Our View: Veto threat spices budget showdown

Once again the Democratic-controlled Legislature wants to fix the hugely out-of-balance state budget by raising taxes.

This comes four months after the same legislators imposed $12.5 billion in taxes, the largest increase in state history, on sales, incomes and cars, and one month after voters overwhelmingly rejected the same legislators' proposal to extend the new taxes two more years for another $16 billion.

Democratic leaders in Sacramento explain that without additional taxes, they can't spend taxpayers' money at the pace they desire to spend it, defending themselves with the canard that taxpayers want all government agencies and programs to continue, status quo.

If ever a sobriquet were deserved, it's "tax-and-spend Democrats" when referring to the crew running the Legislature. Even with enormous public opposition, they have held fast to their first love — collecting taxes — in order to pay for their second loves — government salaries and programs.

Nevertheless, they are ignoring Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's warning to veto any budget bill that increases taxes. They appear equally oblivious to Republican legislators' no-new-tax stance, even though Democrats need a handful of GOP votes to meet the constitutional two-thirds majority necessary to pass a tax.

Such consistency makes it's obvious how state government overspent itself into a projected $24 billion deficit, even after imposing state history's largest tax increase.

Democrats may be proposing $1.9 billion in taxes on oil, tobacco and vehicles so they can tell their constituencies — public employee unions and welfare and health care recipients — that they tried, and failed. But a futile attempt runs hours off the clock. State Controller John Chiang warns that without a balanced budget, California will run out of cash to pay all its bills by the end of July.

The governor sided with Democrats in February. He sided with them again in May, campaigning for the unsuccessful tax extensions. He's apparently had his fill. In fact, he even sounds again like the no-new-tax champion who rode a taxpayer revolt to office in 2003.

"It will be irresponsible," Schwarzenegger said, "after the largest tax increase in California's history just four months ago to go back to the people and to say we want to increase your taxes but we want to protect the salaries of state workers."

Democratic leaders predict victory next week. Besides new taxes, their plan includes some of the cuts proposed by the governor, as well as a lot of gimmicky revenue accelerations and the kind of fund shifts that delayed hard decisions for years.

Some think Republicans like state Sen. Abel Maldonado of Santa Maria, who bolted his party in February to vote for taxes, won't this time. "The people have spoken loud and clear," Maldonado told the San Francisco Chronicle. We urge legislators in both parties to spare taxpayers, and reduce spending.