Sen. Dutton wants to go back over the budget

by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

I was going to put this as a comment to Dave's diary about the Year of Doing Your Job, but, well, I thought it could stand as a compliment to that post. Sen. Dutton's calling it a fiscal crisis, but really he just wants the governor to hack up the budget. You'll remember him as being one of the Senate Obstructionists over the budget a few months ago. I'm not sure, but I'm pretty sure he was one of the senators hanging out at Chops when the Democrats were trying to work out a Budget.  But ol Bob wants to call a "fiscal crisis".  Oooh, that sounds scary, what's it mean? Well, Arnold would get to hack away at the budget.

Under Proposition 58 passed in 2004, the governor could declare a fiscal emergency if he determines revenue is "substantially below" what was anticipated in the budget and summon the Legislature into special session.

"If we don't do something now ... to deal with this crisis, we could find ourselves right back where we were five years ago," Dutton said following a Senate budget committee hearing in the Capitol on Tuesday.

The administration's Department of Finance cautioned that it was too soon to make such a call. (SacBee 11.28.07)

Well, wow, Arnold's showing some restraint? Or could it perhaps have to do with the fact that he has no real desire to see the budget reopened. Because that went so well the last time. We are going to have some fiscal problems coming up, but the Republicans refuse to look at raising revenues. They simply seek to slash spending. MediCal? Who needs it? Not my family.

How can you negotiate when you are negotiating with your self. The Republicans refuse to look at the entirety of the issue, but yet demand answers now? To call it shortsighted is putting it kindly.