Yesterday the California State Assembly convened a rare Sunday session for what was an important vote on a state budget. Of course, the only budget bill to come up for a vote was that written by Democrat lawmakers — one that responds to the crisis created by their overspending by heaping billions of dollars of new taxes on Californians. It was well known throughout all political circles that the outcome of yesterday’s vote was pre-ordained, because Democrats are unwilling to make the additional necessary cuts in state spending to balance the state’s books without penalizing taxpayers with a tax hike, and Republican lawmakers have made it abundantly clear that this overspending-caused situation must not be responded to with tax increases.
The contrast between the parties couldn’t be more clear. Democrats are the party of big spending, more government, and less freedom for Californians. Republicans want to empower individuals and family, and think that government should live within its means, including shrinking its expenditures substantially when state revenues decline.
It is now time for Senate President Pro-Tem Don Perata (while Assembly Speaker Karen Bass enables him my not taking the lead) to engage in what would be the normal course of events, if his goal is to actually pass a state budget. It is time for meetings of Republican and Democrat legislative negotiators to actually occur. Up to this point, Democrats have been enjoying what I will call "The Big Three" — where they sit down exclusively with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, attempt to negotiate exclusively with him, and then hope that the Governor will be able to "pick and roll" individual Republican legislators into bucking their leaders, and voting for a plan with a huge tax increase on Californians.
Clearly this strategy has failed, and while there is still (a little) time left to sit down and work out a very real spending limit plan that could be placed before voters in November, Democrat legislators should be telling President Pro-Tem Perata and Speaker Bass to roll up their sleeves, and actually work something out with Republican leaders.
The last few years have been a huge win for California liberals — with state spending at an all time high, at levels that were and are clearly unsustainable. They should declare victory for how much wealth they were able to redistribute over the past few years, and then realize that those times of state government largesse are over. It’s time for the austerity plan.
In closing, I did want to express my appreciation to all of the Assembly Republicans who boldly pushed the "NO" button on their desks in the face of higher taxes (like REALLY higher taxes). Those principled GOPers truly understand that a tax increase on Californians right now, is just really bad public policy. One GOP lawmaker, Assemblyman Greg Aghazarian, chose to abstain, for reasons that I do not understand. While he didn’t cast a vote for the taxes, his abstention leaves one wondering what it was in the Democrats’ plan that put him in the middle?
So, to wrap up — I am sure, as they have done over and over, Senate Republican Leader Dave Cogdill and Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines will reach out to their Democrat counterparts once again, eager to engage in real budget talks. Hopefully after yesterday’s vote, Perata and Bass will engage in that process. And if Governor Schwarzenegger wants to be of assistance, instead of picking the wrong side (by supporting a massive tax increase), he can play a role of bringing everyone to the table — by making it clear that he does not come to the table without his Republican colleagues.
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