Associated Press
With partisan disputes having stalled negotiations over the already late state budget, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger again went directly to voters Friday, reusing a tactic that has helped break previous legislative deadlocks.
Posted on 07/16/2004 6:44:48 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
LONG BEACH – With partisan disputes having stalled negotiations over the already late state budget, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger again went directly to voters Friday, reusing a tactic that has helped break previous legislative deadlocks.
Calling Democrats "off track again in their partisan world," Schwarzenegger told diners at a California Pizza Kitchen in Long Beach that he would whip into a shape a Legislature that is "outdated and out of touch."
Schwarzenegger has taken this path before, appearing before crowds dazzled by his movie star past and larger-than-life persona as governor to prod reluctant legislators into giving him what he wants or face the consequences of him actively campaigning to oust those who oppose him. That worked as he pushed for workers' compensation reform and a $15 billion bond deal earlier this year.
Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, said he wasn't troubled by the governor's remarks and was focused on picking up negotiations on Monday.
"There are a lot of different things being said by different people," Nunez said. "I think at some point those words get washed away but what's concrete are those agreements that are on the table."
Friday's stop came in the district of one of this year's few closely contested legislative districts, where Democratic Sen. Betty Karnette faces Republican Steve Kuykendall, a former legislator and congressman, for an open Assembly seat. On Saturday, Schwarzenegger is slated to meet voters at a mall in Ontario, home of Democratic Assemblywoman Gloria Negrete McLeod, and he's also set for a Sunday appearance in Stockton, the district of Democratic Assemblywoman Barbara Matthews.
Shaking hands and slapping high-fives with a group of West Covina high school students, Schwarzenegger again evoked one of his old movie roles as he said "will protect them from special interests.
"Don't worry about anything," he said. "We're in the middle of a budget battle, but we're going to win that. ... You're going to have the Terminator to protect you."
Meanwhile back at the Capitol, a conference committee representing both houses of the Legislature approved a Democratic budget bill along party lines.
Nunez said the conference bill represents "95 percent" of what has been agreed to between the Legislature's Democratic majority and the governor. But, Republicans on the committee called the move a "political skit" because the governor and GOP lawmakers have no formal agreement on any part of the budget.
The Democratic plan will move to either the Senate or Assembly floor next week where it is not expected to get the two-thirds vote required for passage.
Both the governor and Democratic leaders agree they're stuck on three major points – local government financing and the repeal of two labor laws. One law prohibits schools from contracting services with private companies, while the other gives workers authority to sue their employers to enforce labor laws.
Schwarzenegger said he supported Republican demands to repeal the labor laws and protect city and county treasuries from the Legislature.
Despite the governor's appearance in Long Beach, most California Pizza Kitchen diners seemed nonplussed by his appeals.
Martha Green-Ponce, a Long Beach resident and injured worker, said she wanted to talk to the governor about workers' compensation, but "he just brushed us off.
"He wanted to tout his budget and didn't really listen to us," Green-Ponce said. "He just sang the company song."
Most diners, Republicans and Democrats alike, said the surprise visit of the governor would not sway their vote in November. Several said they had not been paying much attention to the budget woes.
"He has a strong presence, and it was great to see him here," said Melissa Keyes, 42 of Long Beach. "But would it affect how I vote? Nah, I always vote my conscience."
On the Net:
Governor's home page: www.governor.ca.gov/state/govsite/gov–homepage
www.sen.ca.gov/
California Senate
www.assembly.ca.gov/acs/defaulttext.asp
California Assembly
What's the body count?
With partisan disputes having stalled negotiations over the already late state budget, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger again went directly to voters Friday, reusing a tactic that has helped break previous legislative deadlocks.
Dogs and Cats 1
Arnold 0
DEmRats -357
Correction :-\
Dogs and Cats 1
Arnold 1
DEmRats 0
No, Arnold -1. He already ran up a big debt with his bond issue. At the very least, he should have extracted a promise from the Democrats to cut spending. Sucker!
But he got the legislators to retract the Illegals Driver License law and he has such a cute bark. ;-)
I like that one!
I know where the restaurant is. Oh dangwabbit I missed it. There's always next time. LOL!
Keep your eye on the ball.
IT'S THE LARGEST BUDGET IN THE STATE'S HISTORY damn it, at a time when the state needs to badly reduce it's spending.
IT'S NOT A SUSTAINABLE SPENDING PROPOSAL damn it, at a time when the state needs to badly reform it budgeting process.
IT CREATES AN INCREASING STRUCTURAL IMBALANCE damn it, at a time when the state needs to balance its spending against its revenues while it teeters on the brink of insolvency.
You forgot the cross.
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