As California goes ….
California voters have managed to dodge reality for a long, long time. They insist on a lot of state services; they insist on artificially low taxes. And they have used the state’s overly lax voter-referendum system to get both.
Now it’s about to end. The state faces a $21 billion deficit, it has basically maxed out on its debt load and yesterday voters rejected a hodgepodge of ballot questions that would have allowed the charade to continue a little bit longer.
The Terminator says he has received his orders and is ready to act:
“Saying California voters delivered a message to “go all out” in cutting government spending, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday promised to whack $21.3 billion out of the state’s budget, making severe reductions in education, health care and law enforcement.
“We tried to not make those kind of cuts, but now we have to,” the Republican governor told reporters in Washington. “There’s no other choice. I think the message was clear from the people: Go all out and make those cuts and live within your means.”
Schwarzenegger thanked Californians for voting in Tuesday’s special election. They rejected ballot measures endorsed by the governor that would have reduced the cuts to $15 billion. And the governor said the message was “very loud and clear.”
“And you know something? I appreciate that,” Schwarzenegger said. “When you hear that from the people, then it gives us a chance to go and adjust and say, ‘OK, we went the wrong direction. Now let’s go in the right direction. Let’s go do what the people want.’”
That’s exactly right. California officials should produce and pass the budget that the voters are willing to support with their taxes. If the subsequent pain is too great, maybe they’ll support higher taxes to pay for the things they want. On the other hand, if they find the pain is tolerable, that’s fine too.
As another story quoted Arnold:
“When you ask them about the cuts, ‘Do you mind of we have to make an additional $6 billion in cuts?’ and — it’s great — they say, ‘No, no, no, no, no, not in education.’ And we say, ‘How about in health care?’ and they say, “No, I wouldn’t go after the vulnerable citizens,’ then we say, ‘Well, then we have to make some cuts in law enforcement,’ and they say, ‘Law enforcement, I want to keep that in place.’ People don’t know themselves where they want to cut, they just say, ‘Make the cuts’ and ‘You figure it out.’”
And yes, there may very well be a similar day of reckoning coming at the federal level, with its arrival accelerated by the Great Recession. Federal revenue has fallen, and federal spending has surged in a necessary but temporary effort to keep the economy on its feet.
Further on down the road, Washington will also have some tough decisions to make about bringing revenue and spending at least somewhat into balance. Those decisions may be informed by what happens in California in the next few years.
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Guides
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2011 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
243 comments Add your comment
TW
May 20th, 2009
2:35 pm
Ain’t republican world great?
Wyld Byll Hyltnyr
May 20th, 2009
2:40 pm
As surely as one can look at a watermelon’s first sprout and know the manner in which nature’s course will run by summer, so can one view California today and know with complete certitude that our great Nation will look far worse once Chocolate Blunder’s California-esque spending and wealth transfer polices play out.
G-d save us, one and all.
getalife
May 20th, 2009
2:41 pm
Ahnold should legalize and tax da weed.
williebkind
May 20th, 2009
2:50 pm
Wow did you read that! He is cutting health and other state services! I guess illegal aliens are the exception. If they need an expensive heart surgery they will get it. Oh yeah, free child delivery too! Got to make those democratic voters!
BDAtlanta
May 20th, 2009
2:51 pm
tax dat weed, yeah
I Report :-)/ You Whine :-(
May 20th, 2009
2:52 pm
Typical failed democrat third world hovel.
Lucky for us, the libs in Congress are passing a huge cap and tax bill for absolutely no eason but to raise the cost of energy, a cost that will hit the poor the hardest.
Mindless vanity, coming home to roost.
eewwwwww
md
May 20th, 2009
2:52 pm
Republican world?
Cali has been a blue state for years, with many blue cities and mostly dem legislature. How Arney ever got elected is beyond me – must of been Maria and the Kennedys.
And no Jay, much of the spending in the porkulus bill was not detrimental to the economy. It was detrimental to politicians on both sides of the aisle that want to be re-elected.
There were too many “wants”, when it should have had nothing in it but “needs”.
It will bite us in the tukus, and taxes will go up. There is no other way.
Thanks Barry.
Hillbilly Deluxe
May 20th, 2009
2:55 pm
People don’t know themselves where they want to cut, they just say, ‘Make the cuts’ and ‘You figure it out.’
Isn’t that why they elected Arnold; to figure it out?
BDAtlanta
May 20th, 2009
2:59 pm
The American Idiots = wanting all the best services but not willing to pay for it with taxation.
