Pete Wilson on the Legislature: They need to drink more

by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Seriously. That's what he said:

Wilson, a two-term Republican governor from 1991 to 1999, said the Legislature is dysfunctional when it gets too partisan. He blamed discord on a lack of the kind of collegiality that existed when he was in the Assembly in the late 1960s.

"It may have something to do with the fact that when John, Willie and I were all in the Assembly, there was a great deal more drinking in the Legislature," Wilson said to laughter and applause. "These guys, the teetotalers, need to lighten up a bit." (SacBee 12.05.07)

The remarks came at Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) event in Sacramento yesterday. Other speakers suggested other concepts. John Burton's was hanging out in strip clubs, or well, just collegiality in general. Term limits came up, with unsurprising results: the law makers didn't like them and remarked about the negative effects. Fabian Nunez pointed out the problems surrounding the 2/3 requirements.

All in all, an interesting read. I'm kinda bummed I missed the event. UPDATE: Here's another take on the event from the comments at the SacBee:

I was at this presentation - and as usual, this coverage is so distorted as to be meaningless. The five people in past and present leadership did, in fact, make some delicious jokes, but those were the asides, NOT the substance of the discussion. The loss of knowledge, the loss of accountability, the skewing of voter understanding (evidence here by comments), the media's lack of substantive reporting (evidenced here by this vapid story) all were seriously discussed. Were there jokes and funny zingers? Yes. And for anyone to think booze, backroom deals, and other funny things were what was recommended is wrong. You've been punked by this reporter's superficiality and lack of understanding at how important this discussion really was. If you want to understand the problems of the Legislature, do NOT turn to the Bee; talk to your legislator or, better, one who used to be there. We can fix the system, but not if we believe only the Bee's superficial point of view.