Lieutenant governor is supposed to be a largely ceremonial position, with a lot of glad-handing and good will at the top of the agenda.

But with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on a trip to Asia, Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado got a chance to do something folks in his position rarely get to do — act like the state’s chief executive.

We’re pleased to note that the Santa Maria strawberry farmer stepped right into the job, junking his schedule to oversee the relief and recovery efforts in the wake of the San Bruno natural gas pipeline eruption.
Emergency orders, a key component to getting federal disaster aid, were signed efficiently and almost immediately.

Maldonado even found time to sign a bill giving the citizens of Bell back a few million dollars in unlawful gains from their executive pay fiasco.

By the time Schwarzenegger got back, the city of Oakland had received state approval, signed by Maldonado, for a massive new development that’s expected to create 8,000 jobs.

Maldonado’s performance in the job on a temporary basis was not tinged with the partisanship that has infected so much of our political lives. He was efficient and cool under fire. Good job.

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