Tuesday June 2, 2009, 1:16 pm
Throw every RepubiCON out of government forever ...

Arnold $ ... he made lot$ of promi$e$ and fulfilled none of them ... another $tupid RepubliCON robot mi$leading American people and putting money in his own pocket ...

Did Arnold take a pay cut? DOes he need his Governor's salary ... as multi-millionaire ... when so many California schools are being closed because he mismanged the budget?

Tuesday June 2, 2009, 2:17 pm
For years, we have argued that Gov. Schwarzenegger and his Republican allies have targeted low-income, working Californians to help solve the state's budget problems.

The latest example came Friday, when the governor proposed to kick 90 percent of the low-income elderly, blind and disabled clients out of the In Home Supportive Services Program. This is despite the fact that IHSS saves California taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars a year by keeping these vulnerable citizens out of nursing homes, which cost six-to-eight times more than home care. It is hard to imagine a more shortsighted and unconscionable scheme.

When asked about the impact that this and other cuts are having on families and individuals, the governor's director of finance, Mike Genest admitted that what we have been saying about low-income families being targeted is essentially correct. The reason cuts are disproportionately targeting the poor, he said, is that "the government doesn't provide services to rich people."

This may come as something of a shock to millions of Californians--the rich, the poor and the middle class--who are paying taxes to protect their homes from fire and flood, to maintain their roads and bridges, to help educate their children, and so much more.

But it also shows that our governor is more interested in political posturing than in finding fair and equitable solutions to our budget crisis.

We believe that ALL Californians should do their share to help the state in this fiscal emergency. The governor doesn't agree. He wants to throw nearly 400,000 people out of IHSS, but he won't ask businesses to give up any of their tax breaks.

He wants to completely eliminate programs like CALWORKS, which helps move people from welfare to work, but he won't tax the oil companies on the oil produced here in California, even though every other state does it.

Our only hope is that the leaders of the State Legislature will really lead; that they will stand up to the governor and the Republicans and say "enough." We need realistic, common-sense solutions to our budget crisis that will require everyone to sacrifice, not just some of us.

Doug Moore is executive director of the 65,000-member UDW Homecare Providers Union, California's only union made up entirely of homecare workers.

Posted on June 01, 2009
Comments
The more you depend on government checks the more you are going to feel the cuts. The rich and middle class may get public safety services but the don't depend on the government to send them a check every month. THERE IS NO MONEY to pay for the bloated California state budget. Californians have the 4th biggest tax burden in the country trailing only CT, NJ and NY.

http://www.taxfoundation.org/taxfreedomday/

Posted by: sean at June 1, 2009 11:51 AM

California has too many low income people. Where were the United Domestic Workers of America when the elites in DC (Kennedy, Hart, Cellers, Simpson Mazzoli, McCain, Bush, Feinstein, Boxer, Schumer, et al)opened the borders to the poor of the third world? Cheering them on. Why? Because Union leaders wanted more members, not because they wanted to better serve the members they had.
Where are the United Domestic Workers of America on the current efforts in Congress to continue opening the borders? Good question.
It is always about power - whether you are a US Senator, or the head of a Union. It is never about the public interest, nor about the Nation's interest.
I just read that Harvard has instituted "The MBA Oath," to the effect that "Harvard MBA graduates will act responsibly, ethically and refrain from advancing their "own narrow ambitions" at the expense of others." Really. For over two hundred years our elected representatives have sworn an oath to "preserve the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity." Guess what.

Posted by: Erik Kengaard at June 1, 2009 01:05 PM

I wanted to respond to Erik Kengaard directly, but he was busy sandblasting the "Give me your tired and your poor" quote off of the Statue of Liberty.

Posted by: StevefromSacto at June 1, 2009 02:38 PM

I wanted to respond to Erik Kengaard directly, but he was busy sandblasting the "Give me your tired and your poor" quote off of the Statue of Liberty.

Posted by: StevefromSacto at June 1, 2009 02:39 PM

I wanted to respond to Erik Kengaard directly, but he was busy sandblasting the "Give me your tired and your poor" quote off of the Statue of Liberty.

Posted by: StevefromSacto at June 1, 2009 02:39 PM

We are low income thanks to a layoff. I work for IHSS which brings in very little and my daughter is disabled. If I stop working for IHSS which I will if it goes to $8 that will mean a lady I care for will need to go to a home which will cost the state 5-7k a month opposed to the under $500 a month.

