• The Democratic Club of Santa Maria Valley is inviting the public to celebrate President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration ceremony in style at its Inaugural Celebration Dance on Jan. 20. The dance will be held from 7 to 10 p.m. at Yoyo Hall, 725 E. Foster, in Santa Maria. Dr. Danger will provide music, and light snacks and a no-host bar will be available. Admission costs is $10 for voting-age adults and $6 for students. Buy tickers at the door or call the Democratic Club at 349-2708.
• On Jan. 5, Democratic legislative leaders failed to agree to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s proposal that the Legislature cut its budget by 10 percent. The cuts would match the Republican governor’s order last month to cut 10 percent in state employees’ salaries through furloughs. The Legislature’s budget is approximately $262 million, but many government officials say cutting the Legislature’s budget by 10 percent would do very little to correct the state’s $40 billion deficit. Still, Schwarzenegger has been calling on lawmakers to limit their expenses as a show of leadership during tough economic times. Sen. Abel Maldonado (R-Santa Maria) agreed with Schwarzenegger, saying in a press release that lawmakers need to make sacrifices just like everyone else because of the budget crisis. “Every day there is another headline about cuts to education, public safety, health care, state workers, and every other branch of government. But if you look at how the Legislature is behaving, you would have no idea we’re in such a deep budget crisis,” Maldonado said in the release. “The least we can do is show that the elected representatives of this state are not immune to economic downturns and the slowing economy. But it seems that both parties are willing to talk the talk, but not walk the walk.”
• Discussions about the economy and two wars marked the beginning of the 111th Congress on Jan. 6. Newly sworn-in and returning politicians met at a ceremony on Capitol Hill to begin the two-year session. Republicans and Democrats called on each other to work together in the spirit of bipartisanship to address the nation’s problems. Following the ceremony, U.S. Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara) released a statement about the new session. In the release, Capps referred to the start of the 111th Congress as “a momentous day for our country.” Addressing and resolving the country’s growing economic crisis, she said, is the new Congress’ first priority. “We will work closely with our Republican colleagues and President-elect [Barack] Obama to develop economic recovery legislation that will provide middle-class tax relief, reinvest in job creating projects that will strengthen our national infrastructure, and assist states and local communities struggling to provide essential services like law enforcement, health care, and education. This legislation will help the American economy recover in the short-term as well as strengthening it for the long-term.”
This article appears in Jan 15-22, 2009.