Davis is a joke in California

Due to the very poor budgeting of California's government, Davis has announced his new buget cuts becuase of a huge deficit. To recap, it raises alcohol tax, cigarettes by $1.00 a pack, sales tax by $.01, and.........

raises community college tuition rates from $12 to $24 per unit - 118% increase!

I don't understand, what the heck is he thinking (thoug he has show in the past that he doesn't, unless it lines his pockets, like in the electricity scandel where he made millions).

The state is in an uproar, will keep the board posted on updates.

I guess we can't blame him, he put us in this mess, and California's still re-elected him away.

 

The last time I checked, the budget in California was the responsibility of the state legislature.

Do you have any support for the notion that Davis profited personally from the energy crisis in that state? I would be very interested to read that.

 

I thought Jefferson Davis was dead.

 

Massachusetts is in a similar mess. The new Governor, Mitt Romney, is asking the Legislature for even broader cost-cutting authority to close a huge deficit. In typical fashion, the Legislature is cool to the idea, meaning that cities & towns will have to lay off police, fire, and teachers, while the hacks on Beacon Hill get an automatic pay-raise and keep their special deputy assistant advisors on the state payroll.


Bruce

 

It would be quite simple, when you run out of money: QUIT SPENDING and incurring new debt. But your average Democrat missed this lesson the rest of us learned in the fifth grade.

 

The largest deficits and the most rapid growth of the National debt occured under whom? Reagan, who in 8 years never submitted a balanced budget to Congress.

Politicians from either side of the aisle are susceptible to deficit spending. Just look at the present incumbent in the White House. His party controls the House, Senate, and the White House. (Not to mention the Supreme Court). I don't see anyone rushing off to balance the budget. Quite the opposite.

To deny this is to engage in political jingoism and rhetoric. Beats the facts, I guess.

 

Exactly. Here in MA, in spite of the Governor's office being held by a Republican since 1991, the Democrats have held a veto-proof majority in the Legislature since the 1960's, and have run this state into the ground. I wasn't kidding about them getting an automatic pay raise, they get one while police, fire, and teachers get laid off, and huge cuts are made in special education and after school programs.

Democrats around here are drawn to spending like moths to a flame. It's compounded 10X because it's the necessary services that invariably get cut, while the pork & waste remain intact. Meanwhile, the blind sheeple of the state keep voting Democrat. I firmly believe that Adolf Hitler would win elected office in MA if he had a (D) next to his name.


Bruce

 

Davis

I think Davis took the state's surplus of 40+mil and ran it into a deficit of 40+mil. in a matter of four years.

Davis is truly a miracle. He's incredible.

 

I don't think it is any one particular party, I think it is a corrupt government.

I will pull some articles on how Davis was part owner of the out of state electrical company that was hired and made hundred of millions of dollars during the crisis.

I though it was most interetsing that a Democrat would cut major funding to the communnity college system. This group seems to be the most in need. His platform when he was re-elected was supporting the elderly and schools. Now that the ballots are in, he is doing the opposite.

I didn't mean to start a political debate on parties, but wanted to see what others thought about the community college part - I went to several community colleges, and thought they were critical for my sucess in the University system upon transfer, not to mention all the the "non-traditional" students that the community college helps. The University system (here in CA) is VERY much lacking supporting a non-traditional student.

If you put the cuts in a group there is alcohol, tobacco, and education. (I thought the group was alcohol, tobacco, and firearms )

 

C'mon Bruce, be realistic

If he started out as a Green Party candidate in the Peoples Republic of Cambridge then he might just have a chance.
Jack

 

I'm a Republican and no particular friend of Davis', but I'm not sure that the current state budget deficits can accurately be blamed on him. Given the severe economic downturn, particularly in the post-bubble tech economy that's so influential in California, tax revenues are naturally going to be down. (A few years ago there was no office space to be had in Silicon Valley, now the office vacancy rate is over 30%.) This would have hit the state regardless of whether the Governor was a Dem. or a Rep.

One problem is that many things are planned and funded years out in advance. Given the dot.com boom, everyone seemed to be swimming in cash, so spending no doubt ballooned to keep pace. Now I suppose that the state has to deal with the cost overhang.

Under the circumstances, a modest increase in community college fees is inevitable, I guess. If the state budget can't afford to pay all the expenses, either the students are going to have to contribute more or else class offerings, programs and jobs will have to be cut.

$24/unit x 15 units (a typical FT load) is $360/semester. That's not too bad for a full-time college education, I guess.

Of course, back in the 70's and 80's, the community colleges were free. As many units as you wanted, just sign up, they were *giving* them away! I used to take a class or two at City College of San Francisco every semester, and did about 60 units that way, mostly for personal interest.

 

Re: Davis

You made one mistake. It isn't Million... It is Billion. As in like $35-38 Billion.

BTW, California's current year defecit is more than all 49 other state deficits combined.

 

Well the President can submit whatever budget to congress he wants to. But as I am sure that you already know, the constitution clearly places authority for spending decisions in the hands of Congress. Congress writes the checks, the President cashes them.

So blame Reagan all you want, but his party only had a slim majority of the Senate for part of his term. Except for that short period, a different party controlled both houses from 1955-1995.

Presidents tend to get the blame or the credit for the economy, budget and a bunch of other things that they don't really have a lot of control over.

 

Unfortunatley the community colleges are going to get zero out of this fee increase.

 

My comment about Reagan was to illustrate that the Republicans have absolutely no interest in balancing the budget. To wit...

With a Republican Congress and White House, we can look forward to balanced budgets? Then why are we heading in the opposite direction?

 

NO Rich...

Actucally, Reagan did submit balanced budgets (I don't recall for how out of the eight years--Source? Either Martin Anderson or William Niskanan). But they were DOA. Why? Democrats (controlling the House) refused to debate or discuss them..Something that ought sound familiar to Californians!

--Orson

 

Because...

Why?
Because most economists see an expanding US economy as "growing" a smaller deficit in % of GDP, and because it suits the opposing party to defeat any opportunity for the rival party to think up new forms of social spending by borrowing away all the fudging room the'll consume when they're back in power--like in California!

--Orson

 

another davis joke

I just got out of a class on educational theory. my instructor taught in a class nearby (delano) and saw Gray's wife come and speak once.

What she said stuck out in her memory was that the thrust of her speech was to make "every child above the 50th % percentile." Obviously this was a mistake, since you can't have 100% "over" the 50%ile.

Aaaahhhh. California We make so much sense here.

 

Re: another davis joke

Unless you are talking nationally.

Then again, 50th percentile of what? By what measure?

I will never understand how public speakers of all stripes can get away with their typically vague statements.

Tony

 

Re: Re: another davis joke

I interpret the remark to mean that Ms. Davis supports improving the education system to the point where (in the future) all students acheive scores that would put them over the 50th percentile (in today's distribution).

The problem isn't so much in how she phrased that, but in the fact that it's probably unrealistic.