In an about face from his earlier position,
the governor has decided to endorse Proposition 93. The LAT's Jordan Rau has the scoop.
"Schwarzenegger's backing is a boost for the Proposition 93 campaign and its chief proponent, Assembly Speaker
Fabian Nuñez (D-Los Angeles), who will be forced out of his seat after this year unless the term-limits law is changed. Nuñez endeared himself to Schwarzenegger by pushing a healthcare overhaul that the two leaders negotiated through the Assembly last month."
And, far be it from us to say "
We told you so," but
we just can't resist this opinion piece from the LA Times earlier this year explaining the relationship between the health care deal and Proposition 93, and how Schwarzenegger needs Nunez to push for the health care deal.
"To win passage, Schwarzenegger will need help from unions and Nuñez. But if Proposition 93 fails in February, the lame-duck Nuñez could be ousted as speaker, losing his bully pulpit to campaign for reform. That would leave Republican Schwarzenegger as the face of a campaign relying heavily on unions and other Democratic-friendly groups while confronting stiff opposition from many business groups."
Who wrote that brilliant piece, anyway?
The governor
wrote an op-ed explaining his decision. "When Proposition 93 was first introduced, I said I would not support it without a companion redistricting measure. Though some progress was made last year on that issue, we have not been able to agree on a redistricting measure in the Legislature; I'm supporting a proposal that was drafted by reform allies including AARP, Common Cause and the League of Women Voters. But Proposition 93 is good public policy irrespective of redistricting, and on its own, it will go a long way toward improving the quality of state government in California.
"The reform of term limits -- along with campaign financing and redistricting -- will create fundamental and positive change in Sacramento. The Legislature will be more representative of the people and less beholden to special interests. Its members will have more time to do their jobs well and, most important of all, problem-solving will be a higher priority than partisanship and ambition.
"Speaking of health care and term limits, Capitol Weekly reports the Senate Health Committee has
delayed the vote on the governor and speaker's health care proposal.
"Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Santa Monica, said she did not have the information she needed from the state legislative analyst to conduct the hearing, which was originally scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 16.
"'One of the very basic, key pieces of information that I need is the LAO’s report,' Kuehl said. 'She is analyzing the impact the bill will have on the budget, but also the initiative. I really want, as Don [Perata] requested, her real report on the impact on the budget and the adequacy of the proposed funding.'
"
Even once the hearing takes place, the bill could have problems. The Senate Health Committee has seven Democrats and four Republicans. If Kuehl, as expected, does not support the bill, that means that every other Democrat must vote for the bill to get it out of Senate Health.
"Part of the problem may be a proposal for a large, new tobacco tax. Tobacco companies have contributed to at least one key, swing voter on the Health Committee -- Sen. Gloria Negrete McLeod, D-Chino."
"Since 2004, Negrete McLeod has received more than $13,000 from Altria, the parent company for Phillip Morris.
"Another member of the committee, Sen.
Mark Ridley-Thomas, D-Los Angeles, is also caught between his supporters with different ideas on the bill. Ridley-Thomas is running for Los Angeles County Supervisor with the backing of organized labor. But labor, including some of the most powerful unions in Los Angeles, is deeply divided over AB 1X 1. The bill is supported by the Service Employees International Union, but opposed by the United Food and Commerical Workers, both of whom are strong Ridley-Thomas supporters."
Meanwhile, the Budget Nun
doesn't care much for the spending plan introduced last week by the governor. The LAT's Evan Halper writes: "The state's chief budget analyst warned Monday that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposals for closing a $14.5-billion budget gap fail to properly prioritize how the state should spend its money, use questionable accounting methods and would be unnecessarily disruptive to schools and community colleges.
"Legislative Analyst
Elizabeth G. Hill, whom Democratic and Republican legislators look to for unbiased advice on fiscal issues, is particularly critical of the governor's plan to spare almost no agency or program in calling for state spending to be cut immediately by 10%.
"'
It reflects little effort to prioritize and determine which state programs provide essential services or are most critical for California's future,' Hill wrote in a report released Monday morning. She also said the proposed spending plan cuts too deeply into state services, and she called on the Legislature to offset some of the governor's suggested reductions by raising fees and taxes or by scaling back existing tax breaks."
