Report From Occupied America: Mexifornian Pols, Schwarzenegger, Bankrupt California
By Brenda Walker

Here on the Left Coast, we have seen the Mexifornia future and it doesn't work. An economy built on the "cheap" labor of millions of illegal aliens who are kept afloat by billions of tax dollars in welfare is not a viable system. California's deepening budget hole from berserk spending simply cannot be papered over any longer. The massive costs of supporting a massive unskilled foreign population now threaten basic services.

The long-expected budget crisis has formed up in detail over the last while in the capital of Mexifornia. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has tapdanced his way to the end of the fantasy budget road. He managed to sidestep a lot of potholes, but his luck ran out: the subprime mortgage meltdown punctured the housing bubble and revealed the disastrous extent of California's shaky finances and a history of irresponsible choices.

Californians are being told by the suits in Sacramexico that the situation is dire. The press dutifully repeats the warnings; here are some recent headlines from the San Francisco Chronicle for a sampling of the tone:

- The governor's budget cuts nearly every state department

- Governor's deep cuts could mean hardship for millions

- Prisons: 22,000 prisoners could be set free early to save millions

- Education: Parents, teachers outraged at proposed $5 billion cut

Apparently the Democratic legislature hopes the public's response will be "Tax me, please!"—Speaker Fabian Nunez has said as much, that the Dems want tax increases. There is sure to be at least one proposed cut that pushes everyone's button. I'll admit I cringed when I saw the map of 48 parks slated for closure.

Incidentally, as salt in the wound, the riff-raff legislators who got us into this mess are scheming to have their careers extended. Proposition 93 would eviscerate the 1990 initiative-based law that launched term limits for pols in Sacramento. In particular, Prop 93 would allow Speaker Nunez (a loyal pal of Mexicans everywhere) and Senate President Don Perata (under investigation by the FBI for receiving kickbacks) to remain in power.

See Stop Prop 93 for more details about what's being called a "naked power grab." No problema to the Governator, though; he supports the measure and continued dysfunction in state government.

You may remember that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger got into office because of the similar financial mismanagement of his predecessor Gray Davis, who was removed via a celebrated recall election. It was quite the people's uprising at the time. Arnold was elected as a Republican who would bring fiscal discipline to a town famous for its lack, and citizens hoped for some improvement in state government.

But if anything, the Governator has taken political huckstering to a worse level than before. He initially talked reform but quickly fell into the Sacramexico style of wheeling and dealing. He became friends with lowlife Speaker Nunez, who has recently come under scrutiny for his extravagant lifestyle on the taxpayer's tab, particularly his fondness for expensive wine purchased in France.

It's not like the looming budget disaster came as a surprise. State Senator Tom McClintock, a serious financial realist, warned the Governor that extreme spending could not continue:

[quote]“Republican state Sen. Tom McClintock recalls a meeting with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger one year ago. The veteran Thousand Oaks lawmaker tried to warn the governor that he was traipsing down the same deficit trail as his recalled predecessor.

“In fact, McClintock cautioned, Schwarzenegger's path was even more risky than that of Gray Davis.

“McClintock showed the governor a chart he had drawn. It illustrated that spending under Davis had increased an average of 7% a year. Under Schwarzenegger, it was climbing at a 10% rate. Similarly, he pointed out, the deficit—the billions being spent over the revenue coming in—was larger than under Davis.â€