Posted by: AH at June 1, 2009 03:04 PM

We do need realistic, common-sense solutions to California's budget crisis - which is our budget crisis also, in that California is a prognostication of the future for all of America. As to who will sacrifice, many already have, and more will. In addition to those who have for many years been dependent on government programs, there are now thousands who have lost their homes, millions who have lost their jobs, and tens of millions who have seen their savings severely diminished. The worst may be yet to come, in the form of inflation.
What happened? The people placed in public office a bunch of self serving thugs, and then failed to keep on top of them.
As to the sentiments of Emma Lazarus, how many more millions would StevefromSacto like to add to the population of California, how would that addition affect California's already dire straits, and how would that be part of a realistic, common-sense solution?

Posted by: Erik Kengaard at June 1, 2009 04:15 PM

I wonder how much money can be saved by eliminating the interpreters to 23 different languages in all of our government and public services. It has to be just mind boggling to know the actual number of interpreters there are throughout the state and what their salary is.

The $37/month decrease for SSI recipients will create even a greater hardship on those already struggling to survive with way under the cost of living income as it is. And it won't even be more than a drop in the bucket for the state, comes to approximately $80 million/year.

And who is paying for all those DMV booklets in several foreign languages? I don't remember voting on this issue.

Mexicans are not the only illegals who gobble up public money and services. The powers that be endorse the 'divide and conquer' situation as they have created it.

Even illegals have to be healthy and educated or they will bring down the society, but I see no reason why they shouldn't have to pay a small monthly fee for services and let the American Citizens who have worked and contributed all their lives go first instead of waiting up to 6 hours to see a physician. Let THEM wait. Let THEM learn English.

If you think for one minute that the government doesn't want illegals here from south of the border, your mistaken. I know that I'm not going to pick tomatoes for 35 cents a basket in the hot sun.

If the government doesn't have enough money, then they have misused it. Any monies they have belong to US, it all comes from OUR hard work.
The only thing they should be allowed to do with OUR money is take a reasonable salary. When I work, I have to buy my own lunch, yet I worked hard over the years to treat the government swine to expensive gourmet food and transportation.

We ALREADY paid for everything, now they're going to actually STEAL from us. It's simply outrageous.

I have cancer and I'm a senior. Without my assisted care worker I won't be able to get along. Even if they don't cut my service, the decrease in pay for the workers (already seriously underpaid at $9/hour before taxes) which is supposed to be down to minimum wage. Then what? How many will quit and refuse to work for tender vittles when they have child care and their own life expenses to take care of.

ARNOLD isn't even American. What kind of arrogant loser becomes a weight lifter?
C'mon folks, he's a blithering idiot, and why should he care about us? It's mind boggling how few people are fighting to have him stop all his insane maneuvers.

Posted by: Deborah at June 1, 2009 06:11 PM

Listen people, we need to demand ongoing TOWN HALL FORUMS! Not the kind of forum where people stand in front of a news camera and, very intimidated, asks a question of the "highly superior legislator", or governor or whomever. Then they proceed to answer the question by dancing around the issue. NO MORE!! THE FACT THAT WE LET THEM DANCE IS RIDICULOUS!!! We need an INTERNET TOWN HALL FORUM! Where people can ask questions without being in front of a camera or risking the backlash of their employers seeing them on tv. I've seen SO many good ideas on these comment sections for balancing the budget. But in the back of my mind there is always the problem that I don't know all there is to know. So how about they tell us! We propose a solution and they tell us why it can not work. We the people need to become educated about what is going on! So let's say, once a week, our legislators are required by law to answer our questions! Why can't we start cutting the ridiculous pensions? Oh, because we can't renegotiate the union contracts without the state going bankrupt. Ok then, why can't we let the state go bankrupt? Because then our bond rating will go down to the point where it will cost 10 times as much to borrow money we need for the budget. Ok, but if we don't start stopping the pension contracts now, how much more will it cost us in the future, compared to paying 10 times more to borrow now? Etc. etc. etc. Now I don't proclaim to know very much about how things work. But that's the problem. We NEED to be informed. They are targeting the easy targets. Cut welfare, the poor, the teachers. But let the union contracts for pensions go on! It's madness! These people get contracts and after 35 years they retire with $500,000 a year! That's ok, if they pay for their pensions with their own hard earned money, and with their own union money. But when they give the money to stock brokers and then the market goes down, the tax payer is on the hook for the difference. People! We are paying for what those pensioners loose if the market goes sour. Can you say gambling? We are on the hook for a bad gambling debt. Can anyone tell me why they are allowed to gamble with our tax paying dollars. I'm mad as hell! I say we put an initiative on the ballot to make them answer our questions. All of them. Make them actually work for their damn money. And then, explain to us, in GREAT DETAIL, why they go taking money from the easy targets and not the tough ones. I have been monitoring the comments of these newspapers for 6 months now, and why? Because I honestly feel like I get better information from the people and what they say than from the papers themselves. But not very many people, (relatively speaking) respond. And that is because we all really feel, deep in our hearts, that what we're saying is being taken, with a grain of salt, "They don't really know all of the facts", "ignore them". Well how about this. We get TOWN HALL FORUMS! You lawmakers tell us why our ideas won't work. I wonder if they are really just very afraid of how educated we are actually getting about all of the corruption and union back room deals that are going on. Big hollywood parties. Cigars and whiskey in the back room boys. Invite anyone who has a million to spend. Union guys, "Heck ya! We've been inviting you for years. You guy's always do a great job at greasing our palms." "Teacher's unions, watcha got in your pocket, oh I see, a quarter? Um, we'll be in touch."

