It has been seven months since Gov. Gray Davis called a special session of the Legislature to resolve the state's $38 billion budget crisis. Nothing much of consequence has gotten done. So why should we take seriously his most recent challenge that legislative leaders focus their sole attention on that crisis beginning today?

Davis issued his challenge during a press conference last week, while assuring that his attention is solely on getting a deal done. But the governor's assurance rings hollow in light of the recall campaign that threatens to remove him from office.

The prospect of being the first California governor to be recalled is haunting enough for the most confident of individuals. Davis doesn't exude – let alone inspire – confidence. To the contrary, he is famously known as a fence-sitter; one who seldom makes a move without carefully calculating the political consequences.

That the governor's political survival could be at stake has created a major distraction, not to mention depriving him of what little leverage he has to broker a budget agreement.

Leverage is essential for decisive leadership, particularly during crisis situations. Niccolo Machiavelli suggested that such leverage flows in large part from fear. The most effective leaders, he maintained, must be able to instill a bit of dread in order to impose their will.

No one dreads Davis. What's more, many Democratic and Republican lawmakers who regard him with varying degrees of disdain, probably consider his current predicament to be poetic justice.

That's a shame because despite his several faults, Davis did not cause California's fiscal crisis. Nor is his removal likely to resolve it.

If Davis is turned out of office and replaced by a Republican, the Democratic-controlled Legislature will be looking for political revenge. The political well in Sacramento would be so poisoned that the new governor would be hard-pressed to get legislative consent to honor Smokey the Bear. A Democratic or GOP successor to Davis would still have a tough time getting a budget passed anytime soon.

The collateral damage would almost certainly include the structural reforms needed to prevent a future fiscal meltdown. It's going to be tough enough to craft a less volatile tax structure, achieve a constitutional spending cap and forge a meaningful realignment between Sacramento and local governments.

While we disagree with the governor on numerous issues, we oppose the effort to recall him. Removing someone from office should be done as a last resort because of malfeasance or other serious misdeeds. Dumping Gray Davis during the state's worsening budget crisis could compound California woes.