Mood of the voters - all outrage, no action:
"Californians are convinced that the state is on the wrong track, and they're mad as hell at the dysfunction in Sacramento. But they're not willing to do much about it."
Those were the depressing findings of research released by the respected Field Poll last week. Unfortunately, the surveys should give pause to advocates of a constitutional convention to restructure state government to smooth out the budget process and to buffer the state from wild fluctuations in revenue.
A solid majority of Californians say they favor "fundamental change" to the Constitution. Yet on point after point, when asked about a specific constitutional change, Californians say "no way."
Perhaps the most ominous number for the prospect of reform was the 57 percent of Californians who believe the state can provide about the same level of services by simply eliminating waste and inefficiencies. Only 37 percent disagreed with that notion. This was the perception that candidate Arnold Schwarzenegger advanced in the 2003 recall of Gov. Gray Davis.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/10/18/INS719K3D7.DTL#ixzz0UIUouBTW
"Californians are convinced that the state is on the wrong track, and they're mad as hell at the dysfunction in Sacramento. But they're not willing to do much about it."
Those were the depressing findings of research released by the respected Field Poll last week. Unfortunately, the surveys should give pause to advocates of a constitutional convention to restructure state government to smooth out the budget process and to buffer the state from wild fluctuations in revenue.
A solid majority of Californians say they favor "fundamental change" to the Constitution. Yet on point after point, when asked about a specific constitutional change, Californians say "no way."
Perhaps the most ominous number for the prospect of reform was the 57 percent of Californians who believe the state can provide about the same level of services by simply eliminating waste and inefficiencies. Only 37 percent disagreed with that notion. This was the perception that candidate Arnold Schwarzenegger advanced in the 2003 recall of Gov. Gray Davis.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/10/18/INS719K3D7.DTL#ixzz0UIUouBTW