Posted by: Karen at June 1, 2009 09:29 PM

Actually, we don't really need to understand all the ins and outs of what goes on behind closed doors and under the table.
The simpler, the better.
Our 'leaders' CANNOT tell us the truth, because it's so out of control, all the corruption,etc, that it really can't be fixed.
Like Obama's promises seemed so reasonable and all you have to do is just fix it. But big money just won't let it get fixed. You try and fix one thing, and a different thing crushes you. BIG MONEY, HUGE MONEY. Well we don't live our everyday lives with big money.
I don't know why Calif is so broke. They have plenty of money to make a TV commercial telling people to visit here, showing people having so much fun AS IF it was going to be for free.
I was born here and haven't done most of those things.
People in power DID gamble with our money, or just spent it because 'they could'.
THEY should have to pay through the nose, all of them, and restore OUR tax money.
If you sat down with a group of friends and tried to write down everything the state collects sales tax on, JUST the sales taxes... can you imagine how much money that is? Where is it?
I used to teach high school. Schools were great and it really wasn't all that long ago.
It seems as soon as they started the Lottery, which promised to give 1/3 of the money to education, is right when the schools started going downhill. WHERE is that money?

Let them just attempt to explain it in simple everyday terms, in a conversational tone, speaking directly to all the people, just what happened to that money and what they are going to do to replace it and never let it happen again.

Maybe I'll email this to the Make A Wish Foundation. The people in Calif. have no power over the way government and big business do their dirty deeds.

The worst part of all of this, is that nobody that's in a position to actually get 'inside' to find out what happened, reads these things we write. The only people who read them are already people who agree with us.

I'm actually glad I'm old and have cancer. Seeing America fall apart like this is really a pity and fortunately, I won't have to be a part of it much longer. That sounds pretty selfish, but I know that over the years, no matter what I did, it NEVER made a difference.

And it just keeps getting worse. Dubya was just the frosting on the cake.


Posted by: Deborah at June 1, 2009 10:19 PM

Gov. Schwarzenegger and his allies need to rethink their old republication ideas, which ignore the responsibility of the wealthy to share in this "Time of Sacrifice" and work instead for the good of California and not just for themselves. As Larry the Cable Guy would say "Let's Get er Done".

Posted by: Rick at June 2, 2009 02:06 AM

As the bank robbber once said, he robbed banks because that is where the money is. Same with The Govenor and legislature, tehy have to cut welfare because that is where the money is. Governement already taking way to much from the productive people in society, so the only place to go is welfare programs to get he budget balanced.

Posted by: John T at June 2, 2009 04:17 AM

So sad that the low income families are forced to take a cut but Republicans are asked. This budget needs to be balanced by both sides. Democrats have bowed down to the Republicans demands and Republicans will not negotiate tax increases.

Our children are being affected by education cuts year after year. Teachers don't even have the heart to teach anymore because they are underpaid or threatened to be laid off. But what do the Republicans care, they have enough money to send their kids to private schools to receive the best education. They don't live in our world.

Then the Governor, if he doesn't get propositions past, he cries like a baby and goes after the weak. Why not be a true man and stand up to your party and let them know that you will increase taxes, that way you won't have to keep cutting social programs that keeps California moving.

