Arnold for Prez?

http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/003/456ntsgf.asp

This guy ain't foolin' around:

BY MIDNIGHT West Coast time tonight, Arnold Schwarzenegger will have solved California's fiscal mess. Well, not solved it, exactly, but he is poised to deliver on the last of his big three recall promises. The Governator wants the legislature to sign off on a $15 billion deficit bond, which voters will have to approve next March. Schwarzenegger could get a version of that as soon as tonight, as well as a spending cap (he calls it a "never again spending limit") that gives him more control over the budget process in fiscal fights to come.

For those of you keeping score, here's where Schwarzenegger stands after three weeks on the job. On Day One, he signed an executive order overturning the tripling of the state's car tax. On Day 17, he signed a bill repealing the measure granting drivers' licenses to illegal aliens. By the close of business, on Day 19, he may have his budget fix and spending cap. Schwarzenegger promised to deliver those three items in his first 100 days as governor. He's about to pull it off in one-fifth the time.

 

there could be a constitutional amendment, right?

ARNOLD RULES.

 

I don't understand CA. From an outsiders perspective it looks like on the one hand you have the voters voting in congressman that kill the state financially, etc. And then you have a backlash with the need for a "savior" to rescue the economy and budget. I guess I just don't understand the mind of the CA voter - do they really forget the past that quickly?

 

Ahh...but remember the line in Demolition Man about the Schwartzeneger Presidential Library and the Constitutional Amendment that allowed him to become President -- a possibly prophetic bit of screenwriting

 

The woes of the California Economy cannot be explained by bringing the discussion down to the simplistic level of the classic political "Republican vs Democrats" debate.

The fact of the matter is that Proposition 13 capped property taxes to a maximum growth rate of 2% annually for the past 25 years, thus California does not have the luxury of obtaining a consistent stream of revenues from property taxes (which are essentially immune to huge swings in the State's economy).

Yes, there were some legislators that approved some HUGE spending increases on EDUCATION for example, and Gov. Davis did give the prison guards a $500 million dollar raise, but the fact of the matter is that the downdraft in the Economy combined with the ENRON energy market regulation did a lot to cause this budget shortfall, which I might add is a drop in the bucket when one looks at an economy that is at roughly $1.3 Trillion dollars in GDP.

Again, when the Economy tanks, there are a lot less corporate tax revenues as well as capital gains tax revenue from the exercise of stock options, etc. It is a huge drain on the State coffers and it all adds up big time!

 

waggie,

Thanks for clearing that up. So it's all old Howard Jarvis' fault, eh? I rather suspect the California politicians would have managed to overspend no matter how much they had coming in. But that hardly makes them unique, does it?

 

Well the state should plan for such an event. All they know is SPEND SPEND SPEND! I for one am sick of their fiscal irresponsibility! That is MY money they squander! But it will never change so they can go freak themselves for all i care. They are ALL assholes! :-/

 

Davis hired thousands of state workers, bungled the energy crisis, did not mention the deficit until a few days after his reelection, tripled the license fees killing off new car sales, screwed up the workers comp and sent a lot of businesses looking for the exits, taking their tax monies with them, gave free college tuition to illegals and doubled the fees to legals and all that at a time when the economy was tanking. That is just the nature of Democrats. Get over it.

 

But this topic has been beaten to death like a dead horse and the fact of the matter is that Gov. Davis was not able to REIGN IN THE LEGISLATURE nor were they prepared for the loss of tax revenue when the economy tanked.

The State's school system which had been the ENVY of most of the Nation had fallen to 47th in the Nation and needed funds, desperately. As a result, the State Lesiglature spent a shitload of money on education.

For an economy that is at $1.3 trillion GDP annually, I fail to see how a deficit of roughly 3% is the entire fault of a governor that happens to be a Democrat.

You forget that the State Legislature is made up of several parties, not just Democrats! And as for all of you whiners out there that think that California is overtaxed, take a look at the link below that shows the FACTS. Also take a moment to look at
where the spending actually occured in the second weblink, before you whiners go on and on about stuff that you have no idea what you're talking about:

"General Fund spending grew slower between 1989-90 and 2002-03 than in previous decades, after adjusting for inflation and population. Four areas of the budget account for the entirety of increased General Fund spending: K-12 education, health and human services, corrections, and tax relief."

http://www.cbp.org/

It never ceases to amaze me on how many non-Californians on this board have all of the State's budget problems figured out, relegating everything to a philosophical debate between Republicans and Democrats. And by the way, I voted for Mr. Schwarzenegger who last time I checked . . . was married to someone in the SHRIVER FAMILY.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2003/08/31/MN101774.DTL