Very astute of you. There's a scheming, conniving, self-promoting, philandering, egomaniac beneath that $100 haircut.
Posted on 02/06/2006 9:15:40 AM PST by NormsRevenge
SACRAMENTO -- When it comes to building new roads, schools, sewers and dams, Republicans in the state Assembly are marching to a different drummer than Democratic lawmakers and even GOP Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Led by Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield, Assembly Republicans have called for setting aside a small percentage of the state budget each year for a pay-as-you-go construction program.
By contrast, Schwarzenegger and Democratic legislative leaders are proposing a series of bond issues to borrow the billions needed for a massive public works program.
The highlight of Schwarzenegger's state of the state speech last month was a call for $68 billion in infrastructure bonds over the next 10 years.
Democratic leaders are also developing plans for infrastructure bonds, although they haven't settled on a price tag yet.
The Democrats have focused primarily on bonds for housing and open space, while the governor's plan emphasizes highways, schools, sewers and other public works.
Both the governor and the Democrats say they hope to negotiate a compromise that both sides can agree on, despite widespread skepticism about the election-year political atmosphere.
The pay-as-you-go plan unveiled recently by Assembly Republicans is a third alternative that they hope will be considered in the negotiations, McCarthy said.
"I believe this is an option that should be on the table," McCarthy said.
It faces an uncertain future.
Democrats gave the GOP plan a cold shoulder.
"While we appreciate that the Assembly Republicans finally are joining the debate, this proposal is like most things that sound too good to be true," said Steven Maviglio, spokesman for Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez. "It adds billions to the state's operating deficit, making a bad situation worse. And it would take years before there would be enough resources to fund critical projects in the Central Valley and across the state."
However, Democrats will need at least a few Republican votes to pass any major infrastructure financing plan. That gives McCarthy and his GOP colleagues hope that they can get a least part of their plan adopted.
"If every single Republican has signed off on this plan," McCarthy said, "I think they (Democrats) should take this very seriously."
While the pay-as-you-go plan could put the Assembly Republicans at odds with the GOP governor's bond plan, an administration spokesman said the governor does not see it that way.
"We don't view it as in conflict with the governor's plan, but as complementary to it," said H. D. Palmerof the Department of Finance. "The governor has encouraged both Democrats and Republicans to bring all their ideas to the table."
McCarthy's proposal got only lukewarm support from Sen. Roy Ashburnof Bakersfield, a fellow Republican and a local political rival.
Ashburn said pay-as-you-go is not a new idea and neither it nor bond financing for public works will result in enough construction without rollbacks in environmental restrictions and high wage requirements on public works.
The Assembly GOP plan calls for setting aside setting aside about 1 percent of the state budget each year, enough to generate almost $36 billion over the next 10 years.
That is a little over half of the bond financing proposed by the governor and McCarthy said it can be done without harm to funding for education, health care, welfare and other programs.
Best of all, he said, unlike bonds, it would not leave Californians saddled with massive debt to pay off over the next 30 years.
"You'll build more, you'll build now, and you'll pay less," McCarthy said.
However, he also said Republicans remain open to doing some public works with bond issues, if necessary, in addition to the pay-as-you-go plan.
"We might still do some bonds," he said.
What a concept. What don't Gov S and the dems understand about "live within your means"?????
I hope the bond issues go down in well deserved flames.
DING!DING!DING!
Here's the essence of the problem that undermines both the Smorgasborginator's and the Legislaughternator's phony delusions of grandeur on infructstructure financing and inprovements in CA!!! (all mis-spelling is deliberate and not freudian!)
State Senator Ashburn is RIGHT!!! (He's who ought to be CA's Governor in 2007!!!)
Well, well, well... That's just like one of them Schwartzenegger "ramp-up and flinch" jobs... yessiree!!! Just like it!!! You bettcha, by golly!!!
Very astute of you. There's a scheming, conniving, self-promoting, philandering, egomaniac beneath that $100 haircut.
Well don't forget the overpriced "prevailing wage" union labor!!!
Yep... that should go too. As well as the new minimum wage hike,
which probably results in those "prevailing wages" increasing as well.
Who can. It's the multi billion dollar prize in the gang's tribute package.
Conservatively, no pun intended, more than $1B dollars of the $220B package will end up in union, campaign coffers. That's enough to fend off 5 "special elections" that conservatives might try to mount after the gang destroys the CRP.
Do you know State Senator Roy Ashburn?
I read a wonderful reply on a thread just this past week about how each increase in the minimum wage generates a direct correlation to wage increases for union workers and automatically buys votes for Democrat politicians that legislate them into existance!!!
Yes
Yep. A nice payoff for the unions... and their administration.
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