I follow the California budget process because it has a massive effect on my livelihood. It's also somewhat entertaining, in the sense an excruciatingly bad movie is entertaining.
For those who do not follow the budget, a recap: the May revise had improved revenues in it, so the state Republicans announced that there were to be no new or extended taxes and no cuts, either. The Governor also lives in Fantasyland, so he continued to attempt to come up with some kind of pension-destroying/tax extension plan with four "moderate" Republicans while threatening an all-cuts budget otherwise.
The state Democrats, having already voted in ten billion dollars of cuts, gimmicked out the rest and presented their budget. The Governor vetoed it, because he is a straight-talking forthright ex-seminarian ready to give the state - or at least its poorest residents - their medicine to score a political point.
Oh, wait: he vetoed it because we all must be honest and adult. Except those of us who are largely inoculated from an all-cuts budget, like our Governor.
The Controller announced that the budget wasn't balanced, anyway, so now our state representatives are not being paid. This is a case of the ballot initiative process striking again; it's also brought you anti-reality measures like Prop. 13, state-mandated racism like 187 and 209, PG&E funded campaigns, and a multi-million special election (courtesy our last Governor). Not to mention Proposition 8.
Given that the legislature is not being paid, I think we can all assume a budget pretty soon here. Today's Foreclosure Vulture Political Social Diarists column in the Chronicle reports the Rethuglicans have not been invited to the latest budget talks, Jerry Brown still wants 50:1 classrooms until Californians agree to pay taxes (not that, you know, they don't: Prop. 13 means we can't even vote on it right now), and the Democrats are eating Ramen and are therefore grumpy and not accomodating.
A position I hope they hold.
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