Governor Is No Monarch; He Needs to Negotiate : Budget: Patronizing won’t do when his cuts would fall on the poorest and weakest Californians.

Two weeks ago state budget negotiations broke down because the governor was unwilling--or unable--to negotiate. The governor demanded $3.6 billion in cuts, saying, “Send me the budget, I’ll take the heat.” As the author of the budget bill, I, too, am willing to take heat. I am, however, unwilling to cause unnecessary pain or provide the governor unilateral authority to inflict such pain upon so many Californians.

I am embarrassed to be a resident of the richest state in the richest nation in the world, with a governor unwilling to provide the moral or practical leadership essential to ensure food, shelter, health and education for all Californians.

Those in need include children born through no fault of their own into poverty. They include hundreds of thousands of our senior citizens living below the poverty line. For both, the governor would reduce their basic food and housing supply.

They include thousands of disabled Californians, valiantly striving to live inde-

pendently--and the governor would deny them services that enable them to do so instead of retreating into institutions.

They include almost 5 million California students. The governor would provide them fewer teachers and larger classes when they already rank below their counterparts across the United States in both services and achievement.

What has happened to the governor’s pragmatic mind, his capacity to recognize that human beings whose development is unattended are not likely to grow into constructive, law-abiding, self-supporting citizens?

The evidence is conclusive: Mothers denied perinatal services are more likely to give birth to sick babies with greater health-care needs and costs who will then do poorly in school--and the governor would reduce perinatal services.

Numerous studies find that most of our state prisoners were abused as children--and the governor would eliminate child- abuse services.

Children who are hungry, ill and unattended are more likely to drop out of school, abuse drugs and/or end up on welfare or in jail or prison, all of which jeopardize public safety and our fiscal stability.

The governor seems unable to recognize that pennies of prevention are worth dollars of cure. Pay now, or pay tenfold in future years for institutionalizing Californians in juvenile detention, prisons, nursing homes and hospitals.

I’m embarrassed--but not surprised, considering how, under this governor’s leadership, we have failed miserably to attend to the needs of our children--that California was recently graded D by the advocates of Children Now for how we provide for our children in comparison to other states.

I understand that the governor is a religious man. How does he reconcile his posture with the most basic Christian precepts, “Love your neighbor as yourself” and “What you do to the least of these, you do to me”?

George Deukmejian was elected governor, not monarch. But when did he last spend time with Democratic legislators, aside from obligatory meetings? He and I last spoke more than three years ago, and I chair the Ways and Means Committee. Some of my staff members have worked in the Capitol building for six years and never seen the governor. His responsibility is to work with us, not rule us.

I read recently that the governor said he hoped the Legislature would begin to realize just how serious our fiscal crisis is. We recognized how serious it was in January, when we received the governor’s proposed budget, which was $1.6 billion short of meeting current service levels.

We recognize still how very serious our situation is, and the governor’s patronizing doesn’t help.

In these complex times, only collaboration among all parties leads to wise and effective solutions. We live in an era of limits--I recognize that. This is why we must negotiate; our understanding of what our limits are differs. I believe we have yet to reach our limits; the governor apparently believes we are very close. So let’s talk.

My hope--for all Californians--is that the governor will use the heart and mind he has been blessed with and enter into negotiations that can lead to a budget compromise that spreads the burden of this crisis to all Californians. Legislative Democrats have offered to meet the governor halfway. We must end this crisis.