By Karen Ocamb

On Sept. 18, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ended a weekend of campaigning by speaking at the Crenshaw Christian Center's FaithDome, a predominately African American mega-church run by prominent anti-gay televangelist Rev. Frederick K.C. Price. Though he refrained from commenting on AB 849, the gay marriage bill, the crowd of about 4,000 linked Schwarzenegger's visit to the promised veto of the bill and his announced re-election campaign, according to the San Jose Mercury News.

"We applaud him vetoing AB 849," Democrat Mary Gerald told the paper. "He's going with what the voters said: One man and one woman is a marriage," referring to Prop. 22, the anti-gay marriage initiative passed by voters in 2000.

Lillie Jackson, a lifelong Democrat, told the Mercury News that she might now vote for Schwarzenegger because he "knows that the word of God is against" same-sex unions. "If they're a certain political party and their party does something they don't agree with, these folks [the churchgoers] will change [party-line votes] in a minute."

"We've been trying to get him to come for a while," said church spokeswoman Kerri Webb, who apparently did not know if the governor and the pastor spoke privately about the veto or gay marriage. But, she said, "It's pretty much Dr. Price's and the Crenshaw Christian Center's stance to get him to do what he's promised to do."

The church visit culminated three days of campaigning in Southern California. On Sept. 16 Schwarzenegger told an invited audience in San Diego that he is seeking re-election, an announcement tied to his campaign on behalf of Propositions 74, 75, 76, and 77 on the Nov. 8 special election ballot which are not now polling well. He continued the campaign the next day at the state Republican convention in Anaheim, where his promised veto and his battle for the initiatives against "union bosses" were seen as tactics to shore up his conservative base. Many political pundits believe that the special election has now essentially become a referendum on Schwarzenegger's political leadership and executive abilities.

Schwarzenegger's public association with the anti-gay Price, who has said that homosexuality is an "abomination," will no doubt be a subject for debate when a group of LGBT activists meet with the governor's top staff on Sept. 21. (This edition of IN hits the streets on that date, but we will do follow up coverage).

The meeting was called at the behest of Geoff Kors, executive director of Equality California, who told IN that EQCA meets regularly with Schwarzenegger's staff because they are in the same building.

"We requested they meet with community leaders and LGBT families before he made any decision on the bill," Kors told IN. "They agreed. They picked who was invited but I made suggestions." Among the 10-20 invited leaders are Jeff Bissiri, executive director of Log Cabin/California, Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Lesbian Rights Center, and Bienestar Human Services executive director Oscar de la O.

Though a Schwarzenegger spokesperson told reporters that the promised veto of the gay marriage bill would not be a subject for discussion, Kors and West Hollywood City Councilmember John Duran, EQCA's board president, told IN it would be.

"They may not intend to bring it up, but I am," Duran told IN, adding that he thinks a veto is likely. "He's Arnold. He's got a testosterone ego so if he said he is going to veto, he probably will."

However, Duran said, the group will also remind Schwarzenegger that the government is a "representative democracy and the Legislature does act on behalf of the people."

Schwarzenegger has previously said that he does not support gay marriage but he will follow the law and the will of the people, which he said is expressed through the courts and the initiative process. Duran said he will also remind the governor's staff that no minority has had their rights given to them by the majority. "If we had put the rights of women and blacks up for a vote by the majority, neither would have received minority protections," Duran said.

Kors said he intends to discuss EQCA's other five bills heading for Schwarzenegger's desk, as well as the gay marriage bill, and to try to find out in what direction the governor is really going since he appears to be doing "what [anti-gay] Lou Sheldon has asked him to do." Kors said Schwarzenegger's veto of a bill that would have added sexual orientation to a voluntary campaign pledge was "shocking."

Kors also will ask that the governor "come out immediately against the anti-gay initiatives [which would wipe out existing domestic partnership benefits] we are likely to face next year and encourage people not to sign the petitions. I think that if he makes a decision to wait until they qualify before taking a position, rather than take a leadership role when he claims he supports full legal rights, it would be a clear demonstration that he is far from a leader and a different kind of politician that he claims he is. It would be a sign that he is truly moving into bed with [Traditional Values Coalition head] Lou Sheldon and [initiative sponsor] Randy Thomasson if he fails to stand up now. We want to send a very powerful message to the governor; if he says he is not with us and refuses to take a leadership role, we're going to work hard to say no to his initiatives and his re-election."