SACRAMENTO — Reelection is behind him, but Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is keeping his fundraising operation at full throttle, asking donors to pay for a stylish inauguration and seeing to it that he continues to fly private jets and stage public appearances worthy of a Hollywood celebrity.
The governor's political team has approached Chevron Corp., PG&E, Blue Cross of California, AT&T and other businesses, asking for tens of thousands of dollars to pay for a two-day celebration surrounding his Jan. 5 inauguration.
As a newly elected governor taking office in 2003 amid a fiscal crisis, Schwarzenegger staged a relatively modest inauguration. But with the economy improving, his aides said a more festive event is in order. The occasion even has its own "executive producer" -- Carl Bendix, a friend of California First Lady Maria Shriver.
A copy of the invitation shows that for $50,000, donors can purchase a "gold" sponsorship that includes 10 tickets to a reception Jan. 4, four reserved seats for the inaugural ceremony the next day and a table for 10 at a legislative luncheon.
"Silver" sponsorship is $15,000 and buys a pair of tickets to the reception, two for the swearing-in and two for the luncheon, among other perks.
The money goes to a nonprofit committee that can take donations of any size.
At the same time, Schwarzenegger is taking advantage of a new fundraising law he signed three months ago meant for politicians like himself who, for the time being, don't have another race to run. His attorneys have set up a special "officeholder" account that allows him to collect up to $200,000 a year for assorted expenses (though not for a political campaign); donors can give $20,000 apiece per year.
As a lame duck, Schwarzenegger is barred from raising money through a reelection fund and wants the new account to underwrite the professional-quality lighting and sound, private air travel and satellite feeds that are fixtures of his operation, aides said. Contributions to the fund must be publicly disclosed.
Another political account is devoted to what Schwarzenegger's aides call "legislative advocacy." If the governor wants to travel around the state urging passage of a particular bill, he intends to use that fund to cover the costs, aides said. Donors must be disclosed.
The fund is not new; the governor has used it to wage ballot campaigns. But he sees less need for that in his second term and plans to use the fund to push his legislative agenda.
