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CA Greens Response To State-Of-The-State Address

News Advisory

THE GREEN PARTY OF CALIFORNIA
http://www.cagreens.org

URGENT NEWS RELEASE
Thursday, January 15, 2009

Contact:
Susan King, spokesperson, 415.823-5524 sking@cagreens.org
Daniel Brezenoff, spokesperson, 310.422-2211 dbrezenoff@cagreens.org
Cres Vellucci, press secretary, 916.996-9170 cvellucci@cagreens.org


RESPONSE TO STATE-OF-THE-STATE Governor should blame himself for budget crisis; he refuses to accept ideas to help the state, and workers because it would hurt his wealthy friends, Green Party asserts

SACRAMENTO - Gov. Schwarzenegger should look more at his failed "one-man rule" than even the dysfunctional Legislature - and someone should remind him that people are losing their homes and can't put food on the table while he refuses to tax the super wealthy, said the Green Party of California today in response to the State-of-the-State message.

"While the governor said he wants to punish the Legislature for not passing a budget on time, he forgets that it's his veto over the will of the majority, and his stubborn refusal to tax the super rich, which could raise billions for the state, that is holding back real change and a solution to the budget crisis," said Joe Feller, a member of the GPCA Coordinating Council.

Greens said a simple way to raise tens of billions of dollars would be to tax the wealthy – a move that GOP governors Reagan and Wilson willingly made.

"If we were to tax the upper 5-10 percent of our wealthiest citizens at the same percentage as we do the poorer 5-10 percent, we would have a manageable problem. But the governor today reaffirmed he would rather continue to sacrifice the disabled, the sick and the very poorest in this state. He won't tax his rich friends, but will raise sales taxes – a regressive move that hurts those most in need," said Wes Rolley, a California Green.

"There are other options, and they include supporting Green technologies which provide jobs, and universal single payer healthcare, which would help the people of California, and save us even more billions. But we don't see this from this governor. All we heard today was more "he said, she said," added Rolley.

"The Green Party is amazed the Legislature has accepted a pay raise, refuses to trim its own staff and continues to accept per diem payments even when lawmakers are not in Sacramento. Again, like the governor, they act as if they are not like the rest of us, including state workers who are being asked to ‘sacrifice' by forced furloughs and pay cuts," said Rolley.

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