Prop 25 Most Essential Part of California Ballot

[Ignis]

The California Secretary of State's Office has assigned numbers to all the November ballot measures, so now we know that passing Proposition 25 and defeating Proposition 26 are absolutely essential. The two-thirds requirement for passing a budget has paralyzed our state every year, and Prop 25 would end the extortion by a vocal minority of right-wing Republicans. The only question is whether Democrats and progressives will run the kind of smart campaign that makes voters want to pass Prop 25, building a statewide coalition that rounds up more than just the usual suspects. While some are upset that Prop 25 keeps the two-thirds rule for tax increases, it is imperative for progressives to make its passage a #1 priority -- as it would at least allow the state to pass a budget, and the legislature could still raise revenue through fees. But Prop 26, also on the November ballot, would make an untenable problem worse -- by counting fees as "taxes." While we pass Prop 25, every effort must be made to defeat Prop 26.

(snip)

The reasons California needs Prop 25 are not academic. Our budget dysfunction has had a real impact on the state's economy. Unemployment is sky-high, school funding has declined to the point we will be 50th in per-pupil spending, community clinics have shut down and parks are in trouble. Californians are outraged, and it's our responsibility to show them that we can't afford not to pass Prop 25.

That means our campaign has to be about the students at UC who are facing tuition hikes (every Cal student who chained themselves to Wheeler Auditorium needs to work on this campaign); the school teacher who is getting pink-slipped from her job; the nurses facing budget cuts at their hospital; the firefighters who must go without proper equipment; and we even need the conservative prison guards union to be out there supporting this. All these people are more compelling and persuasive than Democrats in the State Capitol.

Another way to win? Get out of San Francisco, and go where the votes are in California. As I reported on the night we defeated Prop 16, statewide campaigns are won and lost in L.A. County -- and Prop 25 will have to do well there. Another reasons we defeated PG&E on Prop 16 was an unusual high level of support from the Central Valley -- conservative counties who had been disgusted by the utility company. "No on 16" did a great job reaching out to more Republican-leaning groups -- refusing to concede any constituency in the state.

-- HuffPost @ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-hogarth/prop-25-most-essential-pa_b_636312.html

[shanti]

1. k&r

i believe it is too! it will change the political landscape.