Schwarzenegger skips State of the State address.

Citing a “state of emergency” resulting from the state’s dire economic situation and the legislature’s failure to produce a solution, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger delivered a truncated State of the State address this morning.

While he clearly put responsibility for the crisis on the legislators he was addressing—even suggesting that pay should be withheld from Assembly members, state Senators and the himself until a solution is found—his tone was mostly upbeat and conciliatory. He congratulated lawmakers for working toward a compromise, and said he is optimistic that they will succeed.

Although the governor did not take the opportunity to address the structural problems that have plagued the state for decades—such as the two-thirds vote required for any tax plan to pass the legislature—Schwarzenegger did make reference to the partisan gridlock he has railed against since he first entered state politics.

(In doing so, he also made reference to one of his worst movies.)

“Conan’s sword could not have cleaved the state in two as cleanly as our own political parties have done,” he said, adding that this has created a situation in which “rigid ideology is rewarded, and pragmatic compromise is punished.”

In closing his 16-minute address, the governor reminded lawmakers of another state of emergency—the 2,000-plus wildfires that engulfed the state this summer. He pointed out that the state’s firefighters showed great courage in putting out those blazes, in which 13 of them died, and asked lawmakers to show the same resolve.

“Let this be the year of political courage,” he said.

He promised to return to deliver a real State of the State address, including lists of accomplishments and bold proposals, after the current financial mess is cleaned up.