Experts Expound

“The final days of this year’s legislative session begin next week. Will there be a “super deal” — gaming, water, taxes? Or does everything fall apart?”

The final weeks of this legislative session will be a multi-dimensional bar fight. It is rare when something constructive emerges from a bar fight.

No super deals because the Democrats expect to have their guy in the corner office after the next election. Plus, they’ll need to deal with the budget for 2009-10 because General Fund revenue is falling far below expectations. The budget’s still not balanced.

Maybe some agreement on tax reform. Or maybe another resolution on Broccoli Week.

The well has been poisoned by the Governor, who committed the cardinal sin of the Capitol – going back on his word. Hard to imagine great stuff coming out of that.

Are you sure you don’t want to call it the “end of days?” Religious references aside, the phony budget requires that they be back in a month or two anyway.

Falls apart cuz the Legislature does not like the corner office.

Fall apart. The polarized Legislature is too frozen in place to thaw a deal of any significance on any important issue. The administration’s cool, post-budgets relationship with lawmakers (or should that be icemakers?) is hardly worth mentioning.

There is no centralized power in the Legislature strong enough to pull such a deal together, other than the public employees unions .

Things fall apart; the center cannot hold. Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.

They are anxious to do anything positive. Bodes well for deals on several fronts. I hope.

As always, the devil is in the details on all these issues, Gov. Kennedy, oops, Schwarzenegger, is in one place and the Legislature is somewhere else. Watch for more special sessions.

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