Opinion: Brown needs to unleash a public works blitz to create jobs
By George Skelton, Los Angeles Times
Don Perata remembers the mood and expectations when the Legislature passed a massive $37-billion public works program in 2006.
The mood was jubilant, the former Senate leader recalls. Legislators had acted in a very rare bipartisan fashion. And the expectation was that the record-size bond package — pushed hard by then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger — would rapidly begin the rebuilding of California’s decaying infrastructure, creating tens of thousands of jobs.
“Everyone was feeling good about what happened. It was one of the high points of my time in the Legislature,” the Oakland Democrat says.
“The common goal was to get the projects out now and don’t let them get stuck with the bureaucrats arguing over whatever they argue about. We had just begun to realize that something was wrong with the economy.”
Voters overwhelmingly approved four bond proposals — for transportation, housing, education and flood control projects. They also passed a fifth bond for water facilities that had reached the ballot through the initiative process. That upped the total bond package to an unprecedented $43 billion.
“There was a sense of urgency,” Perata says, “and then we lost it.”
Five years later, only roughly half of the authorized bonds have been sold. And of the amount sold, about 30% has not been spent.
So much for pump-priming the economy in a severe recession.
The premise of this guys article is that the government has done a lousy job with the tax payers money in the various stimulus efforts and there for we should do more of it.
YOU CAN’T FIX STUPID but you sure can see that it is a consistent liberal trait.
@Eco (?) Tahoe.
Love the simplification. Some truth there, admittedly.
The second bit of yours comment?
Yup, just what we need: less solutions, nothing constructive, just hate and divisiveness. Good Job!
California is on the brink of bankruptcy. The Federal government is further in debt than any other time in our history. Creating jobs is a noble cause but just where will the money come from to pay the workers? More debt? Somehow it just does not make sense.
so Eco tahoe is following in the footsteps of Pubworks TV and blameing everything wrong under the sun on Liberal ideals. Lets think back just a year ago when the leader of California was a Conservative Republican. And of course he did everything right and good for the state of California. Handed off a state in absolute health and greatness to a Liberal Who has now destroyed everything. It sounds like a cheap thriller. Too bad that the rhetoric and finger pointing is a limp excuse to jsut say the same ol thing you always say
The federal government jobs were created at a rate of over $200,000 each – and that is if you are stupid enough to believe the government in the first place.
America – Now known as the land of Tarts and FOOLS.
Poor education by the education monopoly.
Bats Last,
YOU ARE NUTS IF YOU THINK ARNOLD WAS A CONSERVATIVE!
You are ignorant or a liar … Which one, hmmmm
The land of Libs is going down – oh yah it must be Bush’s fault.
I am so sick of STUPID!
nature bats last, Not only is Eco following in PubTv’s footsteps, it has the same exact shoesize and tends to agree completely in posts that contain the same ideas right down to the misspellings. hmmm indeed. And I believe the correct word for the Herman Cain-like “Non-Non-Nonsense” is “drivel”.
Nature Bats Last,
The evidence is the evidence.
Surely you agree that California has been on a liberal course for decades. It’s known as the most liberal state to my understanding.
Most honest people would also agree that the Democrats are by and large liberals – some are progressive liberals – the worst kind.
Granted – some Republicans are liberals too.
California is certainly not run by conservative people.
For me – I believe in Freedom and for the most part, Free Markets and I also believe in the Constitution as do other conservatives I know.
California does not have free markets and is ranked in my estimation as one of the most over regulated and among least free states in the nation.
So, who do you think should get the blame?
Howard Jarvis?
Arnie was no Conservative. Not by a long shot. He just played one in the movie.
SmedleyButler,
Howard Jarvis? Prop 13 fame… That was 40 years ago.
Is your point that tax payers are under taxed?
My point is that blaming the liberals for the “Mississippification” of Ca. because they have had a majority of their candidates elected in California is crazy because the 2/3 vote Prop. 13 power given to the gop minority to kill Any progress or solve Any problems has brought us to this disaster. And yes, I would say that a certain % of Californians are undertaxed.
Maybe your idea of “progress” is not the same as ours.
dogwoman, I don’t believe that your idea of progress has anything to do with anyone’s progress but your own. There is no “ours” in libertard world.
Bluster,
That’s funny,
what’s with the (?)
You think that conservatives aren’t eco Conscious or something? If so that is Insulting.
As for …
… ‘less solutions, nothing constructive, just hate and divisiveness. Good Job!’
LOOK IN THE MIRROR when you say that!
YOU THINK WASTING THE TAX PAYERS MONEY IS A SOLUTION? More of the same crud is your answer. It’s the opposite – let the world see the destruction the libs have brought on America.
That what you call EDUCATION with a dose of reality!
Give me a break.
‘Just hate and divisiveness’ you say.
WOW – short memory huh? – I heard the hate and divisiveness for 7 years from the left and the leftist media over a good man and a great President GW – worked hard to bring him down. He did the hard job and got vilified for it.
Bush Lied, bla bla bla – then the hate the Tea Party.
NOW LOOK WHAT THE LEFT HAS BROUGHT US – and this article is spouutin for more of it.
Liberal Social engineering brought us the housing crisis!… now the OWS crud –
It’s tiring!
Final point, at least we now know that there must be a Heaven because the left is bringing us to He11.
I didn’t think there could be a more reprehensible or ignorant Gov. of Texas running for POTUS but again I was wrong. Never underestimate the stupidity of the ‘Merican duped.
Smedley,
“…but again I was wrong.”
I would suspect you are use to being wrong, ya know, considering what you say and all.
It’s the attitude like this writer has that is hard to deal with for me.
I am in the process of starting up a small business. A business focused on marketing and travel promotion.
It is obvious to me that California is not interested in small businesses and has a hostile government towards them.
I would be a fool to start up in this state – very little opportunity in that so many of my prospects are just gone now. Plus there is lots of government regulations and fees to deal with. Then after I work hard and put in 12 hour days for a few years and start making some money the state will take my earnings and give it to the over paid under worked and incredibly over pensioned state bureaucrats.
No thanks; I’ll be starting up somewhere else, Nevada maybe. I am still doing some research on that. However it’s clear that many other states want and respect small business people.
Long-term, sustainable job growth comes from the private sector. The focus of infrastructure projects should be making infrastructure great! Not on the projects being a make work job program. When it become the latter, efficiency with both the tax dollars and timeliness of the work done, is lost!
After the ’06 bond initiative passed, I figured at least CA’s infrastructure is now taken care of for the for seeable future. But then Pres. Obama in ’09 announces a major $700B! stimulus program where I figured, “Well CA doesn’t need it, because the ’06 bonds were going to rebuild it?” Then the Pres. has announced yet ANOTHER infrastructure program which makes me ponder, I guess the only amount of tax dollars that’s enough is MORE?!