Today, in addition to the California Democratic Party, Speaker Bass and Asm. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) have begun pushing against the Governor’s proposals for the budget.
For her part, Speaker Bass said that her commitment was to ensure that California didn’t eliminate the social safety net and to fight back against the all-cuts budget. While it isn’t completely clear if the Speaker and Sen. Steinberg are on exactly the same page, the Democratic Leadership seems like they won’t go down without a struggle.
“Assembly Democrats will be fighting for families affected by the budget by pursuing a balanced approach that includes revenues and reforms as well as cuts,” Bass said. “Our responsible budget solutions will be aimed at minimizing hardship and maximizing opportunity for California’s economic recovery.”
Interestingly, the Speaker brought out the specter of some sort of court or federally appointed special master that would force some sort of reforms down our gut, IMF-style reforms, as California seems to be heading for a position to fit in well with that third world nation model these days. However, given the Constitutional requirements, both state and federal, it is not at all clear that such a system would be permissible. The reason why there is no provision for a state bankruptcy is that an Article III (or not, as Bankruptcy Judges do not enjoy Article III status) Judges cannot simply force states to do anything. That federalism issue is central to how our nation works, and forsaking it would be a far bigger deal than one budget crisis.
For their part, the CDP is trying to (paraphrasing here) “show our Democratic legislators that there is support for basic Democratic principles to help the neediest in our society,” Chairman John Burton said on a conference call today. “Right now our goal is to protect millions of Californians.”
The plan from the CDP is to press on traditional grassroots methods and combine them with some of the fancy new tech friendly means used so well by the Obama campaign. More details on that as they become available.
Bass really is just an awful Speaker who is telegraphing to the world she’ll cave on pretty much everything to keep the budget from being late. That is how receivership came up.
As for Burton, until the CDP figures out how what they are doing this year is different than what totally failed last year, count me as having little faith of saving us from Leadership. More of the same but more isn’t exactly a strategy. I was very disappointed in this call.
At least Bass is finally standing up against Schwartz.
The Dems should pass the majority rule tax for fee swap
on gasoline and make up the differnce with corporate taxes,
taxes on the top 1%, and oil. They should send it to Schwartz and just go home (it will obviously have cuts).
Rich people need state services also–like prisons and police to roust out the ever increasing number of homeless from their neighborhoods.
hard to say after hertzberg, villaraigosa and nunez, but she is a total poltroon.
Her comment on the election was totally craven – to say that the voters were confused when it is clear that the most educated voters took part in the election is disgusting.
It is pretty clear she lacks any level of touch with the voters, and she just believes in her power.
Real sad. Steinberg is actually worse, because he is a touch smarter than Bass, but twice as powerful.
The only true public servant up there is Chiang who tells it like it is, a balanced budget is absolutely necessary for the well being of California – we are not washington under Bush-Obama-Pelosi-Reid.
makes a good point. The rich do receive services from the state. I would unleash a prison population on the cities and states. As a libertarian and gun owner, and an owner of gun stocks, i think that is a good cost benefits analysis. keep the three stikers in, let the petty ones out, and let’s see how things shake out.
….nobody else in the state is.