Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez’s opening act is making us squirm in our seats.
California needs him to succeed, and bring some decorum and propriety back to the People’s House.
So far, we’re seeing too many pratfalls.
Pérez was in charge when the Legislature’s attorneys engaged in a ham-handed attempt to help a union and the Democratic Party win a suit to water down the open primary initiative, Proposition 14 on the June ballot. The effort largely failed in the courts, but not for a lack of trying.
The speaker said he wasn’t involved in the play. But the Legislative Counsel cannot act without approval of its bosses.
If he didn’t know, why didn’t he? There is no good answer.
Then there is the business of his transition to his new and powerful job. We’ve known since December that Pérez would be speaker, and he was sworn in at the beginning of this month. But he waited almost three weeks before selecting committee chairs and assigning legislators to various committees.
Speaking of swearing-in, Pérez felt compelled to take the oath twice, once in Sacramento and again in Los Angeles. Our state is mired in the worst recession most of us have ever experienced. All of us know people who have been laid off, haven’t found work, and are losing health insurance. This is hardly the time for Pérez to strut as if he is an Imperial Speaker.
As Pérez took office, word leaked that his predecessor, speaker-turned congressional candidate Karen Bass, had given raises to her legislative staff.
Pérez could have rescinded those pay hikes.
Instead, as The Bee’s Jim Sanders wrote, he followed by handing out even bigger raises to his staff, giving his chief of staff a $65,000 raise to $190,008, the level that Speaker Bass’ chief of staff received.
Making matters worse, Pérez did not reduce the pay for Bass’ aide to a level commensurate with her reduced duties.
These blindered moves are corrosive to the morale of hardworking legislative aides who will receive no raises, and they are infuriating to Californians who have been furloughed, or, worse, are out of work.
The curtain is closing on Pérez’s opening act. When Act II begins, he needs to focus on what is important – closing the multibillion-dollar budget gap, and taking whatever steps he can to help put Californians back to work.
Republican gubernatorial front- runner Meg Whitman is calling for a part-time Legislature.
The Citizen’s Compensation Commission will consider taking another bite out of legislators’ pay in April.
Neither idea is good. But Pérez needs to understand that his time upon the stage is no dress rehearsal.