Election could complicate passage of budget deal

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Reporting from Sacramento —

Final passage of the budget pact struck Friday by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and top lawmakers could be complicated by the looming election, as anxious legislators, whose approval ratings have already sunk to record lows, prepare to face voters.

Election-year politics is always tricky. But this year the budget vote drama arrives only weeks, rather than the customary few months, before election day, Nov. 2.

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"It's hard enough to do the sausage-making in the best of times," said Democratic political strategist Chris Lehane. "It's incredibly difficult to do the sausage-making with four weeks to go from an election."

Schwarzenegger and top lawmakers have released no details on the budget accord, but sources close to the talks said the package includes cuts to public education — including the suspension of the state's school funding guarantee — health and human services reductions, optimistic accounting assumptions and no broad new taxes.

Full story: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-state-budget-20101003,0,7894166.story