Now the Budget Grumbling Can Begin

After more than two months of wrangling, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders have signed off on a tentative deal that closes the state’s $26.3 billion budget deficit.
Now the real grumbling can begin.
Although details of the agreement, which was announced Monday evening, haven’t been released, enough broad outlines have leaked to show who won and who lost. The moaning will only get louder as the budget numbers solidify.
Actually, with the state’s current economic nosedive, there aren’t any real winners in the new deal, which revises a budget signed only months ago. Some groups, however, get hurt less than others.
Schools – and the education lobby – showed that they still pack plenty of political clout in Sacramento. Although there was no way they could avoid billions of dollars in cuts for next year, the final agreement ensures that they will be repaid at least $9.5 billion to make up for trims in recent years.