Folks in Sacramento are telling me that the state may be without a budget for another month or more. Of course, it’s largely due to the fact that California requires a 2/3rds majority to raise taxes — which means a handful of Republicans, who have signed pledges never to raise taxes, can hold the entire state hostage.
Robert at Calitics has a good line on the need for reform — but there’s no way a Constitutional amendment will happen before 2010. So until then, the Democrats are over a barrel, and eventually will probably have to agree to borrow money to cover the deficit — with no new taxes.
The problem is that, whatever the columnists and critics say, the Republicans have no incentive at all to accept a budget that raises taxes — and they have every incentive not to. Thanks in part to skillful Democratic gerrymanders, the GOP districts tend to be very conservative. And any Republican who breaks his or her pledge and agrees to raise taxes will be targeted for extinction.
It’s an ugly situation, and even Schwarzenegger can’t get the members of his party to move an inch.
How bad will it have to get before the public demands reform? Pretty bad.