s**t, f***, etc. The N word has never just slipped out of my mouth.

This incident, the fact hes already spoken out critically of his fellow Democrat and current governor, and the fact hes Joe Lieberman's California Chair is enough to make me cautious.

Bustamante is the only viable alternative we have in California, unless Gray Davis is able to salvage himself.

If this were not the recall election, I would be asking hard questions from Bustamante regarding his use of a racial word, and of his association with Lieberman and certain groups.

This is a recall election and the last thing we need is to turn the governorship to a Republican, no matter how moderate he happens to be.

I support Bustamante, but I must admit I have some questions about him.

it would seem that he answered many of the questions, repeatedly. Listen to this interview, Wed, Aug 20th -- http://www.npr.org/rundowns/calendar/monthly_calendar.php?month=8&year=2003&prgId=14 -- and tell me what further questions you'd like answered.

:thumbsup: