Assemblymember John Laird on the Budget: “The Voters of California Have Been Taken Hostage but We Can’t Get a Ransom Note”

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

Asks in floor debate that Republicans reveal their budget in public for a real debate

By Frank D. Russo

They’ve added a few steps to the Assembly version of the kabuki dance today. There was a debate about taking up the budget led by the chamber’s Republican members, in particular Todd Spitzer. But the last words of the day on the floor on the budget were spoken by Budget Committee Chair John Laird, who skewered Republicans and Spitzer on their own petard.
Spitzer started off the debate on a procedural matter to bring the budget up for an immediate vote, out of its order in the file. Before his motion was defeated, this is what he said:

“For the Democrats to walk off the floor and show their objection to this debate, let’s be clear. The people of the state of California deserve a budget. The state employees of California deserve much better than the minimum wage. Using the minimum wage as an attempt to get a state budget is an inappropriate way to try to get a state budget.

Only a few problems with these comments. The Democrats had not left the floor and voted to defeat this bit of political theater. Spitzer, like most Republicans voted against the California minimum wage when it came up in 2006.

As much as I’d like to believe that legislative Republicans have turned a new page and now care about the difficulties average Californians are having economically and all the other statements made by Spitzer about how they are struggling with the high price of gasoline, need good jobs, and the like, I found these arguments curious but not convincing.

Spitzer continued in taunting the Democratic majority to put their dukes up for a metaphorical fight: “Democrats, you don’t even have the votes for a sales tax increase. So get up on the floor, come one, come all 48 of you and stand up and tell everyone in California and the nation that your solution is to raise taxes.”

Small problem with this one too. The conference committee passed budget bill that he was trying to get up for an immediate vote doesn’t have a sales tax increase—that comes from his fellow party member, Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. But no mind, at least he stated his true intention—to get all 48 Democrats on the record on the budget and taxes. A tacit admission that this was not really about passing the budget.

This was made explicit a little later on, after his motion was defeated, when he said: “My colleagues in the Democratic Party took a pass—a serious pass. So at least we know that you don’t have enough votes within your caucus to pass a budget.”

Well, technically he’s right on this one. The Democrats don’t have the votes to pass a budget—by themselves. They are 48 members of the 80 member house and 54 votes—two-thirds are needed for any tax increase or even passing the budget with or without them.

Speaker of the Assembly Karen Bass took the mike on the floor, and called him and the Republicans out for their hijinks:

“This is my fourth year in the Assembly, but I think it’s the first time in my 4 years that I recall my Republican colleagues asking for a vote on the budget. So I assume that since my colleagues are so concerned about us voting for the budget that when we adjourn today at least 6 or 7 Republicans will join me in my office and tell me that not only do they want us to take up the budget but that they are ready to vote for the budget….