Posted on 03/06/2006 5:16:06 PM PST by calcowgirl
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger must round up support within his own party if he and lawmakers are to have even a remote chance of meeting a looming deadline to place public works bonds on the June ballot, the leader of the state Assembly said Monday.
"The Republican leadership and the governor are not on the same page at this point, four days before a deadline...," said Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles. "Once they get on the same page Republicans, that is we can have negotiations that are more fruitful."
The Republican governor and legislative leaders have been trying to agree on a massive public works spending plan that Schwarzenegger announced in January. They are seeking a package of bond measures to help pay for highways, public transit systems, levee upgrades, new schools and a number of other infrastructure projects.
Secretary of State Bruce McPherson has set Friday as the cutoff date to put bond proposals on the June 6 ballot, but Nunez suggested the secretary would stretch that deadline as much as five or six days if Schwarzenegger requested.
"It's all a question of how fast we can print ballots, how fast the information can get out to the voters," Nunez said. "Obviously, you want to be careful that voters (living) overseas get an opportunity to vote, but I think there is some wiggle room there."
A spokeswoman for McPherson, Nghia Nguyen Demovic, rereleased a letter that the secretary of state sent to Schwarzenegger in January saying that any bond measures passed by the Legislature after Friday would go on the November ballot.
"Based on the information we have today, the drop-dead deadline is still March 10," Demovic said.
Nunez said Democratic lawmakers in the Assembly and Senate are "pretty much on the same page" as far as how to use the bond funds and are close to agreeing on how much bond borrowing lawmakers and the governor should ask voters to approve.
But he characterized Schwarzenegger and his Republican counterparts in the Legislature as being further apart.
Schwarzenegger's original plan envisioned $222.6 billion in spending over 10 years, part of which would be funded through $68 billion in voter-approved bonds in a series of elections through 2014. He hoped to put the first of those bond proposals on the June or November ballot this year.
Last week, the governor asked for another $3.5 billion in bonds for levee repairs, but aides said the overall amount of bonds was negotiable.
Democrats, however, have said they have other spending priorities, and want a bond proposal of about $30 billion that would be voted on in one election, Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, D-Oakland, said Monday.
Some Republicans are also concerned about whether the state can afford the level of borrowing proposed by Schwarzenegger. Republicans, at least those in the Assembly, want a pay-as-you-go approach that they say would reduce the need to sell bonds.
"The biggest problem we have (in reaching an agreement) is ... where Assembly Republicans are," Perata said. "They are at zero. They do not believe we should have bonds."
Assembly minority leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.
Schwarzenegger needs the votes of at least two Republicans in the Senate and six in the Assembly to muster the two-thirds majorities required to pass a bond bill.
A spokesman for Schwarzenegger, H.D. Palmer, said the governor would continue talking to lawmakers in both parties to try to reach a deal.
"There are also differences with what the governor has proposed and some of the proposals Democrats have put forward," Palmer said. "That's just an observation of where the process is."
The governor has said he wants the first of the bonds to go on the ballot in June, but he's given different signals about how important it is to reach an agreement in time to make that ballot.
On Sunday, as he wrapped up an appearance at his Arnold Classic fitness exposition in Ohio, he said he and lawmakers should work around the clock this week to get a deal by Friday.
"If you don't shoot for June, you don't stand a chance to possibly make it," said Palmer, spokesman for the state Department of Finance. "That's clearly been what the governor has said and other leaders have said. We'll see where this week's discussions take us."
Once again, Arnold and the Democrats collaborate on a "bipartisan" big spending plan, despite opposition of Republicans.
Another automatic NO
A segment highlighted how easy it was to catch monkeys. A tethered coconut, with a small hole in one end was filled with food. The monkey's investigated the lure, then thrust their outstretched hands into the hole to grab the food but couldn't remove their clenched fist because the whole in the coconut was too small. No matter what, the monkeys wouldn't release their grip on the food. They pulled at the tethered trap to no avail until the native trappers simply collected the whole monkey troop.
Schwarzenegger and his Democratic allies won't let go of the lure, no matter what. They'll fight past the deadline for their fair share of the loot regardless of the consequence. The money is free, as in beer, and they won't let go.
A troop of monkeys, trapped by their own greed.
Let's see....how would the partisans spin this....Oh yeah Conservative republicans are refusing to back the dems and the guv....no wait....right wing idealogues refuse to support a liberal agenda....no, that won't work....I got it: If conservatives don't support the Guv, then they are supporting Angelides, who wants to waste even more money!
Bingo
BTW. Where is the Minister of Information tonight?
There was a big New Majority meeting today. Coincidence?
By GEORGE! I THINK YOU'VE GOT TIT!!!
No matter. The gang will run with the footage of one drowned pasture in their bonding campaign. Local reports have it that a private production company was spotted this afternoon placing replica cow caresses in the pasture and filming them from all angles to vary the background.
I think the entire $226 billion will be used for Bay Bridge cost overruns.
I think she only comes out when there is "moderate" prey milling about.
I'd come up with a few more, but I don't want to drink that much. :0)
There you go again ruining a good argument with pesky facts!
Local reports have it that a private production company was spotted this afternoon placing replica cow caresses in the pasture and filming them from all angles to vary the background.
ROFL!
(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie. Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")
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