1.06.2010

California reform initiatives

Fixing California is a monumental task. But some people are trying.

The biggest problem in California is union domination of the legislature. By controlling the legislature, public employee unions have given themselves gold-plated pay and benefit packages even as the state is going broke. In addition to controlling the legislature through campaign contributions, the unions also have the resources to advertise heavily to influence ballot initiatives, as they did when they killed all of Gov. Schwarzenegger's first-term reform initiatives.

Enter the Citizen Power Campaign, a proposal to make it illegal to use taxpayer money, deducted the paychecks of public employees, for politics. Getting public employee union money out of politics would go a long way toward reforming the system.

Steve Poizner, a long-time undistinguished moderate politician running for governor as a born-again reformist-populist-conservative, has endorsed the initiative, but has yet to give any of his personal multi-million dollar fortune to help get it on the ballot. If you want populist-reformist support, Steve, put your money where your mouth is.

Another reform initiative is to replace California's career politicians with a part-time legislature. Most other states have part-time legislatures, and are governed much more effectively than California. California has the highest-paid legislature by far in the nation, and not coincidentally, the worst government. Steve Poizner's wallet is MIA on this issue too.

Both these initiatives are badly needed, and badly need help to qualify for the ballot. Please go to their web sites here and here to donate or sign/circulate petitions.

1 comment:

Dean said...

Your description of Poizner sounds like that of Schwarzenegger in reverse.

I like the ideas, though. Link forthcoming.

Happy Super Tuesday!