I've seen a lot of commentary that goes "If a Republican becomes governor, he won't be able to do much because the Legislature is overwhelmingly Democrat."
Not so. There is this little thing called the "line-item veto" where the governor can cut whatever line-items he wants out of the budget or any spending bill. And the Legislature needs 2/3rds in each house to restore the individual spending item.
Now, most governors don't use it much -- they trim a bit and punish a bit, but they rarely cut more than a fraction of a percent from the budget. Mostly, it's get-along go-along, as usual.
Note: McClintock would have been a Holy Terror with this power. "Governor No." I still have wan hopes of this -- but nevermind. I digress.
Arnold (or as the LA Times now calls him, "the actor") might or might not use this to govern. Even unused, the threat of it is a really good stick to keep the Legislature in line with. "Pass this entitlement reform, or I'll unfund the Coastal Commission", etc.
My only fear is that Arnold's more of a get-along, go-along guy himself. But the power is there to make the most hostile legislator jump.
Posted by Kevin Murphy at September 27, 2003 12:02 PM | TrackBack