The California budget is beginning to look like a slow-motion train wreck, which everyone can see is coming but no one can do much about.

◼ California Budget Disaster Looms, but Slowly - Fox & Hounds

All the friendly backslapping and bonhomie was easy in June, since the budget was passed and December was a long ways away. Even when the state's July revenues came up $531 million short of estimates, hey, that's just one month.

But then the August numbers came up another $65 million below forecast and folks started to get nervous.

The prospect of watching as much as $2.5 billion in automatic cuts to K-12 schools, the university and state college systems and other state programs convinced legislative Democrats to come up with a bill that required state financial types to give 10 days notice if they decided those "trigger" cuts were needed and force the state Department of Finance to "consult" with the Legislature on alternatives to the cuts set out in the budget agreement.

Brown quickly vetoed the bill, saying the changes would undermine the budget plan.... read the rest...

◼ To the dismay of Democrats, Jerry Brown has become trigger-happy. - Peter Hannaford for The American Spectator

◼ We have a systemically dysfunctional state government. Until it is changed – radically – to align it with our 21st century reality, it will not and cannot deal effectively with the state's major issues. - Dan Walters.Sacramento Bee

Schwarzenegger at least tried to make reforms. If Brown really wants a legacy for the history books, he would revive that crusade.