by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Because apparently everybody loves an overpriced and overhyped idea, the Governator wants to do some more public-private partnerships for road maintenance and such:

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday proposed an expanded push for public-private partnerships and set a goal to add 20,000 new engineers to California's work force as part of his upcoming January budget plan.

The Schwarzenegger administration wants the state to expand the types of public projects that can be built with the financial might of private companies.Current law does not allow state government broad authority to use this type of contracting - known as a Performance Based Infrastructure - except in emergencies or through legislative approval. (SacBee 12.27.07)

The thing is, as both Robert and I have argued, they don't actually end up cheaper, or more efficient. Sure, they have success stories here and there, but overwhelmingly, what ends up happening is once the cameras disappear from the press conferences hyping these P3s, the bill gets higher as the owners of the corporation demand higher and higher profits. Oh, and they don't have the same labor standards as state agencies do.

So, yeah, let's line the pockets of investors with our state general fund. Sounds like a great plan.

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

There's only one way the state budget is going to pass anytime soon: Governor Schwarzenegger needs to muster all of his celebrity power in the next few days and camp out in the districts of Republican State Senators who refuse to support the bipartisan budget plan passed by the Assembly and supported by Senate Democrats and one bold Senate Republican.
 
No more tough-worded but empty statements. No more cordial meetings with schnapps and strudel. No more Mr. Nice Guy with the GOP Caucus.
 
It's time Schwarzenegger to use the bully pulpit. Time to target the one or two Republican votes needed to pass the budget. Time to tap the tools pulpit that only a Governor has, as well as the celebrity only this governor has.
 
Figure it this way: Senate Republicans already have gotten the Governor to agree to make $700 million in additional cuts on his own. And that won't be easy. Democrats will howl, and the poor are likely to take the hits the hardest. That won't do much for Arnold's popularity numbers as he tries to eek out legislative victories on health care, redistricting, and water.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Don Perata
President pro Tem
California State Senate

by Julia Rosen [courtesy of Working Californians blogs]

Shocking right, that the GOP would go after the most vulnerable Californians in their quest to reach their distorted ideas of "fiscal responsibility". They have used this impasse to target the programs they dislike the most. LAT:

After holding up the state budget nearly a month past deadline, Senate Republicans offered Tuesday to end the impasse if Democrats would move tens of thousands of poor families off welfare and make dozens of additional program cuts.

The Republicans will present their proposed state budget before the full Senate today. It would cut numerous programs Democrats hold dear, including the elimination of an institute for labor studies at the University of California. The budget plan includes nearly $1 billion in spending reductions beyond those in the bipartisan plan approved by the Assembly on Friday.

How's that for a lede? It's good to see the Times resting the blame squarely on the Republicans shoulders. They are the ones causing this impasse. It took a long time for them to actually come forward with their proposal for ending this thing. I can't say that I am surprised that the Republicans would also target the UC Berkeley labor center. They have wanted to eliminate it for years and are now inventing a budget crises so they can call for it to be closed.

by dday [courtesy of Calitics: Soapblox California - Front Page]

Arnold Schwarzenegger has finally managed to bring people with differing viewpoints together to agree in a post-partisan fashion.  See, nobody likes his revised budget plan, as Bob Salladay reports.  Conservatives think that it doesn't go far enough, spends too much, and relies on too many shaky budgeting gimmicks, like privatizing the lottery for a short-term cash infusion.  Democratic leaders have rightly called it mean-spirited and cruel for slashing aid to the poor and cutting public transit funding, among other things.  The state's pundit class has sneered at the cynical nature of saying that you could balance the budget responsibly to begin with.  And the Legislative Analyst's Office, who are supposed to play it right down the middle, criticize the revision as well.