California is on the cusp of financial Armageddon. Finding a solution to the state’s $20 billion budget hole should be priority No. 1 for state lawmakers, regardless of party.
Yet at the Capitol these days, the major sideshow is state Sen. Abel Maldonado’s confirmation to the job of lieutenant governor. Rarely has so much political muscle been flexed over so little a job.
You’d think that, if you were a GOP lawmaker, you’d be falling over yourself to confirm a fellow Republican who could help a Republican governor recover some of his lost luster.
You’d think that, if you were a Democrat, the sudden exit of a GOP senator such as Maldonado would be seen as a gift. It opens up a seat that a Democrat – such as former Assemblyman John Laird, perhaps – could win, giving Democrats more power in the Senate.
Yet that is not the way it works in this Legislature. Instead of confirming Maldonado, lawmakers are beating up their own. Republicans vs. Republicans. Latinos vs. Latinos.
Wondering why voters hold this crowd in such low regard? This confirmation process is Exhibit No. 1,001.
The Democratic Party machinations are most worthy of comment. If lawmakers approve Maldonado prior to next Tuesday, the governor could schedule a runoff for his District 15 seat as part of the June election primary. That would save taxpayers money.
The trouble is, some Democrats believe they could face trouble winning a June runoff for the Senate seat because Democrats might stay home that day. Why? The anointed Democratic nominee, Attorney General Jerry Brown, faces zero competition in the gubernatorial primary.
If it all sounds like a nursery school version of Machiavelli’s “The Prince,” it’s because it does. California needs to transform the lieutenant governor’s office so that he or she runs in tandem with the governor, similar to the arrangement in the White House. For now, Maldonado would serve the state’s interests better than some predecessors. Lawmakers should confirm him.