"There were so many influential state legislators at the party celebrating the expansion of the Chukchansi Gold Resort and Casino the other night in Coarsegold that they could have solved the state's budget mess in between cocktails and gambling.

Instead, we are 33 days into the fiscal year and there's no budget as required by law. It must be nice to be able to party instead of doing your job.

No wonder California has a $15.2 billion deficit. The people we elect don't have the discipline not to spend more money than they take in. They should be locked in a room in Sacramento and not come out until they have a budget agreement that the governor will sign.

Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines and Senate Republican Leader Dave Cogdill were among the VIPs at the Chukchansi bash. That's three of the so-called Big Four legislative leaders. They could have celebrated the casino's expansion by giving Californians a budget.

So while these leaders were patting each other on the back at Chukchansi, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had just issued an ill-conceived executive order trying to reduce the pay of 200,000 state workers to the federal minimum wage of $6.55 an hour until the budget is passed."

Get the Story:
Editorial: No budget? Let's party! (The Freso Bee 8/2)