[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Frank D. Russo

I don’t know about you, but when word leaked out last week that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger had prepared an executive order reducing the amount the state would pay its workers to the federal minimum wage and paying them the rest they are owed under their employment contracts only after a state budget is passed, I was dumbfounded. It seemed like such an inept move from a political, public policy, and even a legal perspective.

The drumbeats are beating from Democratic President pro Tem Don Perata who said this had never been part of any discussions—which he has had on a daily basis with the Governor and described it as “an act of war”--to the grassroots who are on fire.

by WarmingLaw [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

(Cross-posted from Warming Law) 

Hoping to further ratchet up pressure on EPA Adminstrator Stephen Johnson regarding California's waiver denial, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) has now released additional transcriptions of internal agency documents her EPW committee staff was able to view. David Roberts has posted some initial thoughts on the highlighted contents-- including a plea from EPA staff to Johnson indicating that if he couldn't grant the waiver at least temporarily, "...you will face a pretty big personal decision about whether you are able to stay in the job under those circumstances."

Even more interesting to us, from a legal perspective, is the following excerpt from that same set of talking points, which is played out repeatedly in the 27 pages of documents transcribed and released by Boxer (added emphasis ours):