Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has backed down from a court fight by releasing appointment calendars of his top aides during a one month period the governor was considering the fate of hundreds of bills in 2004, according to the AP. The California First Amendment Coalition, San Jose Mercury News and San Diego Daily Transcript filed a lawsuit last November to try to get the calendars to see if interest groups had arranged meetings with the governor’s aides to lobby on the legislation. The release came just a few days after voters approved Proposition 59, a constitutional amendment strengthening public access to government records. [Sacramento Bee] [AP]