"Deep spending cuts proposed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last week were followed yesterday by more bad news –
a Wall Street firm placed the state's bond rating on 'negative watch' amid fear that a $14.5 billion budget shortfall could get bigger," reports Ed Mendel in the Union-Tribune.
"The governor's budget is based on data from November and early December that assumes tax revenue will grow 2 percent next year. But in recent weeks, some economists have begun to warn that the economy may slide into a recession, which would shrink tax revenue and widen the budget gap.
"Fitch Ratings placed California's bond rating of 'A+,' already one of the lowest ratings of any state, on 'negative watch' because of lawmakers' inability to close a chronic budget gap and revenue forecasts in the governor's budget that may be outdated."
Meanwhile, the LAT's Patrick McGreevy writes that
Senate Republicans have blocked another community college board appointee. "Board President
Katherine "Kay" Albiani is the third member of the community colleges board of governors in the last six months to lose her position over the board's controversial vote on illegal immigrants."
"The Democratic-majority Senate voted 23 to 13 along party lines for her confirmation Monday, but it needed 27 votes to be approved.
"Albiani, of Elk Grove, Calif., had been serving on the board provisionally under a rule that allows service for up to a year without legislative confirmation. The year ends today, so she will be forced to step down unless the Senate reconsiders, which lawmakers said was unlikely, especially since the full Senate is not meeting today.
"
Last year, Albiani joined the 17-member board of governors in unanimously voting to support state legislation that would have allowed illegal immigrants, under certain conditions, to qualify for student financial aid and community college fee waivers."The legislation was later vetoed by the governor."
"
Hillary Rodham Clinton holds a commanding lead over Barack Obama in California as the Democratic presidential contest heads toward the Feb. 5 primary, a new statewide poll has found.
John McCain's resurgent campaign claimed a slim lead among Republicans, with a trio of candidates competing to challenge him," writes Cathleen Decker in the Times.
"The L.A. Times/CNN/Politico poll, conducted by Opinion Research Corp., showed that the race remains extremely fluid, even as voters in the state are casting mail-in ballots. Six in 10 Republican primary voters said they might change candidates in the next three weeks. Among Democrats, four in 10 said they could still change their minds.
"As things stand now, Clinton leads Obama 47% to 31% among voters judged likely to cast ballots in California. A third candidate, former North Carolina Sen.
John Edwards, was a distant third with 10%."
And from our
Hide the Women and Interns Files,
Bill Clinton will be rallying students at UC Davis tonight at 9:00 p.m.. The event is free, open to the public and the doors to the Activities and Recreation Center open at 8:15.
"The Orange County Board of Supervisors Tuesday will start the search for a successor to Sheriff
Mike Carona, but
may first deny the appointment of Carona's hand-picked heir apparent," report Peggy Lowe and Larry Welborn in the Register.
"Carona, who faces a June federal trial on public corruption charges, stepped down Monday so he can accept free services from two top white-collar criminal attorneys and explore the creation of a fund to help pay for a legal defense that could cost $2 million. The state's gift ban for elected officials forced him into the decision, he said, and he retired so he can work on his case full time.
"Now my legal team can come together and focus their full energy on making sure we put all the evidence forward and that I am found not guilty," Carona said.
"
Carona also rejected the idea of a plea bargain and said he will be vindicated at trial because, 'I know the truth about my life.'"Carona named Assistant Sheriff
Jack Anderson, who is prominent in local GOP circles, as the interim sheriff because Undersheriff
Jo Ann Galisky passed on the job, citing family obligations. In the shuffle, Carona also fired Assistant Sheriff
Dan Martini, an old-school officer who came up through the ranks during the Sheriff Brad Gates era. Carona wouldn't elaborate on the termination."
And, it looks like we could have something new to celebrate every October 12 --
syphilis!"New genetic evidence supports the theory that
Christopher Columbus brought syphilis to Europe from the New World, U.S. researchers said on Monday, reviving a centuries-old debate about the origins of the disease.
They said a genetic analysis of the syphilis family tree reveals that its closest relative was a South American cousin that causes yaws, an infection caused by a sub-species of the same bacteria."
Thanks a lot, Chris.
