A California Republican

Dear Governor of California,

You promised me, a citizen of California, a budget solution by Christmas. I know that I didn’t vote to allow the recall and let you in, but once the recall happened, I did vote for you. I voted for you because you were an outsider who wasn’t going t otake special interest money and was going to “cut up the credit cards,” and solve the problems in CA.

You lied on all accounts.

There isn’t a budget solution. There isn’t even meaningful negotiation. The Democrats say they are close. But you are so wrapped up in promoting your next job - whatever that is going to be - that you have forgotten that you need to make nice with the Republicans on this one issue. If you had spent more time being a Republican - which is what you claim to be - and less time being a Democrat (which is what you are), then maybe these budgets and budget solutions wouldn’t be such a big fight. Maybe if you had spent some time cultivating personal relationships with the Republicans, you could get a few votes in return for campaining for them (which you don’t do).

Instead, you separate yourself from them and claim you ahve no control over the situation.

I know how tempting it is to believe that. But you did have control. Yes, the Legislature passes the budget, but you sign it. And you have a line-item veto power over the budget. You could’ve lined out enough stuff in the last budget (which passed late in September instead of by the end of June) that we wouldn’t be in this problem. You call the Legislature “fake” for providing fake budgets, but you don’t veto enough out to make it a real budget. So instead we are in this sticky situation.

Now you want to stick it to the state workers. Great. Let’s cause more money not to go into the economy. It’s not the rest of the state workers’ fault that the Correctional Officers got a good deal a while ago and are a thorn in your side now. I am all for cutting their pay. There is no reason a CO should start at $60k a year, and get overtime, when all they need is a High School degree. The CCPOA says their problem is recruitment, but it isn’t. The problem is training the COs fast enough and getting the background checks done. So stick it to them, not the rest of the workers.

As for the rest of your promises - you lied. You don’t think differently or creatively and you take special interest money.

Instead of being the focus for change, you became the same old stick in the mud.

But would you please solve the budget solution problem so that people can get back to work on roads? The mud around here really stinks.

Thanks.