This could be the summer of Gray Davis' discontent. Even as a recall campaign picks up speed against the California governor, things continue to go badly for him and the state he has misgoverned:

On Wednesday, a Stage 1 Power Alert was declared by state power authorities. It was the first since last July 10; only two were declared in all of 2002. But if temperatures rise, the governor could be in for a long, hot summer of blackouts.

On Friday, the Associated Press reported, "Richard Katz, one of Gov. Gray Davis' top advisers, has earned hundreds of thousands of dollars in consulting fees the last two years from clients that have had business before the governor's office on issues that Katz handles, state records show." The governor doesn't need an ethics scandal now.

Meanwhile, the state budget crisis continues to boil over. In his May budget revision, the governor called for $8 billion in tax increases and $10 billion in loans to cover part of a budget deficit of up to $38 billion. Three years ago, the state budget was awash in a $12 billion surplus.

Given his many errors and hesitations in office, it's not surprising that Mr. Davis may become the first governor in state history to face a recall. Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista, has led a fund-raising effort called Rescue California that has raised $600,000 to collect the 900,000 signatures by Sept. 2 needed to hold a recall. So far, the campaign has not yet turned in 20,000 signatures.

Campaigning is one area where Gov. Davis doesn't dither. "Steve Smith, a Davis appointee who has been secretary of the California Workforce and Development Agency, is expected to announce he'll join the organization working against the recall," the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

The group is called Taxpayers Against the Recall because it will highlight the estimated $35 million election cost if the recall is held as a separate election sometime between November and early next year (depending on how long it takes to confirm the initiative signatures).

But Jack Pitney, a political science professor at Claremont McKenna College, said, "the harder they keep fighting [the recall], the more chance there is it will make the ballot. It draws attention to the effort, gives the story additional days of coverage. It's like in the movie 'Forbidden Planet,' in which the monster feeds on anger."

And there sure is a lot of anger out there.

A recall ballot - if it happens - would include a simultaneous election to determine who would replace the governor if he is recalled.

Gray Davis may soon find out that his greatest political opponent is himself.