California Begging

The once-great state of California has been reduced to begging from the federal government. But no matter how much help the feds give, the state’s fiscal ills won’t end until its lawmakers stop spending money.

To say California is a mess is an understatement. In the current fiscal year, the state is expected to post a deficit of $21 billion as the budget continues to spiral out of control. Even after last year’s epic budget battle, when Californians were hit with $12.5 billion in new taxes and $6 billion more in borrowing, the state still isn’t close to bringing revenues and expenditures into balance.

So Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has an idea: He wants President Obama to give him $8 billion — or else, he says, he’ll kill or slash most of the state’s welfare programs, cut pay for 200,000 state workers and end two tax breaks for big corporations.

How far the Golden State has fallen. Once the nation’s unquestioned economic and innovation leader, it’s now a laggard. With 13% of the country’s population, it has nearly a third of its welfare recipients. Though it’s still the world’s seventh-largest economy, it’s in danger of sliding backward as its fiscal and economic crises drive jobs and workers away.

Full Story Investors.com – California Begging.