California politicians are stupid. Faced with a budget deficit of their own making, rather than make across the board cuts and put a halt on excessive (and in many cases unscrupulous) spending programs, California legislators of both parties have agreed on a massive tax hike to help overcome a $40 billion budget shortfall.

Led by legislative Demcrats, the budget includes what they are calling “$15 billion in permanent spending cuts, $12.8 billion in temporary tax increases and $11.4 billion in borrowing.”  But most of it is just legislative double-speak and it amounts to a travesty for Californians. The $15 billion in permanent spending cuts included several billion dollars worth of “automatic” spending increases that now won’t happen. But that’s not really a cut, since these “increases” don’t represent real dollars already spent. Not real program cuts at all, just keeping the automatic increases from happening this year.

The $12.8 billion in “temporary” tax hikes also are a farce, espepcially since taxes rarely get reversed. The deal between Democrats and Republicans calls for a ballot initiative to allow voters to institute a spending cap, but if voters do approve it, then the “temporary” taxes automatically last for 5 years. These taxes include increases in sales tax, car tax, and income tax.

Oh, let’s not forget too that they are still needing to borrow money to make up the budget shortfall. How does more borrowing fix anything? It doesn’t…it just passes the buck down the line for others to deal with.

I’ve grown used to the California Democratic party being a shill for the public employee unions who are more concerned with their own members and getting more and more money than the general public at large. But the California Republicans just ran on a “no new taxes” pledge to get elected in November, and with their capitulation are clearly stabbing their base in the back.

California legislators have a long history of overspending, buckling to state employee unions in boon times, and creating unnecessary government programs and policies to employ former legislators. A state garbage board meets regularly, pulls in 6-figure incomes for board members (who are political favor takers) and does little to make life better for Californians. This is but one example.

California’s prison system costs twice or three times what most other state systems spend, yet they are squallor filled breeding grounds of violence and sickness. The problem? The promised salary increases and exorbitant pensions given out to the union guards at the expense of real reform and proper care.

The list could go on and on and on, but the fact is that California is governed by idiots who care nothing for their constituents and everything for their political donors and benefactors.

It’s no surprise to see that the number of non-illegal citizens leaving California is greater than those coming in to the state. No more California dreamin’ for some time I think.

In the economic disaster that grips the nation and the world, most economists say that raising taxes is counter-productive to recovery efforts. In the power halls of California, raising taxes is the first priority to managing a mismanaged governmental budget.

That’s not leadership. Too bad so many Californians aren’t paying attention.

(cross posted at Bring It On)