Posted by: chelly at June 2, 2009 10:24 AM

So sad that the low income families are forced to take a cut but Republicans are asked. This budget needs to be balanced by both sides. Democrats have bowed down to the Republicans demands and Republicans will not negotiate tax increases.

Our children are being affected by education cuts year after year. Teachers don't even have the heart to teach anymore because they are underpaid or threatened to be laid off. But what do the Republicans care, they have enough money to send their kids to private schools to receive the best education. They don't live in our world.

Then the Governor, if he doesn't get propositions past, he cries like a baby and goes after the weak. Why not be a true man and stand up to your party and let them know that you will increase taxes, that way you won't have to keep cutting social programs that keeps California moving.

Posted by: chelly at June 2, 2009 10:25 AM

Tuesday June 2, 2009, 2:27 pm
This is really bad news...also he has cut teachers back. The most important keys to our society are being tossed. health education and welfare. God bless America...yeah

Wednesday June 3, 2009, 12:14 am
In Home Supportive Services (IHSS) is the California program created as a low cost alternative to help people stay in their homes. This isn't welfare, its simple economics and the results are going to be appalling. The news agencies have very much under-reported this subject. There has been NO STUDIES WHATSOEVER ON THE LONG TERM RESULTS. I hope California gets he pants sued off of it by civil rights groups.

Thursday June 4, 2009, 12:53 am
Scwarzzie baby has been bought and sold by the Elite Banksters.

Thursday June 4, 2009, 5:25 pm
I'm afraid somebody bought the bastard.. He has done nothing really great for California.
Tx Tom

Friday June 5, 2009, 12:42 am
Sad.....so sad!
Sheila D.

Sunday June 7, 2009, 3:26 am
I thought I had read that Gov. Schwarzenegger was on the list of governors who do not accept a salary. ???
I know that Mayor Bloomberg in NYC accepts only ONE dollar per year. Some other wealthy politicians do the same. I believe that all politicians who are that wealthy should do the same. Sadly, some are too greedy to care about the public good.

Monday June 8, 2009, 2:18 pm
I stopped watching anything that this SOB appeared in when he started going after Native American gambling casinos for taxes. Thsi greedy baastard has no compassion his self rightgeious brain. I don;t like him anymore, and I hope he never gets another gig in any movie deal when he is done raping the poor of California. He is of the worst ilk. I hope he rots in hell for all the damage he has done.....a real Bu$hco buddy from the word go....he makes me sick.

Monday June 8, 2009, 2:21 pm
Good for you, Wolfsweeps! Scwarznegger is a true RepubliCON...following in the foot$tep$ of hi$ grandfather ... a member of the German S.S. under Hitler.

Monday June 8, 2009, 4:09 pm
GOOGLE
Prescott Bush" and eugenics"

to educate yourself about the link to Republican$ and population control ...

Monday June 8, 2009, 4:10 pm
THE ARTICLE SAYS THAT THE PROGRAMS BEING CUT SAVE TAXPAYERS' MONEY BY HELPING PEOPLE NOT NEED TO GO TO NURSING HOMES, AND WHO DO YOU THINK OWNS THE NURSING HOMES?

THIS IS THE SAME THING ABOUT PRISONS - ASSISTED OUTPATIENT TREATMENT PROGRAMS (SUBSISTENCE ASSISTANCE AND COURT-ORDERED TREATMENT) SAVE 85% OF THE MENTALLY ILL PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS FROM GOING TO PRISON, SO WHY AREN'T THERE MORE AOT PROGRAMS? WHO OWNS THE PRIVATE PRISONS?

Oftentimes, there is insufficient effort to save taxpayers' money and prevent human suffering. Whenever you encounter evil, look for the money trail. The Bible says there is always a monetary reason behind wrongdoing.

Tuesday June 9, 2009, 2:16 am
The terminator has got to go,going after poor people is wrong,I bet they are minorities.Isn't he married to a kennedy? what's she doing about it?

Tuesday July 14, 2009, 9:05 pm
Suffering in El Centro: Cigars in Sacramento California's economy is in free fall. This appears to be of little concern to Governor Schwarzenegger, who instead prefers to focus his energy, attention and political capital on the ballooning state budget.

Tuesday July 21, 2009, 4:39 pm
* California's Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger brokered a deal on the state budget yesterday. The agreement avoids broad-based tax increases, and instead, in the midst of the recession, slashes services for the elderly and the poor, including health care access for seniors and children.

Friday July 24, 2009, 5:26 pm
California Pension Fund Hopes Riskier Bets Will Restore Its Health