Arnold Schwarzenegger is leaving California in ruins, about to end possibly the worst governorship in California history (although some of the Mexican-era governors had it pretty bad, when Northern and Southern California sent armies to fight each other at Cahuenga Pass). But there are some things we can be thankful for about Arnold’s misrule, including the fact that his popularity, when it existed, did not help other Republicans.

Arnold Schwarzenegger was something of a one-off. He wasn’t trusted by the California Republican base, who didn’t see him as the conservative ideologue they desired, even though Arnold was plenty right-wing. Arnold might not have survived a typical GOP primary, and after Democrats and progressives beat him in the 2005 special election, Arnold began to forsake the GOP for a more centrist approach to governance. By 2007 Arnold and his party were barely on speaking terms.

Meg Whitman’s overall politics are very much like Arnold’s. But we’re starting to see a very big difference in how they treat the rest of the Republican Party. Whereas Arnold didn’t have coattails, Whitman is doing her best to buy them. According to an article in today’s Chronicle by Carla Marinucci and Joe Garofoli, Whitman plans to spend $30 million to help build the Republican Paty ahead of the November 2010 election:

The Chronicle has obtained a draft of a detailed 44-page state GOP “2010 Victory Plan” that outlines the party’s $85.5 million financial blueprint for a campaign effort that includes $30 million directed to the gubernatorial race.

The former eBay CEO is “putting a significant amount of money in … it could be $30 to $40 million,” said a GOP insider familiar with the plan. The source said Whitman is also expected to tap her fundraising sources and contacts for the party’s benefit.

The intent for Whitman is twofold: to not only give the party the tools to register as many as 500,000 new GOP voters to help her own race, but to build a stronger Republican Party that can elect more Republicans down the ticket.

Already Whitman has helped raise money for Sam Blakeslee, the Republican running against John Laird in the SD-15 race on August 17 that can help decide control of the State Senate. In fact, most of the votes that were cast in the first round in the SD-15 special election on June 22 actually came in on or before June 8, indicating that Republicans specifically linked the gubernatorial and SD-15 races.

I’ve also been hearing persistent reports that Whitman has taken a strong interest in some of the downticket statewide races as well, although I’m not yet sure if she’s directed any money to those races.

In any case, this is something Democrats will have to pay very close attention to this year. Whitman is like Arnold in many ways, but there’s a key difference: she is interested in and willing to build up the Republican Party, using her money and her connections. For 14 years Republicans have been consistent losers in California elections. Whitman appears determined to change that, not just by buying the governor’s office, but by reversing the slide in Republican fortunes.