Capital Notes -- From KQED's John MyersA glimpse of the policies, people, and politics of California state government, from John Myers of The California ReportBudget: Return To Sender- September 16, 2008 BUDGET DAY PLUS 77 -- So what should we call it Extra Innings The Throw Down in Sac Town Maybe various riffs on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's movie career Whatever it ends up being labeled, the budget saga took a decidedly confrontational turn today when the governor announced that he will veto the spending plan... and... just ...http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2008/09/16/budget-return-to-sender/ Budget Passed, Will Arnold Join- September 16, 2008 "I mercifully ask for an aye vote." -- Assemblymember Alberto Torrico (D-Fremont) ending debate on a budget related bill early this morning. "If they're not drinking hard liquor by now, they'll start." -- Senate President pro Tem Don Perata on next year's leaders, who he says will likely face another daunting budget gap. At 2:30 a.m. ...http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2008/09/16/budget-passed-will-arnold-join/ A Tax Increase, By Any Other Name- September 15, 2008 As the two houses of the Legislature prepare to convene to debate, and supposedly approve, a new state budget... it's hard to avoid thinking about the concept of taxes, specifically because just about everyone's tax payments would go up under this budget. Sort of. The details of the $104.3 billion general fund proposal are still ...http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2008/09/15/a-tax-increase-by-any-other-name/ The Mystery Deal- September 15, 2008 see below for updates BUDGET DAY PLUS 75 -- If one were writing the news story as of mid-Sunday afternoon on word of a budget deal, it would go as follows: "Legislative leaders said today they have a tentative deal on a new state budget, a deal that closes the remaining gap between Democrats and Republicans with ...http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2008/09/14/the-mystery-deal/ Raise Hell, Says Governor- September 11, 2008 BUDGET DAY PLUS 71 -- Governor Schwarzenegger is keeping his poker face firmly in place, promising to reject any spending plan that doesn't reform the process of budgeting itself, and rejecting calls to ease the pressure for a deal by moving forward on a temporary appropriation for those state services that aren't being paid for. That ...http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2008/09/10/raise-hell-says-governor/ Podcast: Schwarzenegger Speaks- September 11, 2008 BUDGET DAY PLUS 72 -- The longer he talked, the more angry he got. It's an odd time for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. The longer the budget impasse lasts, the harder it seems to cajole legislators to come up with some kind of spending plan he likes. But at the same time, he's the person ...http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2008/09/11/podcast-schwarzenegger-speaks/ Long Impasse = More Money- September 9, 2008 BUDGET DAY PLUS 70 -- Welcome to the world of perverse logic, California government style. It now appears that the long budget impasse is actually making it less likely, not more, that the state will run out of money. Confused Hold on to your seats. This morning, Controller John Chiang released fiscal data from the month of August, ...http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2008/09/09/long-impasse-more-money/ Replenishments, Recalls, and Republican Budgets, Oh My!- September 8, 2008 BUDGET DAY PLUS 69 -- It's turning into a day of interesting "medium grade" state budget news... medium grade because there's not actually a budget agreement but rather more tidbits from the ongoing budget sideshow. At an event this morning at the state Capitol, Republican legislators and folks who provide Medi-Cal services pleaded for passage of ...http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2008/09/08/replenishments-recalls-and-republican-budget... Podcast: GOP-alooza- September 5, 2008 ST. PAUL -- On this week's edition of the Capital Notes Podcast, a closer look at two California Republicans who were getting attention this week not for what they do now... but for what they might want to do in the future. Steve Poizner, the state insurance commissioner, and Meg Whitman, former eBay CEO and a ...http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2008/09/05/podcast-gop-alooza/ RNC Day 4: I Accept Your Nomination- September 4, 2008 ST. PAUL -- And now, the day they've been waiting for. Last night's big speech from the new VP candidate was big, but this is the night the Republican National Convention is all about: Sen. John McCain's acceptance of the nomination, and his prime-time speech to the nation. California's delegates had this morning to themselves for a ...http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2008/09/04/rnc-day-4-i-accept-your-nomination/ |