Former Senate Republican Leader Jim Brulte is an early riser, and we’ve already chatted this morning. He said that from telephone calls, e-mails and text messages with his former colleagues, he has not seen Senate Republicans this united in many years. This morning I also spoke with the current Senate Republican Leader, Dick Ackerman, who told me that he expects all fifteen members of his caucus to vote for an amendment to the currently proposed budget that eliminates California’s structural deficit.
Ackerman has given an overview of some of the proposals by Senate Republicans in an exclusive piece for the FlashReport this morning. But as soon as they are officially released, look for the FR to post up all of the detailed reforms and cuts being proposed by Senate Republicans to begin a process of reigning in some of the excessive spending in state government, with a particular eye on some of the more egregious examples of misprioritized spending by Democrats.
If the watchers of Capitol politics are looking for telltale signs of Senate GOP unity, you need look no further than this website to see that Senator Jeff Denham and Senator Roy Ashburn are "on team" with Senator Ackerman. And in an Associated Press story this morning, Senator (and FR blogger) Jim Battin (who rather famously came up one vote shy in a leadership election against Ackerman) said, "They want to divide our caucus. I’m supporting Dick Ackerman on this."
Speaking as a long-time GOP activist myself, and as an elected officer of the California Republican Party, I couldn’t be more proud of Senate Republican right now. The liberal Democrats in the legislature, aided by the left-wing editorial writers of major main stream newspapers (and a good number of liberally-biased reporters) will now take up the cause of trying to bash Ackerman and his colleagues for having the audacity to say "enough is enough" when it comes to California government routinely spending more than it takes in. For saying "enough is enough" when it comes to funding so many programs that are just beyond the scope of what any normal, rational person would say, "that is what my taxes are supposed to pay for."
Yesterday I spoke with a large number of GOP legislators from the Assembly, and I can tell you that there is a high degree of enthusiasm for the efforts of Senate Republicans from their colleagues on the ‘other side’ of the building (well, more like from around the state since the Assembly has formally recessed, pending a call from the Speaker to return). I think that the solidarity of Senate Republicans is firming the resolve of GOP Assemblymembers to hold out for more a more rational budget, that ends the practice of deficit spending all together.
Of course, the interesting sub-plot here has to do with the recent turning in of signatures for the Perata/Nunez "Career Politician Term Limits Extension Act" (as we call it) to give dozens of term limited legislators more time to serve in Sacramento. This budget dance does not help their cause at all. So perhaps we will some motivation by Democrat Leaders, out of pure self-interest, to actually compromise on the budget.
After all, if you step back and look at the big picture of the California budget, the notable achievements negotiated in the first budget (the one that stalled after passing out of the Assembly with nine GOP votes) and even the full and noble list of reforms proposed by Senate Republicans really only start to deal with the problems caused by a legislature dominated by big-spending liberals for decades.
The liberal elite of California will make it sound like the proposals from Ackerman and his caucus represent some sort of "the sky is falling" approach to reigning in state spending. But from where we sit, they actually are a very modest beginning to what we really need – a comprehensive reevaluation and overhaul of the spending priorities of California state government.
We applaud our Senate Republicans, and urge them to stay unified. As so many have pointed out, with the constitutional requirement for a two-thirds vote on a budget, Republicans are in a strong position to insist on their reforms.
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