Can we get a recall going already, please?

[professionalhenchman]

Preferably of the whole CA state legislature, but right now I'm inclined to start with the Governor after reading this article in the Sac Bee:
http://www.sacbee.com/capitolandcalifornia/story/2011605.html?storylink=omni_popular
Going after state workers for still more pay cuts is ridiculous, particularly in an across-the-board fashion which means that we'll get reduced services in all areas, and drive people away from public service.
Yes, I'm biased, in that Sarah works for the state. Still, I'd be against this grandstanding even without that - cutting state worker salaries entirely wouldn't make even a 10% dent in the budget deficit, and these are the people who do the work of our government. We can bicker about what services the government should be providing, but whatever level of service we want from the government, we still need to be able to find people who are willing to do that work, and this sort of thing makes it hard to convince good people to go into public service.

Comments

[cahwyguy.livejournal.com]

The problem is that any recall effort will just cost more money that the state doesn't have, and divert more attention from solving the problem. We need to get both sides working together, not coming up with one approach and ignoring any ideas. Arnie knows he can take any position: he's not up for election again, and will likely not remain in politics. Recalls wouldn't scare him -- sure, let someone else solve the problem. That's why he's behaving this way. That means we must push the legislators, and let them know they are out of a job if they don't find a way to resolve this. Alas, there's no good answer -- other than it won't be solved on the backs of state workers and students.

[groblek.livejournal.com]

That's really why my preference would be to recall the whole legislature, but I realize that it's not actually a feasible option. I've been letting my legislative reps know what I think, but I'm not convinced that we actually have enough leverage anywhere, the way things are set up. With the supermajority requirements, I suspect that there are enough termed-out legislators on both sides who can sit back and hold things up regardless of any pressure we exert.

[cahwyguy.livejournal.com]

Or you get legislators who are so tied to their party they don't listen to their consituants. I have that here: our portion of the northern San Fernando Valley is lumped with Santa Clarita and Simi to form a very Republican district (although the valley portion itself is Democratic). I've tried contacting our representatives on various matters, but in general I'm dismissed because I'm not from their party, and their district is constructed so that their party has a permanent majority. That's probably a factor as well: legislators from safe districts.

[groblek.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that one is a problem. I hope the redistricting initiative we passed recently will help that. Although it's flawed, it's better than the current system.

[iansane.livejournal.com]

vote of no confidence.
The real problem is how to make that budget balance? The state is pretty badly screwed. I suspect that the cutting workers was in an attempt to put more programs back into the budget. Last I heard, they were going to shut down the poison control center and severly cut food stamps. They have given up on more money magically appearing and are now trying to figure out if they should cut people to unreasonable levels, or just services. Maybe we need a revolution and entirely restructure the state. This is absurd.

[loupyone.livejournal.com]

How else is the governor supposed to motivate the state and its inhabitants to realize that we can't just keep pushing off either raising taxes or cutting programs?

Let's be honest, the governor doesn't have a lot of power in the process. he can sign a budget or reject it, but he needs a working one form the legislature first. They're the ones falling down. So Arnie turns up the heat on constituents, hoping they turn up heat on the legislature.

Frankly, I'm sad to report that I believe that resorting to threats on his part is one of his best ways of generating a working document. He's already tried, in the past, being directly involved in the process, only to be shut out or shut down with his suggestions.

The issue comes down to this: Should we pay our workers, or fund our programs? At the end of the day, which should be our priority? A lot of Californians aren't thinking about it this way. And they need to.

Welcome to the reality of the situation. Don't want a pay cut? What should we cut instead? Which program gets the axe and out of whose mouth are you taking figurative food?

Don't want cuts? How do you feel about taxes.....

[kelsied.livejournal.com]

Except that he's taken taxes off the table. Completely. No negotiation.

Even when it's a choice between hurting everyone a little, and hurting a few people a lot.

He kinda loses my sympathy there...

[groblek.livejournal.com]

(late response because I haven't had time for the internet recently)

While I do agree that there's little the governor can do to put pressure on the Legislature to pass a budget, and this is one of the few ways he can do so, I don't think it's a good idea. I'm pretty sure that the harm this is likely to cause to our state government by motivating those who can get jobs outside the state workforce (likely those we'd most like to keep around) to do so will outweigh the benefits from prodding the Legislature to move faster on getting a working budget.

As for your last few questions, I agree that it comes down to determining our priorities as a state - what we want, and what we're willing to pay for. I personally have been thinking this way for a while, and writing letters to my representatives since last fall. The big problem is that we've set things up such that a minority on either side can hold the entire budget hostage, and as long as they're willing to hold out, we're all screwed. I'm not convinced we can put enough pressure on either side to break the logjam short of recalling a large portion of the Legislature.

Personally, I'd be fine with paying higher taxes, as overall I think the programs are worth the money - and this is as someone who pays a wider variety of taxes than the average taxpayer due to owning a small business in addition to a day job. The problem is that there's a solid minority, the governor included, who refuse to even consider any new taxes as part of balancing a budget, even some types of taxes which have a strong majority support in polls. I'd like any budget to also include streamlining the government as much as possible, something I do give Governor Schwarzenegger credit for at least attempting, even though his plan failed to get support, but I recognize that I have to pay more to keep the level of service I think we need, and I'm fine with that.