CA-GOV: Dead Issue for a Braindead Media

I had to laugh at this. At least the Times is honest about where the candidates stand, but the blithe dismissal is breathtaking.

Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger promises comprehensive healthcare reforms but says he's saving the details for after the election.

His challenger, state Treasurer Phil Angelides, is proposing to expand coverage of children and require large companies to pay for workers' insurance, but his ideas, mostly Democratic standbys, aren't getting much attention.

Healthcare would seem to be a big issue in California, where more than 6 million residents are uninsured, urban emergency rooms teeter on the brink of closure and rising costs are pinching the state budget as well as taxpayers.

It is not, however, much of an issue in the gubernatorial campaign.

Bull.

It's "not much of an issue" because the media literally won't talk about any issue in favor of the horse race. And this line from Mark Baldasseri has to get the award for chutzpah of the year:

One reason is voters themselves, said Mark Baldassare, survey director of the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California. In a recent poll, just 4% of those likely to cast ballots ranked healthcare as their No. 1 concern in the governor's race.

Most voters have insurance and are "generally satisfied with the kind of healthcare coverage that they're getting personally," Baldassare said.

Most voters, perhaps. Statewide we had 6 million uninsured residents in 2003, a percentage above the national average. In 2005 that number climbed to 6.5 million, and the percentages remained steady. Emergency rooms are closing all over the state. This is a CRISIS, and the media (as well as the voters) are letting the Governor get away with saying "I'll tell you my plan after the election"?

Unacceptable.