Let’s see how loud they yelp when:
- it takes the police another 10 minutes to get to their houses
- there aren’t enough wildfire fighters to protect the houses on their block
- their libraries are only open 3 days a week for 4 hours a day
- the lines at the DMV are a mile long
- pot holes are everywhere
When you pay your taxes and have good services as a result, life is good. Everything works better and everyone is happier.
Copyleft
May 20th, 2009
3:03 pm
You’ve gotta love voters…
“Give us this! Give us that! More service, more benefits!”
“And NO, we don’t want to pay for them, thank you very much. What kind of sick freak are you, asking permission to RAISE TAXES??? That’s irresponsible! It’s theft at gunpoint. Let’s have a tea party!”
Dave R
May 20th, 2009
3:05 pm
California is simply learning the adage “You reap what you sow”. Years of liberal spending on services, kowtowing to the unions, passing mandates that simply can’t be funded properly or administered efficiently are now being seen for what they are. Nanny-state governance doesn’t work.
And here’s the kicker: if they DON’T pass spending cuts, the libs who have wanted all this stuff for free or low cost will simply leave and go to states where they won’t be taxed as much – then go right on demanding what killed California in the first place.
Watch all these liberals states – CA, NY, MA, NJ implode over the next few years as these Socialist policies come home to roost. And it doesn’t matter if they receive more or less Federal dollars than other states, or compared to what they contribute.
This is about SPENDING, not revenue. It is about RESPONSIBILITY (or lack thereof), and nothing else.
md
May 20th, 2009
3:05 pm
“Isn’t that why they elected Arnold; to figure it out?”
I’d say he did figure it out. He gave the voters a choice – raise taxes or cut spending, they chose to cut spending.
And its easy to vote for job eliminations when your not employed by the gov’t, for you know its not your job.
I was once the bottom guy on the totem pole at work and was laid off 4 times. Funny, I voted for the contracts and everybody above me voted against. Funny how that works when you are the one getting the axe.
Redneck Convert
May 20th, 2009
3:06 pm
Well, California is just a example of what happens when you let guvmint run wild. For example, we don’t need schools. They just turn out a bunch of libruls anyway and about 90% of the kids that go are lunkheads that would be better off getting a job and then yelling to the guvmint about how much taxes is being took out of their paycheck. When we cut down to four or five people to run the guvmint they can cut out hospitles for the crazies and all these colledges and the free doctoring all the illegals get.
One guy could be in charge of roads. Another one could pass out drivers liscences. One could be in charge of the fishing and hunting programs. Those are the only things guvmint is useful for. The other two people could just write the checks to pay for the roads and the drivers liscences and the fishing and hunting programs. If CA went that route I might could move there. When I mentioned that at Billy Bob’s the other night somebody said the average IQ of both CA and GA would go up.
Have a good night everybody.
Paul
May 20th, 2009
3:09 pm
Cuts that impact the public. Of course.
Cuts that impact the bureaucracy. Of course not.
Rand Corporation study done at a time home prices were rising, as were tax receipts:
“Where did the money go?” P6454
A brief overview of a study in which expenditures in the City of Los Angeles were examined for the period from fiscal year 1973 through fiscal year 1978. The objective of the analysis was to clarify the implications of the fiscal limitation movement by identifying the components of expenditure growth that will have to be controlled in the future. Among the findings were: (1) very little of the growth of expenditures is explained by increased programs and activities (in fact, city-funded direct services to the public appear to have been declining); (2) over 75 percent of the increase in expenditures was due to inflation; and (3) almost half of the remaining increase is attributable to a shift in the mix of employees (a decrease in the number of lower-paid employees who provide direct services to the public, and an increase in the number of middle- or higher-paid administrative and support personnel).
‘3′ is a key. If that’s the study I’m thinking of, it went into detail about schools – property tax increases and receipts far outpaced student growth. Where did the money go? Better facilities? Nope. More special ed, science labs, newer textbooks? Nope.
Then where? Mostly to an expanded bureaucracy.
But now they’ll cut class size, cut programs and say to the public “see what happens? Care to vote again?”
But never, ever cut the bureaucracy or programs that are more of the bureaucracy’s “nice things we do for ourselves” kind.
Later -
I Report :-)/ You Whine :-(
May 20th, 2009
3:10 pm
BrainDeadAtlanta- Notice how you didn’t list any cuts to Acorn and other democrat vote drive activities.
Or any junk science legislation.
Nor do any elected officials, We The People suffer before the democrat party does, heaven forbid.
Between the two, cutting that garbage out of our bill would give us real tax cuts, not the lying ones that Obozo kampaigned on.
Citizen of the World
May 20th, 2009
3:16 pm
Those low California taxes you mentioned — shouldn’t they (according to the Republican philosophy) have resulted in a robust economy that would create jobs and a living wage for all citizens and thus negate the need for an expensive social safety net? Funny how it didn’t work out that way.
