Some explanations for California’s ongoing budget problems

For the first time in four years, California does not expect a budget shortfall in the coming fiscal year, thanks to unexpected tax revenue pouring into the state this year.

But a $6 billion deficit is expected to return during the 2007-2008 fiscal year, with continued deficits anticipated for the next several years. Here are some of the central reasons why state government has so much trouble living within its means:

MANDATED SPENDING As much as 70 percent of spending in California’s budget is mandated through federal law, court order or voter initiatives. Even if lawmakers had the will to cut, most of the reductions would fall disproportionately on specific programs. Some of those smaller pieces of the budget pie are considered critical such as certain law enforcement, parks and recreation, and public health programs.… Read More

I hate to steal the thunder of my Co-BLOGer Jason Roe on the Leadership Race in DC but…….my boss [Darrell Issa] is on Team Blunt and I wanted to get this out there.

BLUNT CROSSES FINISH LINE –Majority Whip has 117+ supporters in bid for Leader–

… Read More

The FlashReport has a very narrow focus on California politics. So why this short column on the importance of an Arizona Congressman running to replace Tom DeLay as Majority Leader of the United States House of Representatives? Well, an ancillary effect of his candidacy is significant California news, because Shadegg is stepping down as Chairman of the Republican Policy Committee, one of the top leadership posts. None other than "our own" Darrell Issa is now campaigning for this seat (read more about it on the FR Weblog).

Arizona Congressman John Shadegg is a leader of the Republican Study Committee. Last week, we featured a column from Congressman Ed Royce, another strong conservative Congressman, on the importance of the efforts of the RSC. Frankly, the current leadership of the House of Representatives has failed in its primary mission. When Republicans… Read More

Walnut, Salifornia is one of those places that isreally hard for teachers to work in. The place has the highest test scores in the San Gabriel Valley. If you drive through Walnut you see plenty of businesses that offer tutoring. (Which makes you wonder if the teachers or the tutoring are responsible for the high test scores?)It is a Republican area to boot.

Now the union there really has it rough. Despite all the allegededucation budget cuts, the district is offering a 4 percent raise. The union bosses wants a 5 percent raise. See article here. What’s a union goon to do?

I knowthey should vandalizethe homes of board membersand threaten them andother districtemployees.See the article here.What the articles don’t tell you is thatthe head of union made the statement that they can’t be held responsible for what someone might do two nightsBEFORE the vandal(s) struck.

That makes the uniontotally responsible.… Read More

Thursday Night I forgot to charge up my cell phone. Friday I spent with Congressman Issa at March Air Reserve Base to participate in a ceremony with former first lady Nancy Reagan to take delivery of a new C-17 named The Sprit of Ronald Reagan. The C-17 is an amazing plane and to see one named in honor of my favorite President is especially great. This event was planned weeks ago and I thought is would be an easy way to spend a Friday before the weekend. Boy was I wrong!! What I did not plan on was Arizona Rep. John Shadegg resigning from his Chairmanship of the Republican Policy Committee to become a candidate in the race for majority leader.

Up hearing that Shadegg was leaving his Chairmanship early in the morning Friday, Congressman Issa who is a member of the Republican Policy Committee, decided that it needed a Californian to Chair it. He volunteered. Normally what one would do in a situation like this would be to hunker down in the campaign office and start working the phones, shooting out emails, and starting… Read More

The Governor has officially denied the clemency request of convicted murderer Clarence Ray Allen. Allen was sentenced to life in prison for commissioning the murder of his son’s girlfriend in 1974. Then, in 1980, he was convicted and sentenced to death for ordering the murders of eight witnesses of the first murder from his cell. While killing the first of these targets, his hit man also killed two unconnected teenagers on the scene.

Somehow it is notable that Clarence Allen is the oldest inmate on death row, and is quite ill. I am not sure why either of these things would be reasons to commute a death sentence. If anything, his age is a living mockery of what the court system has done to the ability for justice to be carried out in anything remotely close to swiftness.

Pity not Allen, but the innocent victims of his cruel and calculated actions. To quote the Governor:… Read More

Throughout the day, I’d been hearing rumors that there may be a new chief strategist coming to Schwarzenegger-land — that the venerable Mike Murphy was out, and that Matthew Dowd was in. I have my little "Rule of 6" that I use, where if I can’t get something on the record, I wait or seek out six sources that can at least tell me that they have heard what I have heard. Well, if I was really interested in ‘breaking’ news, I should have a "Rule of 5" — in this instance, my 6th source was none other than columnist Bill Bradley, who posted on his blog about the Dowd rumor ("Chief Strategist Dowd?" he writes, with the question mark.).

Who is Matthew Dowd, you might ask? Here is the first couple of paragraphs of his biography from a speaker’s bureau website (if you want him to talk to you personally about his background, a $10,000… Read More

The follwing appears in Roll Call Magazine today. Writer David Drucker has been writing on California politics for a long time, and recently joined RC as their West Coast Reporter:

By David M. Drucker

Roll Call Staff

January 9, 2006

With enough Republicans to fill a passenger van running in California’s 50th district open primary, Democrat Francine Busby is likely to emerge from the April 11 contest on top, though well short of the 50 percent-plus one needed to win the seat outright.The special election to replace disgraced former Rep. Duke Cunningham (R) in the heavily Republican, northern San Diego County-area district has attracted at least eight Republicans. They are almost certain to divide the GOP vote and open the door… Read More