California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) met with tribal leaders on Wednesday but refused to apologize for remarks he made about them during his political campaigns.

Schwarzenegger accused the tribes of being special interests, of "ripping off" the state and of not paying their "fair share" to the state. The "ripping off" comment came up during the meeting but the governor didn't feel sorry about it, one tribal leader said.

"It would have been nice to hear something like that," Mark Macarro, the chairman of the Pechanga Band of Luise�o Indians, told The Riverside Press-Enterprise after the meeting.

Also in attendance were Henry Duro, the chairman of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians; Maurice Lyons, the chairman of the Morongo Band of Mission Indians; and Lynn Valbuena, the chairwoman of the Tribal Alliance of Sovereign Indian Nations. All said the meeting was productive.

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Governor reaches out to tribes (The Riverside Press-Enterprise 5/11)
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Local tribal leaders have productive talk with Schwarzenegger (The Palm Springs Desert Sun 5/11)

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