State Sen. Abel Maldonado, who is playing the lead role in this week’s chapter of the California budget fiasco, laid out a four-item “wish list” Monday, as the governor and Democratic leaders courted his vote.
Maldonado, a moderate Republican whose district stretches from his hometown of Santa Maria, near Santa Barabara, all the way into the Santa Clara Valley, would be a key 27th vote for the budget.
As reported late Monday by the Sacramento Bee, at least three of the four items on Maldonado’s wish list involve reforms that deal with the root causes of the budget stalemate:
• An open primary system in which the top two vote-getters run in the general election, regadless of party affiliation—a system that would favor moderates, such as Maldonado, who acknowledges that he plans to run for statewide office.
• A bill to dock lawmakers’ pay when the state misses its deadline for passing a budget.
• A ban on legislative pay raises during years when the state runs a budget deficit.
The fourth item on his list was vague: that the Senate remove pork from the current package.
According to the Bee’s veteran Capitol reporter, Kevin Yamamua, “The four demands have little chance of receiving two-thirds support in the Legislature.”
What does this story have to do with SAN JOSE politics and culture?
I would ask those of you who are his constituents in this county (Silver Creek Valley, Almaden Valley, Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, Saratoga, Morgan Hill, San Martin, Gilroy) to contact his office and tell him to quit the vanity tour and do what’s best for the state by voting for the budget now.
While you’re at it, tell him to stop using his website as a campaign platform for his future runs for statewide office.
http://cssrc.us/web/15/contact_us.aspx
While I’d like to see this guy ousted in the next election for playing games, he isn’t the only one who has used this budget crisis to blackmail legislators and the governor. This whole thing is just sickening.
It seems that there isn’t anything that could receive two-thirds support in the Legislature. It’s getting to be embarrassing.
Is there some legal basis by which California could ask Congress to revoke its statehood and send in a territorial governor?
I suppose it would require a two-thirds vote in the Legislature…
Napper – the story is relevant for this forum because Abel’s district includes a portion of San Jose and the budget deal affects our local governments.
Regarding Abel’s conditions:
1) While this is a root problem and I support this idea, I don’t think it’s appropriate to address large structural issues like this as part of a larger budget package. This should be debated independently or enacted through referendum.
2&3) I have no problem with these types of proposals being included in the budget deal
4) Adding projects in certain districts was necessary to secure the necessary Republican votes in the Assembly. Eliminating “pork” would therefore be counterproductive to actually passing a budget.
#2, James, the thinking is that open primaries would allow independents (read “moderates”) to participate in choosing candidates for the run-off. The belief is that our current closed primary, coupled with gerrymandered districts, fosters extremist ideologues as candidates. Open primaries might move us from a wildly partisan legislature to a more moderate one that could find some middle ground for resolving budget issues. That’s the theory, anyway.
What does an open primary system have to do with a balanced budget?
It is amazing what a legislative montebank like Abel can do after he reads his own press clippings.
People are losing their MediCal funds and this opportunist is worried about his haircut on Fox News!