CA: Burton promises budget plan battle

Sac Bee ^ | 1/12/04 | AP

[NormsRevenge]

Senate President Pro Tem John Burton promised Monday to fight the governor's new budget plan, arguing it provides a big tax break to car owners paid for by service cuts to the poor and disabled.

The San Francisco Democrat, who holds status as perhaps the Capitol's most influential lawmaker given his tenure and his party's majority hold on the Legislature, drew a bright line between himself and Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on what might be considered the first day of budget negotiations.

[NormsRevenge]

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[Parley Baer]

Burton is one of the reasons the state of Kalifornia is in such a fiscal mess. Business as usual as far as he is concerned. Parley

[gc4nra]

"Burton criticized Schwarzenegger's spending plan because it relies too much on borrowing and one-time solutions and fails to address the state's core spending imbalance because no new taxes are being proposed."


No, Arnold's plan goes right to the heart of the problem, that is.....stop spending you stupid liberal!

[Frohickey]

Burton must not be up for reelection this coming term. That, or he's term limited anyway.

[Wayne07]

Talk about painting themselves into a corner, according to Burton, now anyone rich enough to own a car is part of the privileged class.

[Simmy2.5]

Correct. He is term limited out. However, even if he wasn't, he could still be as confrontational and idiotic, and the voters in his district (one of THE most liberal parts of California. San Francisco no less) would still vote for him and they would love him.

[Mr. Jeeves]

"We are for protecting the poor people from onslaughts of this nature -- when there are other ways to get dough" said Burton, D-San Francisco. "It is a very unworthy society that when they are looking for money go out and look for the poorest and most vulnerable"

It is an even more unworthy society that rewards the indolent and deceitful at the expense of the honest and the hardworking. It is just such a society that Burton and his ilk have wrought in California.

[goldstategop]

John Burton is going to wait to see if the measure placed on the ballot by the Governor and State Legislature passes. I'm happy to oblige him - by voting NO so we'll get real spending cuts. And we need a real spending cap in the state Constitution, not the phony pretend one that was placed on the March ballot for voters' consideration.

[marsh2]

It is my opinion that the issue here is not whether the poor, elderly and disabled are worthy of assistance when they are unable to meet basic needs. The issue is whether the use of force through public taxation and the delivery of aid through government is the appropriate way to address the need.

In the past, family duty and charity have played a large part in fullfilling the need. Traditionally, government only stepped in when the need created a risk to general public health and safety.

We know the current "nanny state" solution isn't working. We also have seen the breakdown of family fabric and community binding. Perhaps the move away from family and charitable solutions has undermined the strength of these traditional social institutions.

I think, as conservatives, it is time to articulate the issues from a different perspective than simply dismissing the needs of the vulnerable as ilegitimate.

[tubebender]

There is an additional $2 billion in deferred payments to schools.

Soooo, the truth comes out. There was no cut to school unions just another IOU added to all the rest. Sad...