NEWZ: Schwarzenegger's Budget Plan

Half a month ago, I reported on Tsar Schwarzenegger's financial record here. Now, he's released his complete budget, and it's time for a new look.

In case you've forgotten, here's some of the promises he made during and after his campaign:

• Schools. He'd never cut education spending.
• Social Services. He'd never cut critical social services.
• Local Government. He'd preserve funds for local government.

Here's what his budget does:

• Schools. Increases state college fees by 10-40%. Increases community college fees by 50%. Decreases financial aid for middle-income students. Withholds $2 billion dollars from local schools.
• Social Services. Removes $.9 billion from Medi-Cal and $.8 billion from programs intended to get welfare recipients working. Refuses new members acceptance to state's health program for the poor and elderly, then eliminates some existing benefits for poor and disabled members.
• Local Government. Takes $1.3 billion from local government (ironically after he went over the legislature's head to give them $2.6 billion last month, due to a "public safety emergency"; one can only assume that the give-back was the result of pending lawsuits for his previous illegal actions, and that this is an end-run to take away the money ina different manner).

Other fun-filled facts about the new budget: (1) it depends upon $15 billion dollars in loans through a March bond initiative, that will probably be rejected by the people of California (and rightfully so); (2) it depends upon an enormous economic recovery bringing in $2.9 billion additional dolalrs in taxes; and (3) rather than raising any taxes it raises funds through regressive state park fees and those aforementioned tuition increases.

Thank you, Governor WilsonSchwarzenegger.