Audio posted in the afternoon.
Tom Fudge: Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger says he will sign the California state budget today, but he'll do without any public ceremony. That's a good thing because the ceremony would be a grim one.
This year's budget came in 85 days late. That's a record. In fact, lawmakers may have also set a record for generating bad feelings. And, the budget they produced is yet another one in a series of spending plans, cobbled together with borrowing schemes and accounting gimmicks. Party-line differences have brought the budget gridlock to new heights. Republicans and Democrats seem to have no meaningful common ground, when it comes to solving the state's enduring financial turmoil.
The only thing both parties agree on is that something has to change. The Democrats would love to throw out the two-thirds majority requirement for passing a budget and raising taxes. But they'd have to get voter approval for that.
Guest
- John Myers , Sacramento bureau chief for The California Report .