Gandalf, the White! (!)
May 20th, 2009
3:16 pm
sell California to the Jews! They can move thier homeland over here and rebuild the temple right in downtown Hollywood!
Taxpayer
May 20th, 2009
3:17 pm
Based on some of these GOPer’s comments, the money spent on education was a waste anyway. May as well eliminate it and just draft all of them instead. Rumsfeld can read them a quote from the Bible each morning as he sends them off to kill.
md
May 20th, 2009
3:18 pm
Might get interesting in Cali in 2012. When the sheeple get ticked at election time, anyone with an (I) next to their name has a tendency to go bye bye. Party doesn’t always matter, but “that scoundrel” does.
Dave R
May 20th, 2009
3:21 pm
Citizen, it’s not about REVENUES, it’s about SPENDING. Wake up!
md
May 20th, 2009
3:22 pm
Some on here haven’t been paying attention. The repubs used to cut taxes along with spending, but along came George.
Its not the taxes, its the spending. They need to be balanced, and to date, neither party has been using that formula.
Taxpayer
May 20th, 2009
3:29 pm
Even if the fed were to quit spending anything, we would need revenue to pay of the debt plus interest. Ten trillion dollars worth from the GOP.
BDAtlanta
May 20th, 2009
3:30 pm
Yeah Copy, more tea parties!
Hey, who cleaned up the parks after the tea partiers left? Government workers who were paid with tax dollars?
Nice.
AmVet
May 20th, 2009
3:34 pm
I have visited the Golden State several times over the past handful of years and found it to be fantastic. And the people, in many cases, friendly and interesting. From San Diego to LA to Frisco.
But it is nonetheless a paradise lost.
That the rabid right hates everything about and everybody in the place, is a sure sign that it is fine…
Dave R
May 20th, 2009
3:36 pm
Thanks for proving the point that irresponsible SPENDING is the problem we have, Taxpayer. Now if only we could find a political party that could fix that. It a
md
May 20th, 2009
3:37 pm
Spin baby spin. 10 trillion courtesy of both parties. Love it when folks can’t see from behind the party curtain.
jewcowboy
May 20th, 2009
3:39 pm
I Report
/ You Whine 
,
By the way, I see space shuttle mission to fix the Hubble was a success. I’m certainly glad NASA did not follow your timorous advice.
“Be bold. When you embark for strange places, don’t leave any of yourself safely on shore. Have the nerve to go into unexplored territory.” ~ Alan Alda
RW-(the original)
May 20th, 2009
3:41 pm
It’s mind boggling, but I think all 50 states could run 21 billion dollar deficits, you could add them all together and you still wouldn’t approach Obama’s deficit for us at the federal level.
This madness has got to stop or we are finished as a country. Thankfully if this message is coming out loud and clear from California it’ll spread rapidly east. And anybody that thinks you couldn’t make massive cuts in state, and federal bureaucracies without affecting the services they provide has never spent time observing them from the inside.
Bosch
May 20th, 2009
3:41 pm
UEFA Cup Final – Halftime Report:
Werder Bremen 1 (Yeah!!!!)
Shakhtar Donetsk 1 (Boooo!!!!)
jewcowboy
May 20th, 2009
3:42 pm
I Report
/ You Whine 
“a cost that will hit the poor the hardest.”
Give the sanctimonious oration a break. The only time I’ve seen you worried about the poor on this blog is when you are making fun of them.
Taxpayer
May 20th, 2009
3:43 pm
The GOP economy mantra is Borrow and Spend, not spin baby spin. Spin baby Spin is what the GOPers do instead of telling the truth.
Bosch
May 20th, 2009
3:43 pm
md,
But along came George? What about the Gipper – he was a tax cut and spending freak!
Dave R
May 20th, 2009
3:44 pm
Ambling Veterinarian, $21 BILLION in debt is no paradise. Neither is Nancy Pelosi. Nor is a Democrat majority in both state houses. Otherwise, the state is fine, just fine.
That paradise is lost is merely confirmation that liberal policies don’t work.
Bosch
May 20th, 2009
3:45 pm
George H.W. Bush had enough sense to raise taxes – and it cost him his second term. He got into office and realized you can’t spend (which is always gonna be the case) and his “read my lips….no new taxes” thing was total BS. He had the balls to do it and it cost him.
md
May 20th, 2009
3:45 pm
Bosch,
1-1, wow, a high scoring game.
Dave R
May 20th, 2009
3:48 pm
Remember who runs the state legislature, Taxpayer – Democrats.
