White riot?

Just what "civil unrest" does Arnold Schwarzenegger believe will be unleashed if San Francisco does not stop issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples?

"All of a sudden, we see riots, we see protests, we see people clashing. The next thing we know, there is injured or there is dead people. We don't want it to get to that extent,'' the Republican said in his first appearance as governor on a Sunday talk show.

Well, so far, there haven't been any riots or even any serious disturbances. Couples have been getting married apace, though as the story notes, there have been some attempts to disrupt the ceremonies. And they have been handled simply and without incident so far.

As Hallye Jordan, a spokesperson for the attorney general's office, put it:

"We are not aware of any riots or any threat to public safety in San Francisco," Jordan said. "As we have said, if there is violence, we would step in. At this point we see peaceful acts of civil disobedience on both sides. We are unclear as to what the governor is referencing in terms of riots. We urge a toning down of the political rhetoric. This is a complex issue, and we will be dealing with it in the courts."

One has to wonder why Schwarzenegger could speak so irresponsibly. Why is he so fearful of something that has only been hinted at so far? Unless, of course, he's saying he expects to see the disruptions turn violent in what has so far been a classically nonviolent exercise in civil disobedience. Even if this is not a subtle signal to call out the dogs, these kinds of remarks can easily be interpreted that way by the sort of people whose political consciences have mostly been acquired from multiple viewings of Conan the Destroyer.

We'll see if actual violence does break out now. And when it does, will anyone bother to ask Schwarzenegger why he suggested it?

This is, incidentally, all too reminiscent of the "civil unrest" the fear of which, according to defenders of the Bush v. Gore ruling, was supposed to be the chief motivator for the Supreme Court justices who voted to call an abrupt end to the Florida vote count. In both events, the only "civil unrest" that might loom constituted, essentially, pure thuggery on the part of right-wing hooligans. And in both cases, it's more convenient -- for Republicans, anyway -- to capitulate to it than to confront it.

UPDATE: Here's the "Meet the Press" transcript.