Minimum Wage could be a dangerous game for the Governor
My first reaction to the leak that Schwarzenegger might sign an executive order cutting state workers’ pay: this wakes folks up around the state, puts much-needed attention on the budget problem, and prepares the public for the difficult changes — a tax hike that Republicans will hate and a rainy day fund or spending restraint that is not the Democrats’ cup of tea — that may be part of the final budget agreement.
My day 2 reaction: This is a dangerous game the governor is playing. Here’s one potential problem. Schwarzenegger had received some support from the big state workers’ union, SEIU Local 1000, for his suggestion to borrow against the future revenues of a modernized lottery. But now he’s scared those members. He could be risking that support. And more broadly, SEIU has been helpful to the governor.
CNN uses fake CA “College Republican” in Anti-McCain story
The idea that much of our nation’s media in their coverage of the Presidential election has exhibited a bias in favor of Senator Obama has been a hot topic of discussion as of late, even recently prompting the McCain campaign to release a video of quotes to illustrate their point.
In an exchange with CNN yesterday that began with the news network apparently fabricating a quote and attributing it to a supposed member of the USC College Republicans, California Students for McCain may have gotten the chance to witness this phenomenon first hand.
Yesterday morning, I awoke to concerning news – someone claiming to be linked to Students for McCain and the USC College Republicans had been quoted by CNN as stating that McCain does not appeal to youth, Republicans included, and will struggle to carry the youth vote on both sides of the aisle. The CNN story was one of the top headlines on their website, and even made the front page of Yahoo.
Cost Overruns from Coast to Coast
I grew up in Massachusetts, and recently I’ve been reading stories about government projects in my home state that would be familiar to anyone who follows government in California. They deal with cost overruns of major public programs. Let’s be fair and say there are cost overruns in private as well as public efforts, as anyone who has remodeled a house knows.
However, what made me take notice of these cost overrun stories is that one had to do with a big infrastructure project and the other had to do with the Bay State’s effort to implement a universal healthcare system.
California is involved in many infrastructure projects, but may get behind a massive proposal if the voters approve Proposition 1 on the November ballot to support a $10-billion high-speed rail. And, anyone following California politics knows that last year was supposed to be the Year of Health Care Reform. The governor’s pet project was derailed, but perhaps only temporarily. Rumor has it he wants to resuscitate the program as soon as the budget is resolved—whenever that occurs.
Thinking about these California proposals I read these recent reports about Massachusetts with trepidation. That big infrastructure project in Boston — the most expensive highway project in United States history is facing – you guessed it, a cost overrun. And, the Massachusetts health-insurance-for- everyone plan is up and running and one of the first things state officials noticed was – it cost more than expected.