The Will of the People

Why do I think Davis was recalled yesterday? Because 55 percent of the voters wanted Davis out, and 48% of them wanted Schwarzenegger to be his replacement. That’s why.

I know that sounds prosaic, but I think it’s really the most important message of all. Yesterday we demonstrated that the government of the State of California works for its citizens and is controlled by them, and if the people become sufficiently dissatisfied with what the government does, they’ll replace it. And if they think the entire system is rotten, they’ll choose an outsider to become their new leader. If they’re contemptuous of career politicians or decide that all the "insiders" have become corrupted, they’ll send someone with no experience in government. ...

Yesterday the citizens of the State of California performed a coup without firing a shot, and equally important, the government didn’t resist it. On the contrary, the government ran the election by which that coup was implemented, and counted the votes honestly, and its leader accepted the result. ...

Yesterday’s recall demonstrated that the citizens are more powerful than the governments of this nation, and that in the final reckoning our government serves us, but does not rule us. It is our government; it belongs to us. We do not belong to it. ...

The lesson for the world from yesterday: Do not underestimate the power of the American people.

- Guess who