Continuing trouble in paradise

by

by David Safier

Last night I posted a portion of an article from the Arizona Guardian about the Accidental Gov (I got the term from a commenter and plan to make it my own) criticizing the Republican legislators for not knowing the effects of the budget cuts they voted for.

Today there's more from the Guardian. It seemed a little, well, hypocritical that Brewer signed the cuts, then criticized the legislators for not knowing how deep they were. Here's her explanation.

Brewer said she was fully aware of the grief the $1.6 billion in cuts and fund sweeps would cause when she signed the budget plan earlier this month. State lawmakers, she added, should have known as well.

The difference is, I guess, the legislators pretended they didn't know the cuts would hurt. Brewer knew and didn't care.

Here's more of the political backstory, the first rumblings of the earthquake that will be the next budget battle:

In publically disagreeing with her own party members, Brewer finds herself on unfamiliar turf. For decades, Brewer has earned a reputation as a staunch Republican and a tough partisan fighter. But the public outrage over the drastic roll back of government programs is taking a toll, some political experts said.

The degree of anger among the public underscores the political realities the new governor and members of the Legislature will face as they head into the 2010 election cycle, said Bruce Merrill, a political pollster with Arizona State University.

In putting some distance between herself and her fellow party members, Merrill said, Brewer is doing what she needs to do if she wants to return to the governor's office.

Folks, you ain't seen nothin' yet.

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1 thought on “Continuing trouble in paradise”

  1. can’t they ever just do the right thing, instead of the politically expedient one? it’s infuriating!

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