California governor invokes Egypt in tax vote call

[The Northerner]

LOS ANGELES (AFP) – California governor Jerry Brown called on Monday for a public vote on extending tax hikes to help curb the state's colossal debts, invoking the popular uprising in Egypt to back his appeal.

In his first "state of the State" address since succeeding Arnold Schwarzenegger, Brown warned that California will not create the jobs it needs "unless we get our financial house in order."

As part of those efforts he is pushing for a popular ballot in June to mandate the extension of tax hikes needed to help rein in California's estimated $25-billion budget shortfall.

Republican lawmakers have said they will not allow a public vote on taxes, but Brown, a Democrat, compared this to thwarting the popular will as in Egypt, where President Hosni Mubarak is defying a popular uprising.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110201/ts_alt_afp/uspoliticscaliforniaeconomybudgetegypt

[yurbud]

1. like Obama, he needs to go further! But it's a start.