Governator Vows Veto Volley in Budget Battle

Schwarzenegger, lawmakers dodge veto showdown

(NEWSER) - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the California state legislature have ended a nasty budget showdown with a compromise expected to be approved today, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. The agreement eliminates extra withholding from workers' paychecks, and bridges a $17 billion budget gap largely by adding penalties on corporations that underpay quarterly taxes and reducing reserve funds.The deal ended an 80-day stand-off in which Schwarzenegger threatened to veto the budget—and lawmakers threatened to override his veto. More»

Bill's author recently told governor to 'kiss my gay ass'

(NEWSER) - Though all political vetoes send some message, a recent one by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appears to carry two—with the less-obvious one quite the kiss-off to the Democrat-controlled legislature. In the message accompanying Schwarzenegger’s veto of a financing measure, the San Francisco Bay Guardian found that, in reading down the left side of the copy, the first letters of lines in the middle section spell out F-U-C-K Y-O-U. More»

Plan calls for massive cuts to close $26B budget hole

(NEWSER) - After weeks of wrangling, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has made a deal with state lawmakers to close the $26 billion hole in California's budget, the Sacramento Bee reports. Leaders believe the plan—which involves massive spending cuts and borrowing from city governments—is solid enough to secure billions of dollars in short-term loans, allowing the state to stop issuing emergency IOUs. More»

(NEWSER) - The California Legislature and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger are just steps away from an agreement that would close the state’s $26.3 billion deficit, the Los Angeles Times reports. Talks are expected to conclude today. “I don’t think there is anything that would make negotiations shut down at this point,” the Democratic assembly speaker says; a deal on contentious education cuts appears to be key. More»

Gov defends stance amid standoff

(NEWSER) - Tensions are soaring in California as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger faces off against Democratic lawmakers in the state’s budget crisis. But the governator is keeping calm as he defends his position, the Financial Times reports. He’s calling for welfare reform before he’ll sign off on a budget, but Dems say now’s not the time. “If you can’t get them to cut down the costs of government when the state is facing such a financial crisis, then it’s never going to happen,” said Schwarzenegger. More»