Remember who runs both houses of Congress about 70% of the time, Taxpayer – Democrats.
Remember who controlled both houses of Congress when it wasn’t Democrats, Taxpayer – the Neo-cons you so love to hate.
Both parties deserve a pox on their houses, but only one party has a chance of fixing this mess, and it ain’t the Democrats.
jewcowboy
May 20th, 2009
3:48 pm
Dave R,
“Watch all these liberals states – CA, NY, MA, NJ implode over the next few years as these Socialist policies come home to roost.”
And how do you account for Florida’s $3.4B, Alabama’s $1.1B, GA’s $2.2B, Ohio’s $1.2B and AZ’s $1.6B shortfalls?
Bosch
May 20th, 2009
3:48 pm
Dave R.,
And what about those great GOP policies of tax cuts and spend? Yeah, they don’t work so swell either. I know you claim not to be a GOPer, but funny how you should ONLY criticize liberal policies and NEVER criticize the other.
Bosch
May 20th, 2009
3:49 pm
md,
Yeah! Awesome isn’t it? But right now it’s tied, if this thing goes into PKs I’m gonna have a stroke.
jewcowboy
May 20th, 2009
3:49 pm
Bosch,
“He had the balls to do it and it cost him.”
That’s what differentiated him with his son.
Paul
May 20th, 2009
3:50 pm
citizen of the world 3:16
[[Those low California taxes you mentioned — shouldn’t they (according to the Republican philosophy)...Funny how it didn’t work out that way.]]
Except the California Legislature – the Senate and the Assembly – have been heavily Democratic for decades. And the governors – mostly, also.
AmVet
[[But it is nonetheless a paradise lost.]]
Yup – I grew up in southern Cal. Have to agree. Heading out there tomorrow, then back in June. It’ll be interesting to hear what the locals have to say.
Bosch
May 20th, 2009
3:52 pm
md,
Seriously, Americans only care about the score – they don’t appreciate the actual game. I could watch soccer and have no one score – it’s all about the game. It’s awesome to watch, and fun to play. A low score means you’re watching a very good game.
Bosch
May 20th, 2009
3:53 pm
jewcowboy,
Yeap!
Later folks – the game is back on.
md
May 20th, 2009
3:55 pm
Bosch,
Hate to burst your bubble, but that was a joke. As I said yesterday, if they start playing soccer like hockey and get to knock the crap out of each other to offset the non-existent scoring, maybe I’ll watch it. But its a little too boring for me. Playing it – ok, watching it-not so much.
AmVet
May 20th, 2009
3:59 pm
jewcowboy, a HUGE success!
Our climatological expert is just mad that they are co-conspirators in the “junk science of global warming”.
Along with virtually every other legitimate, respected, proven scientific organization on the planet.
You’d think those rocket scientists would have by now corroborated that the real reasons are sunspots, wobbles in the earth’s orbit and HeadRush’s favorite, volcanoes…
Taxpayer
May 20th, 2009
4:01 pm
The national debt relative to GDP. Of course, it was the GOP presidents that signed off on the borrow and spend policies. It was the GOP presidents that borrowed our social security money so they could give handouts to the wealthy. Is everyone enjoying their trickle. It’s called yellow rain. Next time you feel that warm yellow stuff, grab a Republican and give him a hug — a bear hug. Don’t let go ’til he feels your pain. The pain that only the little guy that REALLY pays all the taxes can feel — not those that leech off the taxpayers.
Paul
May 20th, 2009
4:06 pm
Taxpayer
So, what are the Democratic presidents, Congress, governors and state legislatures doing to fix the years of Republican mismanagement?
jewcowboy
May 20th, 2009
4:07 pm
AmVet,
Maybe we just need more funding for intelligent design, instead of that junk science like determining the rate of expansion of the universe or other breakthroughs in astrophysics.
jewcowboy
May 20th, 2009
4:09 pm
Paul,
“So, what are the Democratic presidents, Congress, governors and state legislatures doing to fix the years of Republican mismanagement?”
How about a hot air tax for the talking heads on the news shows and a stupidity tax for those who can’t figure out which direction “push” means on a glass door?
Dave R
May 20th, 2009
4:09 pm
Bosch, obviously you missed the “Both parties deserve a pox on their houses” comment in your zeal to defend the indefensible.
jewcowboy, those states have to fix their problems as well, but the LARGEST deficits are in the states I mentioned, all governed by Democrats.
Ambling Veterinarian, please explain how global warming is man-made when the average temperature of the planet is LOWER in the past two years. Then we can talk about so-called “climate change” and “global warming”. Junk science pretty much sums it up. Pretty much describes your posts as well.