Summer Escapades -- the 2004 Sequel

The drama playing out in Sacramento over the four week late state government budget reminds one of a summer movie aimed at the high school audience and destined to play in drive-in theaters exclusively.

SACRAMENTO, CA -- It started like two teenagers in love, a match made in heaven. The new kid in town (played by Schwarzenegger) made clear from the start he was out to court and win over the other Party. And so he did, much to the chagrin of some of his pals. Before you knew it, a proposal ($103 billion) was made and almost accepted. For a moment, it looked as if wedding bells would be chiming in June (and the budget would be signed before the end of the fiscal year).

But, any director knows that such a simple story won't make a good full feature movie. Some plot twists were needed. So, the new kid's gang members said some things that upset the apple cart. Why aren't you being loyal to your buddies (like the bus company, Laidlaw International), and paying more attention to us?" The other gang was joining in the fray, too. What about our friends (the prison union)? Aren't they just as good as his friends?" This precipitated a lover's spat, complete with name calling. This has been going on for weeks in public places like the Cheesecake Factory (shot on location"). Not a pretty sight.

Since the lover's quarrel, we'll call our two lovers Real-Man" and Girlie-Man." (Since there are more men than women in the senate leadership, men have to play all the parts, just like the ancient Greeks did.)

The ending has yet to play out, but the viewers all know what is going to happen next. Real-Man and Girlie-Man will make up. Wedding bells will ring, and California will have a new budget. Some crumbs will be thrown to their friends on both sides of the aisle so they forever hold their peace, or at least until after vows are exchanged. But, all is not as well as it seems.

Before the final credits there will be an innocent victim whose life is claimed: the present and future taxpayers of California. For, in the six months leading up to the end of the fiscal year, or the four weeks of intense negotiation since, never has any reduction in state expenditures been seriously considered. Just the opposite.

In the spirit of bipartisanship, between the Governor's January proposal and his May update, General Fund expenditures were increased by nearly $1.6 billion, and for all funds combined the total has gone from $99 billion in January to the $103 billion being discussed now.

In a 2003 Tax Foundation study on the business friendliness" of all the states tax codes, California placed a dismal 49th, with only Mississippi being more hostile to businesses. By comparison, Nevada, Oregon and Arizona placed third, ninth, and 17th, respectively, putting them in a good position to draw businesses and individuals away from California (a much bigger threat to the states job base than the much over-hyped offshoring concern). With a $103 billion-budget, it appears that the 2004 sequel will be just a warmed-over remake of last year, with Schwarzenegger missing a golden opportunity to leverage his popularity in the service of improving the tax competitiveness of California.

Just how much is $103 billion? Considering a State Product of approximately $1.4 trillion and a population of 35.5 million persons, state expenditures are effectively confiscating income from 2.6 million of us for a year. Of course, some of the taxes will be paid by our children, since part of the spending is being financed by borrowing.

Viewers of this movie are beginning to realize it is not a light-hearted summer romance, but a sick horror flick with them, their spouses and their children cast in the role of the 2.6 million totally disenfranchised taxpayers.

For a different plot and a new ending, a new cast is needed. If the people of California would like to see significant reductions in state spending and taxes, and a state government that lives within its means, they should cast more Libertarians for the parts of the movie being shot in Sacramento.

About the Libertarian Party of California:
The Libertarian Party of California has more than fifty public officeholders statewide. Libertarians believe in personal freedom in both social and economic spheres, and in government small enough to protect those freedoms.

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